Tyrese Gibson - Supermodel/Rapper

By: Alex Lang

Action movie star Tyrese Gibson (2 Fast 2 Furious), took time out from shooting on the set of 2007’s movie “Transformers, ” to talk about his new double album “Alter Ego.”

The title of the album has led Tyrese to pull a Garth Brooks and create an alter ego for himself – Black Ty. Black Ty is a hardcore rapper, and will have one disc on Alter Ego, while the other will be Tyrese’s R& B. Tyrese, or Black Ty, talks about his decision to create an alter ego, why he made a rap album and what it is like working with some of the biggest names in hip-hop.



AL) You have a new album coming out in “Alter Ego.” I heard you created a new persona for the album, why?

BT) Black Ty do and say things Tyrese would never do. He’s got certain lyrics, certain directions in his songs that Tyrese would never be able to get away with. That’s why I felt there was no need for me to go there as a singer.

AL) Why even create an alter ego?

BT)Tyrese has done what he has done; I know I’m talking about myself here. You know I’ve done what I’ve done as a singer, I’m not done with singing. It’s a double album, so one side I am singing and the other side is hip-hop. It’s just one of those things where, I don’t want people to call me Tyrese while I’m rapping, so there is Black Ty; it’s a another world.

AL) What made you do a double album with a hip-hop and R & B side?

BT)I did it that way because the name of the album is “Alter Ego.” It was just a matter of allowing my R & B fans to hear what they’ve been waiting on and expose my R & B fans to something new. The thing is, I respect my R & B fans; if all you’re doing is listening to R & B, I love you for that, but I’m not going to force what I’ve been doing on the hip-hop side on you. I want you to stay open minded and just listen to it, give it a chance.

AL) What do you hope listeners get out of the rap?

BT) I just want to see them dance. I want to see them dance and I want them to feel my pain. When I have the darker records where I’m really speaking my mind, I want them to feel my pain and be able to relate to it.

AL) Darker? What do you mean?

BT) I just got some records where I’m really speaking about issues that have been going on. You know, some things have been going on in the streets, things going on with friends who used to be friends, now friends I don’t deal with anymore. Business people, you know, just end the street politics and whatever else. That’s the pain, the darker side. People always see me smiling, happy having a good time in my life, which is the case; but there are things in my life like everybody else. I feel like this is me arriving, finally getting it off my chest.

AL) Why wait so long in your career to do a rap album?

BT) I wasn’t ready at the time. You know the temperature of hip-hop is right, right now. Mary J. Blige is rhyming now, R. Kelly has been rhyming for a while. It’s one of those things where the temperature, there is a lot of people in my range singing, who are now rapping. If I let a couple more months or years go by, things might be a little bit different

AL) A lot of rappers, Snoop Dogg, Method Man, The Game, have publicly supported you as a rapper. What does that mean to you?

BT) I love them for it. Rappers don’t ever go public with the way they feel about other rappers. Everything about what they do is about building themselves up, they don’t ever give it up to other rappers. Being that I’m a new rapper and this is my first rap, full-on album, for them to feel about me and come out it’s just beautiful. It’s the same thing from me on this side. Anything they need from me, they’re calling me now. It’s just love, the love is coming in full circle.

AL) Are there any collaborations on “Alter Ego”?

BT) Yeah, a lot of them are. There’s going to be some new Game, Paul Wall, Chingy, Kurupt, Ice Cube, David Banner, I don’t want to keep dropping names, but there are a lot of people on the album.

AL) What kind of success are you looking for from “Alter Ego”?

BT) It ain’t a thing of album sales and money. I didn’t do this for no money. It’s a passion in my life and if you don’t buy my album, I want you to hook up with one of your homies who did by the album and hear me out. I don’t want nothing else, just hear me.

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