Cognito recently took the time to tell us about his favorite films of all time.  They range from classic comedies to intense action flicks.  Here are his choices and what he had to say about them:

Here ya go, It would take HELLA long to get this done if I REALLY thought about it for a long time but I’m going to list them according to movies that I could watch over and over and movies that I NEVER get tired of:

Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby AND Anchorman ( THESE MOVIES ARE A TIE)
I love pretty much EVERY Will Ferrel movie BUT I love his older ones the BEST. I love his comedy and the roles he plays. I believe “Ricky Bobby” is in his top 3 characters he has played…. great one liners, great theme and all around funny as SHIT movie. I know Kutty is in love with this one as well. Lol… But Anchor Man is ALSO one of my fav Ferrel movies. I wouldn’t feel right about saying one of these CLASSICS are better than the other.

Man On Fire
Denzel Washington played such a BAD ASS role and I love that this is based on a true story…some REAL SHIT! I love this film and also love the little details about it. I LOVE the music used, love the casting and how the film was shot. The camera work and way the film was organized was perfect, no flaws. I could watch it 100 times and STILL be on the edge of my seat.

Heat
I cant say anything else but Pacino and Deniro together and this WHOLE FILM FROM START TO END IS FUCKIN SICK. Love every ounce of this movie, one of my top 3 hands down.

The Last Samurai
From the first time I saw this flick I thought it was dope. I always listen for the music used in a movie and HOW they use it. The composer from this movie (Hanz Zimmer) has done music for some HUGE films and I love his work. I actually bought the “soundtrack” for this movie as well. Any movie I can REALLY FEEL is a hit in my book. This movie did just that….Great acting and great martial arts as well. Some movies pick TERRIBLE actors BUT this movie was right on point with EVERYONE they casted.

Happy Gilmore / Tommy Boy
Adam Sandler’s EARLY WORK along with Chris Farley’s EARLY WORK….. two classic films!!!!!!!!! I can’t pick between these two…. just TOO HARD. If you have seen these two movies then I NEED NOT EXPLAIN why these two are on my list. Hands down….

It’s been awhile since we got a chance to talk to Cognito. We thought we’d check in with him while he’s keeping busy back home in The Bay Area . Cognito talked about The Strange Days Tour, how he’s spending his time off-tour, his upcoming mixtape, how he’s liking his tenure at Strange, the new signing of Jay Rock, and a little sports.

Last time we talked it was during the Strange Days tour? How did you dig that?

It was awesome. It was the longest national tour I had done at one time. Definitely an experience but something I feel I’d been prepping for for the last umpteenth years. It was a lot of work but very enjoyable. I got a huge sense of accomplishment, and afterwards I felt like I was ready to do what I have to do–prepare to get an album out and get everything ready to roll. I definitely enjoyed it and I’m ready to go back.

Right after you got off tour did you have to lay down for a few days? What’s it like to suddenly stop after moving nonstop for a month-and-a-half?

Nah I was ready to go. I had gotten a lot of hits that had already came in about doing some one-off dates and a lot of promoters that met us on the tour were hitting me up about coming back out to certain cities. I knocked out a few features for different artists’ in different states from here to–there’s a lot of places. I just kept working and tried to keep in touch with the fans. A lot of fans I had initially talked to on the social networks and I made just a shitload of more fans. The tour was an all-around good experience and I just kept working.

So what have you been up to in the past few months?

A lot of shows, doing some things here and there. I did the one up there in Tahoe.  I did a memorial show a few weekends ago. I’ve been in the studio working on a side–nothing huge, nothing crazy, crazy–but I started working on a mixtape, something that’s not going to be nationally released or distributed, but just something for the hardcore fans to keep it moving. Strange has so many albums coming out that Strange artists are working on–now with the addition of Jay Rock, there’s a lot of stuff being worked on and release dates. While I keep pushing Automatic, which is my main goal anyway, I didn’t want to rush the next studio album. I wanted to keep Automatic going. I wanted to push for a year on Automatic. Basically the mixtape is going to be for those die hard fans that are ready for something new while we’re still pushing Automatic. So I’m just kicking it with that, working with DJ Pause out in San Francisco and just putting together something fun. I want to keep in touch with the fans musically and with my lyrics.

Do you have any idea what you’re going to call it?

Well right now I’m going to let the fans name it because I’m doing it for the fans. We’re going to do a poll here in about a week where I’ll post the top three names that fans have submitted and let them vote for it.

What do you think about Strange’s recent acquisition of Jay Rock?

I think it definitely brings more diversity to the label. He’s a West coast artist through and through. I think with Strange expanding and with them signing Lynch, Rock, and I, Strange Music West is definitely being molded and is starting to take shape. Now they have pretty much every aspect of California almost wrapped up with me being from the bay, Lynch from the valley, and now with Jay Rock from the LA, Southern California area. It’s definitely a good addition. It’s just going to bring more diversity to the label.

Have you ever crossed paths with Jay?

I think we met on The Strange Days Tour down in LA but it was moving so fast backstage, shaking hands with a lot of artists–there was just a lot of people at that show: Glasses [Malone], Violet [Brown], Dave [Weiner] so it was a really busy night. We got ready really quick to head to San Diego the next night so I didn’t really get to chop it with him but I think we crossed paths real quick. I was actually doing an interview when he was on stage so I didn’t get to see him perform which I wanted to do because I’ve never seen him live. We did cross paths and I met him real quick but didn’t get to chop it up with him.

Kind of a “what up” “what up” sort of thing?

Mmhmm.

How are you digging your tenure at Strange so far?

Oh yeah, I love it! It’s hard to be in contact: I wish we were a little closer to Missouri so I could hit up the in-stores like when Krizz’s album dropped and when Gates and Kutty’s album dropped. It’d be nice to be a little closer to be involved in those type of situations because it’s harder being out in the west to get in with those. The fans have definitely made the whole situation worthwhile. I love the fans that I’ve been able to meet and I think that after all these years of me trying to find out–not a “get in where I fit in” type of thing but kind of in a way it is to where I’m really trying to find my fanbase–trying to find out who I am and really get a grasp of that. I think with Strange now it’s actually allowed me to be able to do that and that’s what I’m really excited about. This is my fanbase, and these are the fans that have always supported me but now that I’m with a different label it definitely makes it a lot more pleasing. It gives me stuff to look forward to with each album and to just keep building the fanbase is a big deal. It’s awesome to be able to keep expanding and having more and more everyday: more hits on the Twitters and The Facebooks and the MySpaces and the websites and the blogs. You know what I mean? It’s awesome. It keeps building more and more every day. By this time next year, whether another record is out or wherever we’re at, it’ll be nice to have double or triple the fanbase that we had originally.

What do you think it is about Strange Music fans that allows that connection to happen more easily?

I think it really started with everything that Tech has built–Tech had a big part of that to where he set the foundation for the type of fan that he attracts and the type of  loyalty that he attracts. He’s always kept his music real and he’s always been a real loyal artist. The way that Tech works is the way that I’ve always tried to work. In my day-to-day communication with fans and people in the business and the industry, I think he’s really set the bar and the foundation of what it’s supposed to be. I think that he just attracts that type of fan and that type of loyal fan that’s going to follow you no matter what. I think if Strange real carefully picks and chooses who they’re going to fuck with and who they sign, I think it’s going to do nothing but keep growing. That’s one of the luxuries of being with Strange, you’re going to have that opportunity to shine and be brought in by some fans that are real fans. They’re the kind of fans that every artist really dreams to have. They don’t see us like “oh this major-label artist, but they don’t get as much radio as they did on the last album” and then they drop an album…to see that decline in sales is horrendous. It’s ridiculous. You’re wondering “Why are their sales dropping so much?” and then you say “Okay well, they didn’t get radio like the last album, they didn’t get this, they didn’t get that” and then you say “Well okay, the fans were there to support them for that particular album” or maybe because they had that one hit. You know? That’s not how Strange fans are. It’s the best part of being here is that none of the fans are like that at all: they support you regardless.

What would you like to see happen for yourself and your career in the near future?

I’d like to keep doing what we’re doing: try to line up some more show stuff, touring stuff for Automatic to keep giving it a push and then slowly start to write and produce the next record. When I’m writing or getting ready for the next record, it’s not about just getting in there and start knocking out songs, it’s more of saying “Okay, where have I grown in the last two years? What can I deliver to the fans that’s going to bring more to the table and is not going to be just the same old shit?” It can’t be the same–it can’t be an Automatic: Part Two. It’s going to be the next chapter in my life. It’s about: “How can I bring that out of myself and deliver it to the fans?” and make it a success and make it something to where they’re really anxious and looking forward to it. That’s my main objective, bottom line. As soon as we get that okay from Strange and they say that this is what they’re planning, that they want to release the next record, and that it’s what they’re eyeing on–you know, however they want to approach it, I just want to be ready to approach it and go into that venture with them, make it a success to where we double or triple the success of Automatic.

Automatic has had a little half a year to breathe since it came out, how do you look back at it?

I think it’s done what it’s supposed to do so far as having the fans recognize me as being somewhat of a new artist because I’m signed with Strange, to really have the new fans grasp me and take me in as one of the new chapters of Strange Music. It’s doing what it’s supposed to do. I think it’s a daily process: I don’t think it’s one hit, or right when the album comes out or this or that, I think it just has to continue to grow. I want Automatic to keep growing until it can’t breathe anymore. I want it to keep going, and every day more people find out about it, more people are going to download it, more people are going to make sure they go to the stores to buy it. I went into Best Buy last night to grab a couple DVDs. I go in there and checked Automatic and it was sold out for a week, so at least it keeps selling in different areas and that’s what I want it to continue to do–you know, to really build up so that the next record I can let out a lot of steam and people are already going to be aware and familiar with me and how I work as an artist.

I think that’s about it for this interview. Actually no, my last question is the most important: it seems that the Chiefs are going to be a legitimate team this year and that the Raiders are going to suck again.

Shit…

Do you have anything to say about that?

(Sighs) It aint happening. The Chiefs aren’t going to go anywhere. They’ve had a couple of “whatever” games–I’m not even going to say good games. They’ve had their little lucky stint by playing a fumbling Niner team, who are also from The Bay. The Niners should’ve whupped ass on the Chiefs. They should’ve beat the Chiefs but it was what it was. They should’ve beat The Saints as well. We should’ve had it last week: our field goal kicker, Janikowski, fucked it up for everybody. We’re missing three things as a team. If we had them we would’ve won by at least a touchdown. It is what it is: if you miss a chip-shot from 28 yards you can’t really expect to win. The Chiefs are 3-0 because with the losses that they’re going to pile up, they’re going to need those wins to hopefully try and make it to .500 by the end of the year. I guarantee they’ll probably be 3-3, 3-4 by the time week seven or eight comes around. DJ Pause actually flew out there because he’s a die-hard Niners fan.

No shit?

Pause and them were pretty upset because Pause flew out there and was there for the Niner-Chiefs game. We were supposed to be in the studio on Monday but he called and said “I’m going to have to postpone because I’m going to be in Kansas City watching the Niners play the Chiefs.” I know he was upset about the game–he had to have been.

They got their asses served to them.

…mmmhmm…right…

Sorry. I had to do it! Well you know…I mean the Royals suck–

They do suck.

(sigh) I can’t even defend them.

Don’t even try.

Cognito is featured in this month’s issue of Xplosive Magazine with a cover mention and interview along with west coast Strange Music cohort Brotha Lynch Hung. Along with that we found this audio interview conducted by DJ Pimp with Cognito. The interview is three parts. At the beginning, DJ Pimp spans Cognito’s career and all the people that he has met along the way. It’s a very informative account and the interview spans to a total of three parts. The interview is pre-Automatic so there’s a lot of talk of things that already happened, but none-the-less it’s an informative interview.

Click the following or listen below to hear the audio interview: Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3.

During his time in Des Moines, Iowa on the Strange Days tour, Cognito sat down with Dat Muthafucka Steve from EmceeTV for an interview. Cognito addresses his being signed to Strange, his album, and the difference in working with Strange as opposed to when he was signed under Master P. Click here or watch below to see the interview.

Cognito took the time to chat on the phone with DJ Pimp of Xplosive Magazine for a three-part interview. The interview has been recently posted but apparently took place long before the release of Automatic, given that he refers to the album in future tense (as well as Tech N9ne’s K.O.D. Tour). Cognito discusses how his deal came about on Strange, collaborations with artists on the label for Automatic, his stellar reputation for live performances, his plans for the future and also fields questions submitted from fans. Click the following links or watch below to listen to the entire interview: Part One, Part Two, Part Three.

During his time in Los Angeles on The Strange Days Tour, Cognito had a chance to sit down with ChopperHead Magazine for a video interview. Cognito discusses how he was signed, his home the Bay Area, his love of motorcycles, and his approach to making music. It’s a good interview with a friendly rapport. Click here or watch below to check it out.

Being the opening act on his first national tour, performing to a string of sold out venues, and meeting fans he never knew he had, it’s safe to say that Cognito is having the time of his life. We caught up with the Bay Area MC in between shows to get a feel of what life is like for the latest addition to Strange Music, here’s what he had to say…

Strange Music Blog: How’s it going out there?

Cognito: It’s perfect! I got to get ready for it tiresome-wise but other than that it’s perfect. I’m loving this.

SMB: How are you digging the tour so far?

C: Being on the tour, especially being the first one since I’ve signed with Strange, it’s not only been fun, but an honor to be out here with cats like Tech and Lynch, and cats that are now my family, it’s wonderful. I love the family atmosphere of the tour. It’d be hard to be with people period for two months and not have somewhat of a relationship with them to that extent. It’s good to have a relationship with these cats to where I feel comfortable. There are certain days to where we’re tired, or stressed-out, or it’s a little harder, or if it’s not always going the way we want it to go. It’s good to have that type of family behind you to support you to where there’s always someone here to pick you up. And also to motivate you, you know what I’m saying. Tech will come out, or like Lynch did last night and was like “I need to watch your set man, I haven’t watched it in a awhile.” That means a lot to somebody like me because I look up to these cats. I was a fan of Lynch and Tech waybefore I even messed with them, so like having Lynch come out when I’m on stage rocking it and there’s like fifteen, seventeen-thousand people out there, and I kind of glance over and have Lynch over on the side of the stage bouncing and putting his hands up just as much as the crowd is, that’s huge for me. That’s motivation to where I just keep going–you know? It makes me like “ahh I’m ready to go! I’ll do a whole ‘nother set if need be!” and get off stage and have him be like “man, you’re killing em!” and Tech will watch the show and be like “you’re killing em!” it’s a good feeling, you know? It’s definitely a positive experience all the way around.

SMB: Yeah, it’s definitely different performing out there for peers that you respect.

C: Definitely. It’s an honor.

SMB: What are some of your favorite things about being on the tour? What are some of those moments that you’ll probably take with you forever?

C: I love the adrenaline before I go on–the adrenaline of being up there, standing behind the album cover in a big city where I know there’s fifteen-hundred or two-thousand people out there that are waiting. Having that adrenaline rush of right when I know when it’s about to open I’m supposed to come out–and a lot of these people are seeing me live for the first time–it’s like I want to make that impact to where when I get off stage or they see me or meet me I can just come out and make that impact. I love that feeling of “alright, this door’s about to open. I’m going to come out and show them what I can do” and stuff like that.  Also, I’m going to take with a lot of stuff that I learned as far as being personal with the fans, really kind of interacting and seeing what they like and enjoy. At the end of the day they’re the ones that basically make it possible for me to do this. I mean, bottom line. I may not be as big as I want to be five years down the road, of course, but it’s like, being able to feel that feeling of “okay, this is what they enjoy. I got to please them as much as they’re pleasing me to be able to do this, this, and that–that’s the kind of stuff I need to take with me to the next tour.

SMB: No matter how big you get, you always got to prove something on that stage.

C: Mmhmm.

SMB: I’ve seen big acts and they get up there and they’re like “I already got it made” and I hate that shit.

C: Right, exactly. I mean we’ve had openers like that to be honest with you. Not to say names, but having some of the openers be backstage with us, when it’s like me, Tech, Lynch, all these cats that have been doing this for ten or twenty years, and for us to be more humble than some of these guys thinking that they’re surpassing, or basically like “I’m doing this and that. I don’t need this,” that’s always kind of frustrating to me. I don’t hate on it. You know I wish everybody the best when it comes to stuff like that and I want them to succeed at what they do; because everyone does this for one reason: it’s their dream and they want to be able to have a career doing what they want to do. Hopefully they’re as passionate about the music as I am. I can’t wait to start writing for the next record, and listening to beats while I’m on the road because that is my stress relief. That’s how I relieve my stress: when I record and when I do these records.

SMB: You’re warmed-up right now. That’s a great time to get new material.

C: Yeah and finding out from the fans too. The big thing about the fans too–and it’s so surprising–is that certain songs that I’ll say “oh that’s my favorite on the record” and when you hear fans come and tell you what they like, it’s totally different. In the last seven cities it’s like, there’s a certain song I hear the most and it’s the song I least expected to make an impact from the record. It’s opened up my mind to writing new material because it’s like “well yeah, I like that song, but that’s not the one I thought the fans would like the most.” When I have seven to ten cities in a row that are like “yeah man, this is the best song!” and “I listen to this song on the way to work because it helps me wake up!” and I hear that from ninety-percent of the fans it makes me go “okay, well that’s dope. Maybe I come across better as an artist when I express myself this way as opposed to that way” and I didn’t necessarily know that, but that’s why it’s so good to be personal with the fans. If you don’t reach out to the fans, you don’t know what they like. You could be on your own nuts for a whole album where as they like something else and you could just keep being conceited or big-headed. You got to please the fans too while you’re doing your music.

SMB: Definitely. What are some of the songs that they enjoy that surprised you?

C: Well it’s hard to say really surprised but the “Twisted Love” song–I cannot believe the response we’ve gotten and it’s not even on the record. We decided not to put that on the record. When Tech and I were putting together the order for the record, that song didn’t make the record, and I’ve probably had more on that than any on the record, except “Born 2 Be Fly” and “Violated”–I kind of expected those to be popular. “Strangers” too, that’s been a top three out there as far as what people like on the record. I couldn’t believe “Twisted Love” though. I’m literally hounded by that song to every show that I go to, people telling me “I’ve been through that.” Last night someone in Tempe was like “I’m going through that right now.” I realized the songs that I did that are real and not so much the club records are what fans are responding to and like out of Cognito the best. That’s good to know. I can’t do full albums like that but it’s good to know because that is a side of me that I like to express.

SMB: What are some of the craziest things you’re seeing out there on the tour?

C: Man I think one of the craziest things was having a girl come up in–I forgot what city it was, it was a couple nights ago–but having a girl come up and started looking at me when I was walking towards her and she started crying a little bit and I didn’t really understand what was going on. She said “your song changed my life!” and I thought, oh, well maybe “Pain” or “Depression” and when she said it was “Violated” I was a little shocked. I was just happy to touch somebody to that extent that that song changed their life. She gave me a hug and was singing the chorus in my ear and it was just kind of a shock to me! It was dope though. I’ve never had a fan cry and say that a song changed their life, I just wasn’t expecting it to be a song as sexual and demanding as that song was, but shit, I’ll take it any way I can. If any one of my songs changes anybody’s life, I love it and that’s awesome.

SMB: That’s funny. The whole thing has to be a bit surreal.

C: It really is. It’s humbling. If you’re that type of person, it’s humbling as fuck–bottom line. I don’t think I could ever get big-headed with that if I was ever more successful than I am now. I really don’t because the more that people appreciate what I’ve done, the more that it’s humbling, and it is surreal. I force myself never to take that for granted one bit. Never. Never take that for granted from anybody.

SMB: It lets you know that your music means something.

C: Yeah, and that’s awesome.

SMB: It’s a dream.

C: Exactly. That’s always been a dream. That’s been the dream. Like I say, you have to get paid, you have to work, I understand that, but to me that is higher than allof that. Me being able to literally say I’m not in this just for the money, it’s about the art, it’s about the passion that I have for it–and now I can actually physically say that and feel good about it, where as before I couldn’t say that because I didn’t have the money coming in like this and I didn’t have the fan base like that. The way it’s building though–and of course I owe a hundred-and-ten-percent to the people that have helped put me on, like Violet Brown, Strange, Tech, and Travis–it’s awesome that it’s able to get out there like that.

SMB: How was it signing the hood of that car in Minnesota? How did that happen?

C: We were just out there outside the venue in Minnesota. The guy said he had nothing to sign. He wanted us to sign and he wasn’t going to let us get away without doing something so he had me, Lynch, everybody–I think the only person that didn’t was Tech because he was on the bus, but everybody else tagged that bad boy up, threw a sticker on it…uh…yeah…that was a trip. That was a total trip tagging that whole thing up. I said “well what do you want me to tag?” and he was like “ah Cog, please just tag up the hood” so I had to tag the hood up. Yeah, that whole car was tagged up and I want to see if I have some video footage of that. That whole car is tagged up, it’s not just the hood, we got everyone from Strange tagging it up. We filmed it. We filmed it so there wouldn’t be any lawsuits down the road.

SMB: Wow.

C: Yeah we wanted to make sure, so we asked him like three times with the flip cam in his face: “now…you wantCognito to do this, correct? You want Cognito to tag this hood, yes?”

SMB: How does it feel when someone asks you to do something like that?

C: It was a trip! That goes along with what we were talking about–the surreal aspect of it. We pretty much signed, tagged every body part you could possibly do. We done tagged everything from clothing, to shoes, to socks, to a dude that took his shoe off–it was a new shoe. After we all signed it he walked home in the freezing cold with one shoe so the shoe wouldn’t scuff up. That stuff’s crazy to me. It’s something else. The craziest thing that I ever saw that didn’t involve me was in Seattle. We parked the buses for a few hours before we left because we had two shows back to back in Seattle and there were two Asian kids standing in front of our bed at six-thirty in the morning right when the sun was coming up. They looked tired, they looked hungover, looked like they’d been out all night, and they had a huge sign that they wrote with a magic marker that said “We Want Brotha Lynch.” The funny part was that Lynch was in a hotel relaxing or whatever so right when they put that sign up [DJ] Chill put up a note to the window that said “we do too” because Lynch was out there running late.

SMB: From what we’re seeing from back here in Kansas City, the Strange Days Tour is just killing it right now. How are the sets? The tweets and Facebook updates that we’re seeing are about such a variety of artists that it seems everybody is doing very well.

C: Right. That’s what it’s been. Everybody’s set has been a hundred-and-ten percent on point. I think the big highlight of course is Lynch being on his first major tour in so long, there’s just as many Lynch fans coming out to see him as there are fans of Tech. It’s a great thing because it’s well-deserved for everything he’s done in his career to be able to have that kind of respect and following that is just on him. It’s been crazy. When he comes out of that casket, it’s a wrap. They’re so anxious to see him you can’t tell them nothing. It’s perfect.

SMB: Is he after Tech?

C: He comes in the middle of Tech’s set. Then right after he does it Scoob comes on and does his set and Tech does the rest.

SMB: That’s interesting, I like that. So you’re first then right?

C: Yeah.

SMB: That’s what you’re talking about then with that whole adrenaline rush thing. You’re the first cat they see.

C: Yeah, you know, we usually have whatever homie in each city. They go up there and do their thing or whatever. But to do a show and be the introduction to the rest of the artists, I definitely get juiced about that.

SMB: What have been some of your favorite shows on the tour?

C: I’d say Minnesota was big. Lynch and I had been talking about that. I was actually shocked, but LA House of Blues was amazing. I could probably say Las Vegas might have topped them all but it’s so hard to say because we have a lot of dates in the running. Last night, Tempe was huge. It’s really hard to say. I can’t single out one city but I can definitely Minnesota, Tempe, and Las Vegas were stand out points to me.

SMB: Good to hear. Congratulations on the tour and good luck on the rest of it. I’ll see you guys when you come back to Kansas City. Thanks for taking the time.

C: You too, I appreciate it. The tour is only getting better by the show so it should be scorching by the time we get there.

Illuminati2g.com caught up with Cognito for an interview to discuss his upcoming Strange Music release, Automatic, amongst other things. Cognito discusses the perks of working with an independent label, what it’s like to work with Tech N9ne, the Automatic cover art, and the video for the first single “Outcast”. The interview ends with a shout out to the fans and his new family at Strange Music. From the sound of it, Cognito has found a home:

“I just want to shout out all the fans of Strange Music. Thanks for all the support, and I want to shout out the Strange Music family. They have all treated me as such and not even when I was signed to Master P have I felt this comfort level like I have with Strange. I know it will be the start of a long term relationship with the label and I am blessed and honored to be a part of it.”

Click here to read the whole interview.

Cognito shared with us his five favorite places to go in the Bay Area of California. Here’s what he had to say…

Joe's Buffet - Fairfield, CA

Kinders Meat - Concord, CA

Kinder’s
(Concord, CA)

Underdog Records - Pittsburg, CA

Underdog Records (Pittsburg, CA)

Alioto's - San Francisco, CA

Alioto’s
(San Francisco, CA)

Toons Nightclub - San Jose, CA

Toons Nightclub (San Jose, CA)

Photo: Violet Brown

Violet Brown has been a mover and shaker in the rap and r&b music business for over a decade now, rubbing elbows with just about anyone you could think of, from Snoop to Diddy to Dre to 50 and of course…Tech N9ne, her favorite rapper of them all. When Violet backs an artist, people pay attention. Given that Cognito’s debut Strange Music release, Automatic is due to be released on April 20th, we thought it would be a good idea to talk to the woman that originally brought his music to Strange and subsequently helped Cognito land a record deal to the most successful independent hip-hop label in the world.

SM: What is it that you do exactly, and what are some noteworthy moves you’ve made in your career?

VB: I am the Urban Music buyer for the TransWorld chain of stores. We are the largest music chain in the business. I came to TransWorld from The Wherehouse. I have been working in music over 35 years. Here are a few facts. I was a DJ for 26 years, managed artists worked as an A&R consultant for several labels, Executive Produced several albums. One of them was in Billboards Top 10. Produced a film. I was in The Source Magazine POWER 30 for 5 consecutive years. I won a Living Legends award through their foundation. I have been able to meet just about every important artist over the last 35 years. I even had a dinner with Nelson Mandella. I was very instrumental in the careers of numerous artists. I love helping new artists achieve their dreams. I have been very involved with so many artists through the years but the one that really will remain in my heart is TECH N9NE & now Cognito.

SM: What do you think about Cognito and his music?

VB: Cognito is one of the best lyricists out there. He is so dedicated to his craft. He is highly creative & hard working. I think his music is very current, clever and infectious. His flow and delivery will stand up to just about any MC in the game today. If you look at Strange Music’s roster of artists you will see that they are picky about who they sign. They look for unique and credible talent, and that is just what Cognito is all about. When you listen to his music you do not have to figure out what he is talking about. He is very direct and spits lyrics that most people can relate to. You can tell by his tracks that he is influenced by many genres of music. I listen to hip hop all day long as a buyer and I hear absolutely EVERYTHING. When Cognito’s music came across my desk, I knew I had to know him, work with him and hear as much of his music as possible. Just like Strange, I am also picky these days about the people I work with….WORKING WITH COGNITO WAS A NO-BRAINER. This is something I HAD TO DO. I am a HUGE fan of Cognito.

Cognito in the studio

SM: How did you guys meet?

VB: Cognito worked for the oldest and best indie distributor out of the Bay Area. I knew him as the guy that got the job done right when I needed help from that company. I could always depend on him. His work was incredible. Then one day he mentions that he is also a rapper. So naturally I wanted to hear his music, although I was a little scared because most of the time the music was just not great from so many others through the years. He sent me some of his music & I flipped out. I ran around from office to office in my building playing it for people. I could not believe that he dropped this gem on me. Needless to say, his disc went from my office, to the car and to my home and then traveled everywhere with me. I could not stop listening to him. His demo became a hit with myself and quite a few of my friends. It kind of reminded me of how I felt when I first heard Tech. My next step was calling Strange Music.

SM: What do you think are some features that set Cognito apart from the rest?

VB: Well, music is very personal for people and for my taste it is all in his music. Remember, I hear everything so if I can get the enjoyment out of a Cog disc that I get from some of the greatest rappers of today, I know he can stand up and really fit in the game. Although he is from the Bay, his music could be felt anywhere. He has a different style and sound from most of the Bay area rappers. He is definitely more clever than most rappers I am hearing these days. He represents a regular guy, that is not concerned with flash and flossin’. He loves hip-hop with every ounce of his body so he is much more concerned with spittin great lyrics than all of the other stuff that usually comes with a career in this game. After working with rappers for so many years I can also say that his hard work and work ethics also set with apart from the rest. He is loyal and very dedicated to his family and friends. When you see his live show, you will see for yourself why he stands out from the rest.

SM: You rub shoulders with many of hip-hop’s elite, what made Cognito someone worthy of your backing?

VB: Listen to his music and you will know but it was also his intelligence. He was already smart about the business and he was hard working and very honest with me. He did not have some crazy ego. He was as good, if not better than some of the other (rap-stars) that I helped throughout the years. I just could not turn my back on his level of talent.

SM: You’ve worked with Strange a lot in the past few years. What do you attribute to their success? How do you think Cognito will be a good fit?

VB: This is plain, simple and easy to say……THE GREATEST RAPPER OF ALL-TIME, TECH N9NE AND THE GREATEST MANAGER OF ALL-TIME TRAVIS O’GUIN. With TECH’S music and the work ethic, professionalism, creativity and mind of Travis they are unstoppable. Tech has been through a lot through the years, he has been connected to some of the greatest minds and people in the business so he has learned a lot along the way but the education that he has received at Strange just makes him stronger and stronger with every release. I work with EVERY label and there is NONE FINER THAN STRANGE MUSIC. These guys know what they are doing and they do it with style, creativity and a hell of a lot of HARD WORK. No other rapper is touring as much as TECH. When one tour ends, another starts and people are there ready to buy ticket after ticket because his live show is the VERY BEST YOU WILL SEE. Cognito will fit in just fine because he can keep up with the tour schedule & give an amazing show to the THOUSANDS OF TECH AND STRANGE MUSIC FANS. The Strange Music logo has become a major force in Hip Hop and I think they may be extending that to other genres in the near future. They are selective about who they sign and I am glad, proud and ecstatic that they have brought Cognito into their elite roster of artists. When you see their logo on a piece of music you can bank on it being great. They are the new face of the business!