For years, the Big Easy has been building up its resume of churning out artists who have reached major stardom, and now there’s one more applicant looking to have his name etched in with the likes of the people that came before him.
(more after break)
Terrance “Lil Cali” Callahan has been steadily making the rounds with his mixtape, Enemy Of The State, not to mention the fact of that he’s worked alongside his brethren such as Hurricane Chris [click for interview], Lil Boosie, Webbie, as well as OJ Da Juiceman, Nipsey Hu$$le, Glasses Malone, and Young Dro.
First appearing on the scene back in 2005, with the indie release of Long Live Tha Game, he kept his momentum going long enough with additional projects like Mr. Louisiana until deals started to pop up on the table.
So as the native of Ponchatoula, Louisiana gears up for the release of Enemy Of The State pt.2 mixtape, and full-length studio album slated to be released in 2011; it’s time for the Asylum/Warner Bros. Records’ signee to welcome people into his world.
Lil Cali: I’m like 15 minutes outside of New Orleans, and about 15 minutes outside of Baton Rouge; I’m right in the middle… So with me being in the middle, there’s a lot of diversity, so there’s a nice little scene over here…
Lil Cali: Well, it’s on the outskirts, so I’m more in the country; you know what I’m saying? It was real laid back, but you still have all the other stuff going on too, like the murders, drugs, and all that… You’re only 15 minutes away, but it’s the outskirts where people move to, so they can try and get away from all of that…
Lil Cali: At first, I was playing basketball all through high school… I got a scholarship to play basketball, and I did that for two years, but then I got heavy into the music…
Lil Cali: I was always into music, and so was my family… My father played the blues, and my mother was a gospel singer… So I was always around it, but I never really took it serious… But once I stopped going to school, I looked into something else, and I looked into Hip-Hop… Plus I always loved it, from the B.I.G.’s, to the Pac’s, to the UGK’s… So I decided to take it serious, and it went from there…
Lil Cali: I’m very diverse with my music… I’ve done stuff on the West Coast with Nipsey [Hu$$le], I’ve done stuff down here with [Lil] Boosie and Webbie, and I’ve done stuff with some East Coast cats… A lot of cats down here on stuck doing things one way, and they can’t go to different spots and connect with different people in terms of music…
Lil Cali: Yeah, any arena… I can get on any type of music… I can get on anything; I’m just down to do it…
Lil Cali: Right now, we’re pressing the label for a date, but we’re going to drop that Enemy Of The State pt.2 and get the streets popping with that… So we’re going to put something fresh out there, and make them come with it…
Lil Cali: It’s because I like the independent grind… I still wanted the feeling of being able to call my own shots… With the other labels, they tell you to do this and that… But with Asylum, you have more leverage, and you turn in your album to them… They don’t pressure you into making this or that… So I’m just taking it to the next level with my independent grind…
Lil Cali: I wouldn’t say I’d like to stay on this path, but this is a path that I would like to build on… I’d like to build my buzz up and my brand up bigger than what it is right now… I’ve really only been in the game for about five years, and I dropped my first song to the streets five years ago… So once I build my brand and my buzz up in my region, then I’ll be looking to take it to the next level…
Lil Cali: Just trying to get into other areas, and getting on that road… You have to grind it out and be out there every weekend making sure that every DJ and club is saturated with your music… A lot of people think it’s easy to put songs out there, and have people catch it, but it’s far from that… There are a lot of sleepless nights in the studio, and a lot of 3-4 hour drives to the club… It’s a crazy grind…
[Laughs]
Lil Cali: [Laughs]… Yeah, it’s good to get paid to go out… [Laughs]… It’s good to get paid to go out and do shows and party… It’s lovely, and with this being my job, I don’t have to go to a 9-5 everyday… I get in the studio and record, and that’s what I love to do…
Lil Cali: I reached out to him, and there were some channels I had to go through… But I spoke to his mom, and I was with him on his going away party… He told me to keep my grind going, and that he’ll be home soon… So we kept it as that… I just want to say, “Free [Lil] Boosie.” That’s how we’re going to keep it…
