*The interview has been minimally edited to maintain the essence of the original conversation*

Before reading the interview, make sure everyone check out their battle HERE

Alright guys, go ahead and introduce yourselves to the world incase people been living under rocks!

Dumbfoundead: hey wuts up my name's dumbfoundead from Korea-town, Los Angeles. 1 of 10 members of the Swim Team, 1 of 3 members of the Thirsty Fish, and 1 of 6,725,000,000 people in this world. A lot of people ask me this question and I pretty much forgot at this point… too many drugs too long ago!

Tantrum: At first I went through a few aliases/nicknames that never stuck but one day I just wanted to decide once and for all what would be the keeper. I wanted it to be simple and at the same time epitomize everything about my rapping style and personality, so I searched the dictionary for random ass words and finally came down to Tantrum. Oh yeah, I also wanted it to be a good battling name.

When did you start rapping? When did you start battling?

Dumbfoundead: I started rapping when I was 14 years old and started battling around the same time. I would go to an open-mic in south central called Project Blowed where there were an incredible number of dope emcees. That’s where I started battling and saw some of the most legendary battles!

Tantrum: I started rapping back when I was 15 in my sophomore year in high school, started off as more of a writer than a freestyler but later on I got more into freestyling and now I try to balance both tasks equally. Even back in high school me and my homies would mess around battling each other here and there but my first official stage battle wasn't until my 2nd year in college, when I was 19.

How much do you keep up with the underground battle circuit?

Dumbfoundead: I’ve battled locally since I started rapping but didn’t really take part in the national/international circuit till like 3-4 years ago where I won the Scribble Jam Prelims in LA and took part in the 07 World Rap Championships. Now I’m doing the Grind Time battles.

Tantrum: I'd like to think I keep up with a very good amount. Pretty much from way back with the old school battles to the current stuff that happens today. Thank the internet for that.

Who are some opponents you would love to battle someday?

Dumbfoundead: I would love to battle Serius Jones or Math, I think both cats are incredibly funny and charismatic. I'm battling The Saurus in February for Grind Time which I’m excited about, that's one cat I’ve seen doing his thing for a long time.

Tantrum: I honestly don't think I can name any specific names. Whoever would be a good opponent and would bring a lot of anticipation to our match. Or whoever I know I can clown hella bad and end their life.

Do you think you get more hype for your battles or for your written tracks, and why?

Dumbfoundead: it’s crazy because I’ve been grinding with my music for so long doing shows, tours and putting out albums but battles are the easiest way to promote yourself. I mean I can do a show that has like 100-200 people in the crowd or do a tour and reach out to 5000-10,000 people but I can do a battle and get up to 100,000 views in the course of a month or two. But me battling is all for my music, and hopefully I can get my battle fans to check out my music as well!

Tantrum: At the moment, I probably get more hype for my battles mainly because I'm more known for them. If you were to go online and find footage of me, it's a lot more likely that you'd see me battling rather than performing a song. Don't get it twisted though. I did start off as a writer and am more than capable of making tracks, which I have been doing for a good number of years. But at the stage I'm at in my career, the battling stuff is kind of the priority above all just from the fact that I think it takes more effort to keep your mind sharp enough to improvise in any situation, while on the other hand when you're writing a track, you have all the time in the world to think about what you wanna say.

What have you done to get your name out there?

Dumbfoundead: I've done two national tours with good friends of mine in the Los Angeles scene as well as over 200 shows locally. Tons of battles and hosting gigs. Its all fun, I mean I’ve been grinding since I was 16, going into bars and club underage just to perform. Seeing other cats succeed while not paying dues doesn’t bother me because paying your dues will pay off a bigger reward in the future.

Tantrum: Just straight grinding anyway I can. Whether that is battling, doing shows, doing interviews, or just chopping it up with people. There's a lot involved with getting out there. Networking is the most important thing especially in an industry where success is not so much based on skill, but more who you know. So whenever I engage in anything rap related, it's a way for me to get new connections and new fan bases. You never know who's watching at what time so it's important you try to be on your A-game with every showing you have.

How did you guys get paired up and filmed by Grindtime?

Dumbfoundead: well Lush One who runs the West coast division in Grindtime called me up and asked me if I wanted to take part in the battles they were having up in the bay and he gave me a list of emcees that were available, he mentioned tantrum and I was instantly interested because I’ve seen his battles before and he was dope, plus I knew a battle between two Asian cats would get a lot of attention hahaha so we set it up the rest is history!

Tantrum: The way I recall, the idea of the match up was all conceived by my homie D-Lor who also battles in Grindtime. He somehow had this belief in his head that Dumbfound and I would be the greatest clash of the century. And to be real, I didn't even think it would be as good as it was but it just so turned out to be a great one and the most talked about of that day. As for the filming, Grindtime is a battle league that is getting pretty established and is filmed on the regular. The west coast division is headed by another rapping buddy of mine, Lush One and I believe he is the main dude who arranges stuff like who is going to film, the release dates of each battle, and whatnot.

Were the lines you used against each other all off the top of the head?

Dumbfoundead:  some of the lines were freestyle but most of it was written. I mean I can freestyle my ass off and so can tantrum, its just that these types of battles almost all cats come prepared and why wouldn’t you?

Tantrum: Noooo. Grindtime is specifically structured so that you HAVE to prepare for your opponent. I mean they usually let you know at least a month in advance who you're facing to practically give you time to think of material. Although there is no official rule that restricts freestyling, you would be a fool to neglect proper preparation for a top notch opponent such as Dumbfoundead. However, like I said they don't say that you CAN'T freestyle so if you have time during your round to slip in some freestyle rebuttals or whatever, then by all means do so. As for my battle, it was supposed to happen a lot earlier that day but Dumbfound was driving up from LA to the bay on that very morning and had to take a 3 hour detour due to the fires. So I came up with something on the spot to bring up his tardiness and incorporated it into my 3rd verse.

With your battle, you were both throwing out racial references... but the battle was also Asian Vs Asian. How do you handle racial references that are thrown out in other non-Asian matched battles?

Dumbfoundead: I handle it like any other battle where race isn’t a factor just come your hardest and hope that its doper than the other cat’s lines.

Tantrum: Well me being Asian, I should already be aware that race is going to be addressed in most if not all of my battles. So my best defense is to anticipate what my opponents would say and be prepared to counter it by coming up with something witty enough to shut 'em down. At this point, I've been in so many battles that I'm usually able to flip whatever racial comments people throw at me on the spot. So it doesn't necessarily require me sitting and contemplating on what line I would use against whatever kind of comment. I just need to be quick, clever, and straight to the point.

How do you prep yourself against an opponent before battling?

Dumbfoundead: well in a freestyle battle you can't do much because they just throw you in there against a random opponent but in the written format it gives you an opportunity to make every bar count with no filler lines, so I take advantage of it and create funny and clever lines that the people will enjoy. It’s kind of like comedy writing or something.

Tantrum: I do whatever I can to spark a brainstorm. That can be anything from watching other battles, to watching comedy sketches or sitcoms, or just thinking of random stuff while waiting in line at a grocery store. The method I use most often though is to watch other battles and just doing research. Familiarizing myself with the opponent by watching their footage or looking at their myspace or any way I can find ammo on them. The phrase "know your enemy" is the main principal and it works like a charm

Have you been working on music lately?

Dumbfoundead: I’m always working on music, I’m working on a solo album that'll be done by the end of February called "Fun with Dumb” it's really a dope album with funny ass skits and concepts. me and my crew Thirsty Fish just got signed to an indie label and are working on our album that'll be finished by Fall of '09 its being executive produced by Busdriver. And the Swim Team are constantly making music, battling, etc.

Tantrum: Lately I've been more on the battle stuff, but when it comes time to put in work in the studio, best believe I handle business too. It's kind of like a cycle. During the times I need to work on music, I put my all in doing that, and during the times when there are battles I have to prep for, I put my all in doing that. There's a time and place for each, just gotta manage the time. Anyway my crew Rising Asterisk put out an LP "Rise and Shine" earlier this year and it's been getting a lot of good reviews especially from those who have kept up with our music from the very beginning. Folks can't help but notice how much we evolve with every album we put out and I wouldn't have it any other way. If you don't evolve or get better with your craft through time, there's no point.

Are you taking your rap more serious now or is it still a past time for you?

Dumbfoundead: I’ve taken music seriously most of my rap life, I don't have a plan b, I love rapping and plan to do this as long as I can, traveling the world with my crew!

Tantrum: Rap is definitely more than just a past time for me. I'm obviously passed the days of treating rap like a hobby. This is like an extra profession for me which I dedicate my life to. Though I didn't really take it seriously until college, it remains my number one priority in life today.

What would you say your rap style is comprised of?

Dumbfoundead: my style has a lot of humor and wit to it. I’m influenced by cats like Method Man and Redman as well as west coast cats like the Alkoholiks, Pharcyde and freestyle fellowship so I try to relate to realistic struggles that we go through even if its the smallest things like getting a girl to sleep with you or sneaking on the metro cause you don’t have any money.

Tantrum: Being an 80's baby who didn't really get into hip hop until middle school, I'd say in the beginning I was raised off of 90's gangsta rap with the West Side Connection/2Pac/Death Row era. Going through high school and college, mix that in with the late 90's/00's battle rap with Eminem/Canibus/Crooked I/MC Juice. So my style really encompasses a lot of aggression mixed with wittiness and realism.

What are some battles you would recommend us watching?

Dumbfoundead: I recommend watching all my homies battles like Nocando, Sahtyre, Lyraflip, Madness, Tantrum, etc.

Tantrum: There are literally too many to name. I can give you a long ass list, or I can simplify everything and tell you to purchase the Fresh Coast DVD, haha. That's a documentary featuring many of the best battlers on the west coast including appearances from me, Dumbfoundead, and many others. On the DVD are countless hours of footage of some of the sickest, most exclusive battles to take place in history, and it also explains the origins of the west's battle circuit. I know it's the most shameless plug you can ask for but I highly recommend it, and you would find out so much about our scene that I'm sure you haven't known about before. I'll make it even easier, there's a direct link on my myspace page where you can purchase from hah. And for those that want to preview the product, go to youtube and type in "Fresh Coast DVD trailer", I guarantee it will satisfy any battle fan.

Where would you recommend us going to catch you live in battle?

Tantrum: Every month I'm at Tourettes Without Regrets. It's an event that happens every first Thursday of every month. This event features freestyle rap battles aside from other things like slam poetry, haiku battles, comedy, etc. I've been going there every single month since June 2006 and lately I've been on a 6 month streak. I'll be going for my seventh in Feb. Or if you wanna wait, there's the next Grindtime event in the bay which is at the end of February.

Before we wrap it up, do you think there will be a second battle between you and Dumbfoundead in the near future?

Tantrum: I sure as hell hope so. Whether it's in Grindtime down the road a year from now or if it's a freestyle stage battle (which is kind of my forte over acapella battling). Dumb is a good opponent to have in any battle and it would be sick to face up against him again. Win or lose, I know it would make for some classic footage.

Anything else you would like to add? Where can we find you on the web?

Tantrum: F the Haters, may you all catch a monster venereal disease.
Folks can find me @ www.Myspace.com/tantrumonthemic

You can see a lot of footage from my other battles if you go to youtube and type "Tantrum vs"

My crew is also on ITunes and CDBaby.com HOLLA

Dumbfoundead: yea I just want to say, I checked out this site a few years back for like a week or two and got into a shit load of arguments with a lot of people who hated on me for stating my opinion. I hated this site and those people but I like you guys now hahaha (check out some old posts of mine for laughs, I was young and arrogant)......thanks for interviewing me and I wish AZNRaps nothing but success!  Oh yea I’m 22 not 25. Peace out! Dumbfoundead of Swim Team/Thirsty Fish/ Project Blowed signing out!

(P.s check out my latest battle against Illusion-Z at the end of the interview!)

Tantrum's AZNRAPS.com Freestyle

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