From the past to the present, Tite is a Texan artist who, through his rap, is building a path on the modern hip-hop scene.
His recording career started in 1998 with a collection of freestyle rappers known as the Freestyle Kingz of Dirty 3rd Records, but his past also contains 5 singles, two albums and dozens of features in various mixtapes.
With a passion for melodic flow and energetic rhythms, Tite‘s music focuses on combining old-school hip-hop influences with modern tones. Currently residing in Dallas, Texas, this charismatic rapper continues to work on growing his solo career, combining captivating word play with contagious grooves and engaging rhythms, in order to create a direct and edgy sound.
After the release of “The Code“, a 10-track album that has been out since last October and was accompanied by three singles, Tite now announces his next projects: a new album and a label with which he promises to bring us all the poetry of emotions.
To find out more about all of this and to learn more about the artistry and creative vision that fuel Tite, we caught up with him for an interview. Keep on reading to know more!
Hi Tite, welcome to Nova Music blog. Thank you for taking the time for this interview.
Let’s talk about modern rap and the Texan hip-hop scene you come from. What contact points do you see?
There is a connection in terms of the culture both past and present. For example, in Houston and Dallas the sounds are still similar in each city in reference to the topics because the Texas culture is still influential. The language, cars, style etc. after all these years hasn’t changed which makes the music still similar in sound. The one difference is that you don’t hear the music screwed and chopped like it used to be (RIP DJ Screw). There is more of a party and club sound.
Let’s look at the past two decades. Compared to the previous question, speaking of jargon and sounds, what do they share?
Well I think their sound is still somewhat true to formula… hard and thumping. The lingo has changed some due to there being a new youth movement and they have their own wave going. But it’s cool to me I love change… change is progress. The one difference in sound is the uproar in auto tune and the melodic rapping. I’ve embraced it and I’ve started playing around with it too. It’s dope because it adds another fold to the type of music I can make.
Tell us about your name, “Tite”. What is its meaning and origin?
The name is short for Pimptite, which was a childhood nickname because I had a decent fan club of females LOL! When I got into music, I felt the need to remove the “Pimp” part and shorten it to just Tite. Also, there was a rap group in Houston named PimpTyte so I didn’t want any confusion for branding reasons.
You started your music career in 1998 with a collection of freestyle rappers known as the Freestyle Kingz of Dirty 3rd Records. How far do you think you’ve moved, since then? What are the successes of yours one ought to mention?
We put out an album together titled “Off The Chain” which had a successful single named “Candy” featuring Slim Thug, myself and Chalie Boy. After the album, me and Chalie Boy broke off as our own group and dropped a series of mixtapes under the name Chalie Boy &Tite. Our first release titled “The Best Of” sold over 100K copies and made us a staple in Texas music history. A few years later I moved to Dallas and joined powerhouse T-Town Music as a solo artist which had its own group D.S.R. (Dirty South Rydaz). Shortly after signing to the label, it signed a multi-million dollar deal with major label Universal-Motown Records. I was featured on songs from the 2 albums released by label mates Big Tuck and Tum Tum under the Universal umbrella.
You recently launched your company “POME Music”. What is it about?
POME is an acronym for Poetry of My Emotions. POME Music is basically the result of making my dream a reality. I’ve learned from all of my experiences, ups and downs in the industry so this time I wanted to bet on myself and be my own boss so that I could do it my way. The end goal is to grow POME Music into POME Industries and get into all forms of arts and business.
Your latest release is the 10 track album “The Code (Lost Songs)”. From the first track “Loyalty” to the last “Became a Boss”, it seems a declaration of your values and your goals. Do you think it is more the result of looking inward or looking to the future?
It is a collection of songs that I recorded during my “figure out” the plan phase of creating POME Music so the songs are kind of what I was feeling during those moments. To answer your question, yes there are some songs in there such as Loyalty, The Code and Became A Boss that were direct reflections of my morals and values. I’m super loyal almost to a flaw but that’s part of the code that I was raised with.
Any anticipation on what you will do in 2020?
2020 is the year to build from 2019. I have put a solid team together to help push the brand and each excels at their skillset. I do understand that an artist is as strong as his/her team. I’m working with one of the best producers in the industry named Fresh Ayr, who is highly decorated and has worked with numerous big artists. I wanted my new sound to bridge past and present and we are banging out some great music. I’m working on a new project titled “1205” which is the house number where I was raised and will be fully produced by Fresh Ayr. It will be released late Spring/early Summer. I’m super excited about it, it’s the best music I’ve put out as a solo artist. The 1st single “In My Lane” is out now with a dope video.
To discover more about Tite and his music, check the links: