24: Introduce yourself to everyone that doesn’t already know who you are.

Lil Hines: What’s up, I go by the name Lil Hines from Riceboro, GA (aka Backwoodz). 4 hours away from Atlanta and I’m up next!!!!

24: Before we get into your music, can you describe your history about how you got into and what inspired you?

Lil Hines: Well, like i said I was born in Savannah, GA raised in Riceboro, GA about 45 minutes away deep in the country. Nothing but woods, trees, swamp land and a bunch of wildlife. Deers, hogs, snakes, gators, mosquitoes. but I loved it. The outdoors and being around family, brothers and cousins. We had to make our own fun. I got into music at an early age. I would say about 9 or 10. I became interested in playing the drum set at my local church. I would always watch the drummer and I was like, “Man, I want to do that.” So after service I would get with him to teach me and little by little, I would pick it up and learn. You had to be hand and eye coordinated to play the drum set, you had to keep up with the tempo whether the music was fast or slow. In the 7th grade I found out I had a passion for writing. My teacher (Mrs. Martin) noticed it as well. Whether it was essays or poems, I wrote. I always wrote with feeling. it was “deep” as they say. After reading any thing I wrote, you feel some type of way. I just had a passion to write, I did it a lot more, with Easter poems, Black History, Christmas poems etc. So eventually, I just put the two together. My ability to write and to keep a beat. In the 7th grade I actually came out with a mix-tape/demo I did myself called “My World,” it had about 16 or 17 songs. I used a little beat machine my Aunt bought for me and two radios with play and record with the cassette tape back then, lol.

24: What was the Hip-Hop scene like for you growing up where you’re from?

Lil Hines: There was nothing but Hip-Hop that we listen to. Whether we was just chilling in the house or going to the park on Sunday afternoons. Everybody came out with their beat in the trunk, bass loud speakers up and we would just play Hip-Hop music and play basketball. We were big on a lot of South rappers at the time. I have an older brother, he would put me on that Goodie Mob, JT money, Outkast, UGK, Pastor Troy, Geto Boys, Scarface, then I got into Project Pat, No Limit, Master p and them, but when I heard Cash Money’s Hot Boys and when they blew up I was hooked. I really didn’t listen to anything else. That’s when Cash Money was at their best. 4 lyrical artist Wayne, B.G., Juvenile, and Turk all behind a Mannie Fresh beat!!! Man, it was like nothing ever heard before, “Bounce” music as they called it was new to me, but i liked it. That’s when I knew for sure I wanted to do this for the long hall.

24: What makes you Unique as a artist and different from other rappers out now?

Lil Hines: I’m unique because I’m 100% real of who I am and what I talk about, I don’t try to be someone else on a record, I’m myself. If I did it, I say I did it, if I didn’t do it, I was around someone who did, if I didn’t have it, I knew someone who did. Nowadays you hear the same thing, “I sold this, I sold that.” If you did it cool, but if you didn’t, don’t be on a track saying you did something you didn’t do. LIES. You ain’t being real with yourself and impersonating the one who really did do all the that stuff and got time behind it, so if I did it then I say I did it. If I didn’t do it, then I didn’t. My brother always told me to speak the real, the truth, talk about things you did, you been apart of, you witnessed, just be true. If your true to yourself and your music and what you stand for, your music will show it. As I said before, I write with passion. I’m passionate about what I do. You don’t hear that in a lot of music, they ain’t putting their heart and soul into the music, their just trying to have that one hit record. You hear the passion in my my music, I’m hungry for this, it’s dinner time and I wanna eat.

24: Tell us about what you are working on.

Lil Hines: Right now, I’m working on finishing my official mixtape. I have three singles I want to push of it and there out right now, but I’m also trying to get on as many projects, mixtapes, club venues etc. as I can to get me heard and to get the right labels looking at me.

24: What producers have you worked with and who would you like to work with in the future?

Lil Hines: On the recording and mixing side, I work with my homie from the 912 also. He’s in Atlanta. Now Fernando George, Jr aka Qurious Productions, he’s a beast!!! I’ve also worked with my homie King Penn at Trackwriterz studio (Atlanta, GA), who mastered my singles, so shout out to him. As far as music production, I haven’t worked with anyone as of yet. All the beat production is made by me. I produce every beat and wrote every song. This is my first project, so I want the world to hear me and what I bring to the table, to hear how passionate I am about this. Once they do, I think they will love it. It’s a lot of artists and producers I would love to work with, too many to name. The first producer I have to work with is MANNIE FRESH, I think me and him could do some serious damage to the game right now and shake things up a bit. A lot of people sleeping on him, he’s a genius if you ask me, just look what he did to the Hot Boys and the whole Cash Money era, I know he still has some left in the tank.

24: Are you happy with the feedback you have been getting from people on material you have released?

Lil Hines: Yeah, I’m loving the feedback from people and fans all over the country. I want to get more exposure and to hit a bigger fan base. It’s only going to grow and get bigger from here.

24: In today’s free download age, what do you need that you don’t to make yourself a household name?

Lil Hines: To me, I just need that deal. Whether it’s a major or distribution, but I’m doing the independent thing as well which is good too, so whatever gets me out there first, that’s what I’m going to go with, that’s what I need. Once my music gets out all over the world, the music will speak for itself, the music will make me a household name. It will be something different, something new, and people will relate to it.

24: How do you feel about the current state of the Hip-Hop scene?

Lil Hines: It’s okay for the most part. It’s a lot of acts out there that are the same. same sound, same song, same concept, etc., it just all sounds the same and I’m speaking about the South rappers. Me being one of them, we need to step up our game and bring something new and different to the table, have some type of substance of what you’re rapping about. Being a rapper from the South, we are already put in a box as not being lyrical, only bass and drums, but I want to bring being lyrical and having substance along with bass and drums back, not just a one hit wonder. A platinum selling CD, hitting the top 10 on the billboard charts, and being featured in Forbes Magazine, that’s where my head is, I want my music to reach beyond just one genre, I want it to spread worldwide.

24: Outside of the music, what else are you currently working on?

Lil Hines: Nothing at the moment, just making this paper and working on this music. This is my sole priority at the moment.

24: Where do you see yourself going in 2012 and how do you plan to separate yourself from the other artists out today to get the recognition you feel you deserve?

Lil Hines: There is no limit to where I can go if i apply myself. I’m working on nothing but music, I wanna have tracks for 5 or 6 albums down the road, I wanna have tracks available if someone calls and say i need a beat. It’s a non-stop grind. When other artists are sleeping, I’m working, when they are playing, I’m working. I have to constantly apply myself and keeping working 10x harder than the next man to get ahead.

24: How can fans go about contacting you?

Lil Hines: You can follow me on twitter @LilHines or Facebook/JeromeBadDaddyHines. YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/user/MrBaddaddy18 or my email jeromehines18@yahoo.com

24: Thank you for providing 24HourHipHop with this exclusive interview, do you have any last words for your present and future fans?

Lil Hines: Yeah, I would like to say thanks to 24HourHipHop.com for this interview, I really appreciate it. I would first and foremost like to thank God for blessing me and keeping me in good health and strength, I would like to give a shout out to my mom, Robin Hines “Love you Mom.” All my brothers, cousins, nieces, nephews, Aunts, Uncles, Grand-Mommas, and Grand-Daddys. Friends, family, and foes. Also a special shout out to all the people I worked with so far. Lil Fats, Coast2coast Mixtapes, Wahid