New York City-based Necro is the proclaimed inventor of Death Rap. The insane microphone doctor creates the world's most brutal rhymes. Rhymes on Satan, mutilation, serial killing, hardcore sex, horror films and other taboo subjects spew forth from the rapper's mouth like a drunk purging his last meal. The sick rapper has a unique appeal to fans of metal due to his extreme raps and infusion of extreme metal. Those who have opened their mind to his music have also discovered the extreme metal musicians who have made guest appearances on his albums. Recently, Necro headlined his first shows in England.

Metal Mayhem: Necro headlined in England for the first time. You've played a couple shows now, how did they go?
Necro: The shows were dope. I sold out both times, first the Scala then the Mean Fiddler, both shows were dope. I will be coming back to England in June to play a huge U.K. festival. I will announce which one soon.

MM: Do you have a good following in Europe, in particular England? If so, to what do you contribute it to?
Necro: Yeah, I have a great following. I haven't dropped a record since '05, and I sold out two huge clubs, that should show I'm big. I think it has a lot to do with dropping dope shit consistently. Kids download shit a lot, so if they can't get it, they will hear it and the music speaks for itself. I also have been in a ton of magazines for years, from "Hip Hop Connection" to all the other known U.K. mags, so I can thank Mike Lewis for doing my U.K. P.R. for the last bunch of years.

MM: You played with the hardcore bands Terror and Full Blown Chaos at your recent show at The Astoria. How does hardcore rap and hardcore metal mesh? Necro: I think it's fine. I don't play with those bands to be cool or to try to mesh anything. I include metal in my music because I'm a metal head, so it's natural. I don't see anything wrong with flipping shit and playing with hardcore and metal bands too. MM: Do hardcore bands pull in a good crowd in England, considering England’s history of punk rock? Necro: Yeah, they do ok. I can't judge as I don't know the breakdown of who comes for who. All I know is I headlined and it sold out two times.

MM: At the Astoria show you also played with your brother Ill Bill. Considering you are brothers, do you two ever try to out do each other on stage?
Necro: I try to out do everyone, no matter who they are because I'm competitive. I'm getting better and better at each show. Keep in mind, I never toured, so I don't have the experience other artists have, yet I still murder every stage I'm on because I play in front of my fans, so their energy is so brutal it pumps me up, but I get better every time. When I finish touring for 200 dates this year, I will be next level live. As it is, my fans say my shows are the sickest, from the pits to the energy I give. I rap to every person in the room, personally.

MM: Do you have any other tours/shows scheduled?
Necro: Yes, I'm performing on Sounds of the Underground starting in July going through August. I'll be opening for Gwar, Chimaira, and a few other bands. It will be sick. Check out the tour at www.soundsoftheunderground.com

MM: Your musical style is rap and hip hop, but you do what few can in the music industry, you stretch musical boundaries. What is it about your music that appeals to real metal fans (not fake nu metal fans)?
Necro: I'm brutal, I can rap super, ultra violent and explicit and do it artistically. My shit is pure art and pure drama.

MM: Please tell our readers a bit about the guest metal and hardcore musicians who have appeared on your albums.
Necro: I have worked with Dan Lilker (S.O.D, Nuclear Assault), Away from Voivod, Hatebreed, Obituary, Sid from Slipknot, Igor from Sepultura, Alex from Testament, Vinny Appice, Matt Harvey from Exhumed, Lord Ezec (Skarhead), and more!!

MM: Before I got into metal, I was a big fan of rap. Back in the late eighties and early nineties, when I mostly listened to rap, rap seemed much darker and meaner than what it is today. When Ice-T formed Body Count, it was a combining of true metal with rap, unlike the nu metal scene that appeared a few years later. Does Necro identify more with the rappers of old? Necro: Yes, I do. I love old school shit like Ice-T, Kane, Rakim, G Rap, ect.

MM: Do you think the sensibilities of those early, gansta/extreme rappers are part of what makes Necro so hardcore and in part what makes the fusion of rap and metal work?
Necro: I'm not influenced much by rap rock shit, but Geto Boys being foul influenced me a lot. I was a metal head at twelve years old living in the projects being raised to be a thug, so I come from the perfect mix growing up in the PJ’s in Brookyln.

MM: In the last interview we did, we talked about some of your lyrical topics, most specifically serial killers. I also noticed you rhyme about horror films. How have horror films and soundtracks influenced your writing?
Necro: Everything influences me, I look deeper into shit 'cuz I'm a director, so I analyze who directed the films, the actors, the effects, the stories. I'm also into gangsta movies.

MM: What are some of your favorite horror films? Necro: "Blood Sucking Freaks" is one of my favorites. I love "Hills Have Eyes", "Texas Chainsaw", "Last House on the Left", "Maniac"; the Saw trilogy is awesome, "The Omen", "Final Destination" the Wish Master trilogy, "The Manson Family". I could go on for days.

MM: You have a diverse musical background. You used to play in a death metal band (In Justice). Could we possibly see you play guitar on a future release?
Necro: I always play guitar on my records since "Prefix for Death". On my new album I'm dropping this year, I play guitar on at least one track.
MM: Speaking of future releases, have you been writing material for your next album? Can you give our readers some details?
Necro: Yeah, I'm working on my new album, now to be released this year. I will make an official announcement soon.

MM: You used metal album art icon Ed Repka (Death, Municipal Waste, Megadeth) for "The Prefix for Death" and a DC Comics artists for the ensuing album, "The Circle of Tyrants". Do you have an acclaimed artist in mind for the next album?
Necro: I've been working with the same people and I will also work with three new artists, as I never rest on my laurels or the artists I have used before. I always push for something crazy. I got something in mind that I might use for my next album cover. It's coming out pretty sick!

MM: Well, that's about it. Usually, journalists will ask a band to relate a message to their fans at the end of the interview. I figured I would do something different and ask you to give a message to all your haters.
Necro: Well, all my haters can die. Fuck them! To my fans and all my potential fans, check out my sites:

www.necrohiphop.com (go to the store and buy merch)
www.myspace.com/necro
www.youtube.com/necrotherealone

Darren Cowan