If you are looking for the essence of New York Hip-Hop, look no further than the Ghostface Killah aka Tony Starks.    People talk about Jay-Z and 50 Cent but let’s be honest; Ghostface has never made a wack or sub-par album.  Everything he touches is classic and from the early reviews “More Fish” is another classic notch on his proverbal belt.  December 12th is the official release date for “More Fish” and expect nothing less than classic Ghostface.  I got a chance to chat with Ghost about Def Jam in 06, the new album, and Mr. President S Dot.   It’s always a pleasure to interview a legend and Ghostface Killah never disappoints.

HHS: What’s good, how are you doing.

Ghostface: Everything is good, I can’t complain.  Doing 2 albums in one year, just trying to keep it moving, this is my whole technique now I think I have to do 2 albums each year.

So we are going to see 2 Ghostface albums every year from here on out?

Yeah, whether it’s me or me and my team, I’m going to try to push 2 out.  Just to keep me and the team out there.  The streets needed more all around.

Hip-Hop needs more!  Are these throw away tracks from “Fishscale” or all new joints?

I have some of the fish that are left over from “Fishscale” and I’ve got new tracks on there too that I had to do.  It’s a mixture of both of them mixed together.

There has been a couple leaks, we’ve heard “Good” and “Ghost is Back”.  Will those make the album?

Yeah, those are both on the album.  By the grace of God all that will be on the album

Who produced the “Good” single, a lot of people are wondering?

These dudes, one is called Koolade and the other dude is called Peanut.

So is “Good” the official single for “More Fish”?

It goes with whatever takes off first.  I think they are going to focus on “Good” first because it has a lot more mass appeal, for the clubs and you know how radio be.  It depends on which one will take off; they both could be big,

Why choose to rhyme over Eric B and Rakim’s “Know the Ledge”?

I’m one of the only brothers in the industry that can do that.   Rakim already killed that and he laid it down.  I’m a fan of old school music, I had to go ahead and put my little works on it.  I had to do my version for right now.  It’s all an honor to Rakim; I have loved that track since “Juice” came out.  I just had to do what it do.

What is the official release date on the album?

December 12th, “More Fish” is in stores December 12th.   I want everybody to go out there and write that in your diary, write it on the refrigerator and do what you got to do.  December 12th is in stores man.

“Fishscale” had only Wu-Tang affiliates other than Ne-Yo as guests, who’s making appearances on “More Fish”

I got my peoples Redman and Sheek Louch, not too many man, I have my squad.

We have heard Theodore Unit will be all over this one.

Yeah, we are doing it right.  It’s not like an album on how they drop an album with they team and its wack.  They just make it a compilation and then let it go; this right here is the movie.

What’s up on the highly anticipated MF Doom and Ghostface project?

Yeah, we have to get on that.  Right now we are just doing what we have to do.  Doom doing what he doing and I’m doing what I’m doing, we still have that in mind.  We know people want that.

Jay-Z has come under a lot of criticism from inside the Def Jam label about how he has been running the label since he took over, are you happy with the way Jay-Z and Def Jam are running in 2006.

I can’t complain I don’t have anything to complain about.  I am doing what I have to do.  LA Reid and Jay are bosses, sitting in their chairs up there.  Jay is new sitting in that chair right there.   It’s like a dude building a basketball team or he’s coming in as a fresh coach.  He came in to be coach but that doesn’t necessarily mean he is going to go to the championship right there.  Sometimes it’s going to take two or three years to break in.  Everybody has been trying to be real hard on him, but Jay do what he do.  You have to give him a chance though.  I know it’s tight right now in the game to let years go by.  He has to go head and do what he has to do.  He has have some time to figure out what’s good and what’s not good and sometimes that takes over a year or two.  It’s not like you can come in and everything is going to be peaches in cream.  I had to sit back and look at it like that.  Nowadays I do a lot of work for myself; you can’t just sit around and expect somebody to something for you.   Def Jam is a new building; this is the new Def Jam.  There are a lot of laws that have to be set for the way things are to be run.  That’s just what it is, Jay is good.  He do what he do and hopefully in the future everything is going to be all good.

You have made a lot of moves independently with a lot of success.  Do you see yourself sticking around on a major label?

I don’t know.  Wherever God takes me right now, it’s all good.  I’m still grateful for still being in the game and being able to appeal to this new generation.  That’s a blessing within itself; it’s however God allows me or wherever he wants me to move. That revelation will come upon me and I’m going to just move.

So as far as music is concerned, is there anything you are looking forward to coming out?

I’m a dude who misses a lot of old music, I wish we could bring that back.   Times have changed and you can’t dwell in the past, but you can reminisce on it.  I just keep it moving man, I just like good music.  If you are putting out something that’s vintage and you have that you know, that sound.   It’s all good, I miss that you know.  If not I’m not really worried about nothing.  I’m just doing what I have to do to try to participate in helping New York to get their swagger back.

That leads into my next question, so is New York coming back to take the crown?

Of course.   Of course.  What goes around comes around, we will definitely be there.  I want to be a part of that campaign right there.  What’s first shall be last and what’s last shall be first.  Right now we last we were first and now we are last but what’s last shall be first.  It’s coming back around one day.

I don’t know about last, the west coast has been struggling for quite sometime.

From where it all came from the west coast is still doing their thing.  They got Game, Snoop, E-40 and things of that nature.  They are still doing what they have to, it’s not like they are totally last.

You can’t say the east is totally last either, The Roots dropped a great album this year and I’m still banging “The Fishscale”.

As far as exposure, we are.  You look at 106 and Park and you don’t see that many east coast rappers on there, unless it’s 50 Cent or Jay-Z.  We just need more; it’s time for us to run the countdown right now.  We need to have more unity and support each other for that.

When I spoke to you back in March you were working on something outside of music, can you shed any light on those projects?

Of course of course, I’m not going to even dwell on that right now.  Every time I speak on something like that it slows my process up.  You are supposed to hold on to that until things manifest itself.  When things start manifesting then it’s good to go ahead and speak on that.  I have a problem every time I say something for something happens it never comes through for the kid or gets delayed, so I’m learning to keep my mouth shut on that.

Any last words?

God is good man, put God first man.   Go get that “More Fish” album on December 12th.  December 12th the album is in stores ya’ll, this is Ghostface Killah talking to you.  December 12th “More Fish” is in stores and just put God first and I’m good.