HotBlock Jmoe wants to be one of the best. Hailing from the South Side of Chicago, home to some of the biggest names in rap, he has his own unique sound and story, overcoming trials and tribulations before finding music to be his savior. With great melodies and smooth lyricism, Hotblock Jmoe puts his heart and soul into every album.
Now, Hotblock Jmoe is keeping the momentum going by once again teaming up with Chicago rapper G Herbo, this time on a record titled “Fasho.” In fact, G Herbo was the lead on the creative direction of the film, which was shot in Los Angeles, California. It was a Chicago game and Polo G even stopped to support.
“Fasho” is just the beginning for Hotblock Jmoe, G Herbo and Polo G will be releasing a single titled “To The Grave” this summer.
AllHipHop was interviewed while filming the “Fasho” video for Hotblock Jmoe in Los Angeles.
AllHipHop: Where did you get your name?
Hotblock Jmoe: I’m from there. I wouldn’t say we were a gang, it was more like a family because everyone I was with, we were all really related. It’s interesting. It consists of three families: my family, my cousin’s best friend, and…how do I describe bronem? They always grew up with us, another family that we grew up with. Funny how we got this name. So our area is hot, like a red zone. Things are bad there. The police are always there.
One day the police pulled up and a friend of mine was outside and he was squirming. They pulled us all over for no reason. He was like “Man, why are you messing with us?” He was like “Because this is a hot neighborhood!” And we’ve been doing it ever since.
AllHipHop: Favorite artist that made you want to make music?
Hotblock Jmoe: Just a few people. One of them is interesting because I’m working on a feature with him right now: G Herbo.
AllHipHop: How did you get in touch with G Herbo?
Hotblock Jmoe: Get to know people in common through mutual help. The brother of one of my close friends grew up with his cousin. Then when I started rapping, we started playing. I met Herb through his cousin A1. Shout out to Brother Fashaw. I have known my brother for six months. Authentic, truly authentic. Love everything, man, he must be a star.
AllHipHop: I know you guys have worked together before…
Hotblock Jmoe: Yeah, we probably have five or six songs right now. This is the second one we dropped last, “Fasho”. And then I got some other stuff that featured Polo.
AllHipHop: I saw that too. Did anyone leak this song?
Hotblock Jmoe: I think they tried. I don’t know if this is the full version, people are going crazy. We don’t know for sure yet, but we know it.
AllHipHop: Talking about filming the video for “Fasho,” G Herbo just stopped by!
Hotblock Jmoe: This is crazy. I’m working on “Fasho.” I’m not lying, I love shooting songs with my brothers. Honestly, I can say the same about one of my brothers because he is a genuine person. It doesn’t feel forced or anything. You just have fun adjusting in front of the camera.
AllHipHop: What do you like about G Herbo?
Hotblock Jmoe: I’ve been a fan since then – I can say a fan ’cause niggas know I ain’t kidding. I’ve been listening to his music since he debuted. I’ve witnessed his whole transformation and all the steps he’s taken, so it’s crazy to be in this position and see it so close.
AllHipHop: How was “Fasho” made?
Hotblock Jmoe: It’s funny, we were in Chicago for a show. I performed with my brother Teeski. I just arrived at the studio. Usually, I always do this before a game. I didn’t even know that brother was in Chicago and he had parked the car. He called me and was like, “I’m going to the studio, are you there?” When he came in, I was already working on the song. The pace is crazy. Which reminds me – anything that falls into this category falls into his process. He would be in and out.
He came in and he heard how crazy I was. My CEO said, “I’m not going to lie, you have to jump on this.” He had already said, “I’m ten steps ahead of you.” He got in and walked out! crazy. I just keep playing. Everyone was listening, and so was he. I kid you not, we have to shoot. In fact, he came up with a cure.
AllHipHop: What is the treatment?
Hotblock Jmoe: You’ll see.
AllHipHop: Do you do the melodies when he raps?
Hotblock Jmoe: Both. I’ve done a little bit of both and it’s definitely heavy now. Especially because of the season. This is a season of transformation. From here until the end of summer I try to escape the worldly atmosphere. But I love playing melodic s###, so I always try to mix that in as well. I’m not going to shy away from that because that’s who I am. But thank God I happen to be versatile. So I can have both.
AllHipHop: What can we expect from Polo G and G Herbo’s “To The Grave”? Are you all in the studio?
Hotblock Jmoe: I did it, I was with a close friend. OzOnTheTrack is one of Herb’s close producers/engineers.
He’s from Chicago and we’ve been stuck for a minute. He came to Los Angeles and was doing something. I parked my car at the studio. We started singing a few songs and he played that song for me. All I know is that it gives me a New York drill type vibe mixed with Chicago. I knew it was going to be a hit, so I had to get it right. I’m not lying, I recorded this song twice.
But I kept it, and that was the energy. I want to make sure the energy is correct. I sent my brother a lot of stuff that I thought he would be happy with or that I wanted to hear his opinion on. But when I was playing that game, he said “This is hard.” I’m going to jump on that. I’ve been trying to get Polo documented for some time. It wasn’t me reaching out to him, it was just something I’d always wanted.
S### f### It, see if you can get bro. The brother reached out and he did it. I met them one night in their studio in Burbank. Herb sang his poem, and then Polo sang his. It’s crazy, the energy is crazy. It’s amazing energy. The two of them did this right in front of me and walked off.
AllHipHop: Leaving the Dome?
Hotblock Jmoe: Man. Rush in and go crazy. N##### It’s definitely different. But I’m really grateful because we’re both from the same city.
AllHipHop: What does this mean for Chicago?
Hotblock Jmoe: Is this what it’s all about, especially coming from Chicago? Usually people don’t… Yeah, I can say that. Typically, we’re not keen on collaborating with other artists in the city because there’s so much going on in the streets. But now, I can honestly say: the artists that are coming out—even with Durk, Herb, Polo—they’re not really paying attention to it. They have sent the ladder back for us. This is real n#### s### and I appreciate it. Especially in my upcoming role.
All Hip Hop: Tes [manager] Say you dropped out of high school and you started taking music seriously after your friend died. How long ago did that happen?
Hotblock Jmoe: I dropped out of school, damn, when was that? In 2015, I am a bit old, I am 26 years old. [smiles] I started rapping a year or two later. I’m going to break it all down for you. When I said start rapping, I realized: I think I want to rap. I was telling a close friend of mine. He said, “S###, try it.” So I used to write s### back and forth to him. He was like “I’m not going to lie, this is hard.” You should let Bronum hear it.
I even went and wrote a song, recorded it and all that. But don’t let anyone hear it except these guys. Everybody, they love it. “You’re going crazy!” Bro always pushes me, my friend.
He was like “You need to take this seriously. Just put something down and get a reaction. When he passed away, all I could hear was what he was saying in my head. “Man, you need to take this seriously. , bro. It’s time for you to really take it there. You’re right, I’m locked in.
