BLACKAT: I got crazy with the Lil Flip Cover, this was and idea I brought to Flip and Hump. I came from a song by C-Note, “Diamonds All-N-Yo Face”. On Flip’s verse: “Lil Flip on my arm, eating a bowl of Lucky Charms”, and that was the cover idea, a box of Lucky Charms from Cleveland. We started created promo a year before the album dropped. When PnP takes the Cereal idea to Yungstar. What made it even better. Pen and Pixel had a PR machine promoting their company, when a writer showed up at my office with a million questions, asking me about the dates on my artwork, which I always add. That’s when the article hit in the Houston Press, sampling Styles. PnP was pissed, the press had did there research and found out the truth. PnP treated to sue them and me for definition of character. I once asked Shawn from Pen and Pixel, how do you sue the press your PR person got to do a story on you. Never got an answer to that question. I’m sure I never will. This guy even tried to sneak in the Lil Flip cover as his own until someone called him out on it.
G-FUNK.WS: Was that just one artwork story?
BLACKAT: My early years with Blackat Productions most of my work was direct to labels, like majors labels that do there own printing and manufacturing. It wasn’t until I designed the cover art for the .380 album I learn to control the whole process from design to print. I turned over the art to .380 and they took it to Pen and Pixel to print and that’s when PnP added an overlay onto the art and added, Design and Printing by Pen and Pixel to my artwork. It also stopped people from going into my files and savaging them.
G-FUNK.WS: Could you tell us about Bling Bling type of art which was the South’ thang, who originated it & brought into the masses?
BLACKAT: Bling was a term given by Cash Money, That name I didn’t come up with, It was an effect I added to things in my art, from metal, to jewelry, or glass, anything that would reflect light. The effects are called Lens flares, Cash money was a client of Pen and Pixel. If you take the time and research PNP’s work like 20-2-Life or Trinity Garden Cartal there was not Lens Flare effects. When I came along it was just a part of my work and was added when necessary, they took it, put it on everything and road it to the grave, and that Red fucking Sky.
G-FUNK.WS: What graphics designers out there you can say you were real cool with & respect their work?
BLACKAT: Mike Frost, Kid Styles – I’ve always been a fan of their work and both are great guys.
G-FUNK.WS: Have you been in good relationship with DJ Screw, Screwed Up Click members & affiliates?
BLACKAT: I never hangout with Screw much but in the business you know each other and always around the work I did. I do remember him not liking Skulls but as any artist, you don’t have a choice when the label is in control. I remember a story Beyonce told me about the single Bonnie and Clyde, it wasn’t her pick for a single, but that’s what the label was gonna go with. She had to fight for her power.
G-FUNK.WS: Would you share with us some good memories about Pimp C in his remembrance?
BLACKAT: Pimp was like family, he was home. Every holiday I would go down to Port Arthur to visit Family, food and fun, Then my next Stop was Chad’s house, is what I would call him. So hard to call him Pimp C face to face when you know him, kinda like I do with Flavor or most artist I have a personal relationship with and they call me Clyde.
G-FUNK.WS: Were there any rappers whom you worked with but you could say it grew into a friendship?
BLACKAT: Willie D and the Geto Boys, Pimp C was like a little Brother to me, we both grew up huge Beatles fans, DJ DMD who did the song 25 Lighters, my hometown Brother also, Big Mello, D-Wreck of Wreckshop, C-Note of Botany Boys and its been a few, we have spent time beyond the music and work. To family friends watching each other kids grow up.
G-FUNK.WS: Can you share a funniest story that happened with you during your career / in your life?
BLACKAT: Sum of that funny shit that might have happened to you & that still get you smile after all these years when it comes to your mind.
It was when Flavor Flav lived with me. We both was hanging out at a Hotel in Houston called Hotel Derek. Flavor wanted to go outside and Smoke. Now there we are with both our backs against the glass of the Hotel talking when out of the dark, I hear my name, “Hey Kat! Hey Blackat!!!” when out of the shadows comes Pimp C. I walk out to give him a hug and at that moment, Pimp C looks over my shoulders and see Flavor Flav. Pimp freaks out and runs over to Flavor and drop to the ground and kisses Flavor Flav shoes. By this time Flavor is High and freaking out, like “WTF! Kat!, Who is this Guy? Make him stop!” Flavor tried to back up and run but he slam into the glass and was stuck. I could do nothing but Laugh my ass off on the look of Flavor’s Face, Like it’s a huge Bear was sighing on you and I was nothing you could do. It get funnier, years later after Pimp C’s death. I’m in Vegas with Flavor, both my sons and his kids at Flavor’s Crib, we was all in the kitchen when Flav went off, that he met Pimp C and Pimp Kisses his shoes. LOL No one would believe his story so he looks at me like, “Kat!, tell them I’m not lying!” Again I did nothing but laugh my ass off, I couldn’t even verify the story form laughing so hard. LMFAO!!!
G-FUNK.WS: Where do you get inspiration from?
BLACKAT: Comes from people like Sergei Eisenstein, Salvador Dalí, Pablo Picasso, Andy Warhol. Robert Rauschenberg from Port Arthur, Texas, my mind was blown the day he won a Grammy for the cover of Talking Heads, Vincent Van Gogh and Charles M. Schulz, he worked at home creating his vision, was something i always wanted to do. and of course, George Lucas’ THX1138 and Star Wars, and Marvel and Stan Lee.
G-FUNK.WS: Who were your mentors back then?
BLACKAT: David Bowie, Nikki Sixx of Motley Crue, Bono of U2, Chuck D, manager – Shep Gordon, U2’s manager Paul McGuinness, Ricky Richardo, who was a Tour manager for Vanilla Ice and Whodini.
I’m not even going to comment!