Underdog rapper flows toward the top

By John Benson

If music was about talent and rocking a live show, he says he’d be a millionaire.

In many ways, rapper Tech N9ne (born Aaron Dontez Yates) embodies not only a modern hip-hop sound but also the frenetic state of the iPod music generation. His distinct technique of providing easy flow rhymes and aggressive diatribes over everything from old school beats, crunk and even metal has made this Kansas City artist the biggest rapper nobody knows.

Add in the fact that his recently released ninth studio effort, “Killer,” pushed his career record sales over the 1 million mark, and the question that needs to be asked is what is keeping Tech N9ne from becoming a media-hyped star?

“Because it’s all about money,” said Tech N9ne, calling from his Kansas City home. “If it was all about talent and ability to rock a mic or to do a live show, I’d be a millionaire. It’s all about money, and how much you can pay them to get on that television or get regular rotation on the radio. If it were about talent and music, like it is supposed to be, we’d be on top of the world.”

He added, “The only reason why the mainstream doesn’t know Tech N9ne is because we’re independent, and we use our own money. We’re not trying to pay $50,000 to MTV to show our video. Ironically, we just shot a new video for (new song) ‘Like Yeah’ and MTV jams just added it. We didn’t pay anything. So I guess a lot of things are changing, and my goal is to get it to the rest of the world.”

When talking to Tech N9ne, uber-success is his priority. In fact, this topic dominates his conversation, with nearly every answer eventually leading back to the point that he’s still living as the underdog. However, there’s a good feeling that “Killer” may act as his coming-out party.

The 32-track, double-disc effort, which features a straitjacket-wearing Tech N9ne posed like Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” cover, is a star-studded affair with guest appearances by Ice Cube, Paul Wall, Scarface, Shawnna, Kottonmouth Kings, Hed PE and more. If Tech N9ne was looking for credibility in the hop-hop world, his guest list speaks volumes about how his talents are viewed from the inside.

“I’m set apart from everybody else,” Tech N9ne said. “If I were to describe my music, it wouldn’t fit with everyday regular music, because I do something totally different from a lot of rappers now. When you listen to a lot of rap today, it’s really tough and really mean. And I have really tough and really mean music too, but the difference between me and other guys on the mic is that I’m totally inside out.

“What I mean by that is, I don’t hold anything back. If my life is going good, I give you my good and my bad. I give you my ups and my downs. As my life progresses or gets worse, I’m not afraid to let people know about my vulnerability.”

Over the past few years Tech N9ne has experienced various momentum-defining events. In 2006, he played Denmark’s Roskilde Festival alongside such notable acts as Tool, Guns N’ Roses, Kanye West and George Clinton. Now, he’s preparing for another tour, which includes a European leg and a stateside jaunt. His evolution upward is evident regarding a recent venue jump in Northeast Ohio. After playing Peabody’s DownUnder for years and finally moving to the Agora Theatre, Tech N9ne is scheduled to make his House of Blues debut Monday at the Cleveland concert club.

In a nutshell, these are exciting times for the 37-year-old, who is hoping the new attention will finally break him open to the mainstream for good.

“What that lets me know is that it’s spreading like a forest fire because people are calling us from everywhere wanting us to do shows,” Tech N9ne said. “This is the thing about the album ‘Killer’; I’m trying to push this everywhere.

“Now we’ve been doing that with no video or radio airplay. That’s a major accomplishment coming from Kansas City. So my idea is to get it to the rest of the world. And it’s happening. We’re going to push it until we can’t push it no more.”