Layzie Bone reached the pinnacle of hip hop success as a member of Bone Thugs-n-Harmony. Since beginning in 1993, BTNH has sold 40 million records worldwide; however, eternal strife and questionable business decisions have caused the group to reassess themselves and learn from their mistakes. While promoting his new solo albums The Definition and The Meaning, Layzie Bone discussed triumphs, disappointments and the future of Bone Thugs-n-Harmony.–amir shaw
BNTH experienced being at the pinnacle of hip hop. What was it like to be a part of that journey?
We were young cats, so the success didn’t register at the time. We were putting out so many hits back then. “Crossroads” was our biggest hit. It won a Grammy and broke The Beatles record for fastest growing single. To come from welfare and being on the block, it was a surreal feeling.
But you guys also experienced a lot of disappointment after the success. What was the cause of it?
We all went through our own struggles. It was a combination of experiencing overnight success, all of that money and us growing up — trying to find ourselves as young men took a toll. Flesh went to the penitentiary and Bizzy dealt with his own issues. We felt like Ruthless Records was robbing us. There was a lot of growing pains that plagued us for a long time. We were having families and growing as men and dealing with all this money. It was kind of unbearable. That’s how it is in America: if you don’t know how to handle your finances and no one has taught you how, that money will take you for a whirlwind.
If you could talk to your 20 year-old self, what would you say?
I would tell my 20 year-old self to slow down. Take more time before you start this company and read all you need to know about the music business. I would study everything instead of diving in it head first. But I learned it the hard way. I would tell myself to stay dedicated, but to learn business before I tried to become a businessman.
What’s the future of BTNH?
We are all together now. We tour and do about 200 shows per year. We recognized the strength of our brand, but we still do our own thing. I have Mo Thugs/Harmony House; Flesh is doing Flesh-n-Bone Global; and Krayzie and Wish have partnered to do The Life Entertainment. We respect BTNH as the head brand, but we all got our own dreams and aspirations.
