Husalah was born into the life of his name, straight out of the El Pueblo Housing projects in Pittsburg, CA. He is a legend in his community; it’s always a huge party when Husalah is out. If you’ve never heard his music, you should take the time to gig for a minute, straight Hus style. Here, OZONE brings light to one of the Bay’s biggest talents, whose record “Cuttin’ It Up” is a regional favorite. Hus’ is also 1/5 of the popular group the Mob Figaz. Currently serving a five year sentence for possession of cocaine with intent to distribute in San Pedro, CA, Husalah has spent his time in prison strengthening his faith.

How old were you when you recorded your first song?

I was about 11 or 12, me and my producer RobLo, back in about 6th or 7th grade. We had a group called Undaje. We were dope. Rob use to steal raps from his older brother Jaquin, so I had to come tight. I never knew he was stealing raps from a grown man until I got older, so I was rapping in a group with a grown man when I was only 11. I guess that’s another reason why I’m so dope. That’s crazy you asked that question; it brought back memories. Kris Kross wore their clothes inside out, but we wore ours backwards. (laughs) We were real young ninjas, you know, his beats were as dope then as they are now. Rob is actually amazing and super dope.

How did you hook up with The Jacka, Rydah J. Klyde, Fed X and AP9?

We are all from the East Bay, and grew up in Pittsburg as kids - Jacka, Fed X and Klyde. Klyde is my blood cousin; same projects, same family. Then AP9 came out here and got on with the illest ninjas doing it.

How did you become one of the Mob Figaz?

The homie C-Bo got out of prison in ‘96 or ‘97. He heard about a pack of young ninjas who had heat, and he came to a record shop to listen. I was playing [basketball] in the local gym, dunking and shitting on people, and AP9 came in the gym and said, “Aye, bro, C-Bo is out here.” I said, “I don’t give a shit. Fuck rap! That shit is for fake-ass dudes who front. I’m rich and selling dope is my occupation. You can sing and dance all you want, but I’m cool.” But AP was persistent and he persuaded me to go outside. Young C-Bo pulled up in a sporty SL Benz AMG thang, stupid clean, and I said, “Fuck it, let’s do it.” Money was my life at that time. We went to the lab and recorded “Ride Til We Die.” It was an instant dumb-ass stupid slap, and C-Bo said we were a group and going on tour. I was really young so I had to ask my mom to sign me off with consent [forms]. All I can remember about that day was how the headlights on that Benz looked like they were blue; that new Euro shit. I was dedicated [to rap] from that day on. I wanted to be like C-Bo, young and rich.

What is one of your most memorable moments with the Mob?

When C-Bo dropped “Til My Casket Drop,” I was still a young dirtbag choppin’ O’s and you couldn’t tell me I wasn’t going to be the illest ninja ever in life. When I first heard somebody slide through stuntin’, he pulled to the stop sign and the driver looked over at the crowd, rolled down his window, and punched his gas. His shit was stupid running, and he slid across the intersection, and let his top drop while he was still burning rubber, figure eight-ing and everything. When he turned his slap up I heard my voice; it was our song, “Ride Till We Die,” the first song to ever be on a real record, blaring out of about six twelve [inch speakers] in a drop 1970 Cutlass, ridiculously clean, on five-time Zeniths. It made me feel like, this is everything I am to be, Mob for life. Youngstas love shit like that. That’s why I fuck with young ninjas who never had a record. I try to put them all on, I love the young ninjas.

Do you normally write your verses or freestyle them in the studio?

A lot of my music is off the [top of my] head. I feel it and I go. I focus on the music first, and when the music is slapping, I feel like I’m thirteen again and I’m in the car parked in the middle of my hood, blowing trees, and we four deep, making beats pounding on the console of the car - hitting the roof for bass while another person beat boxes. And it’s on me to spit dope to that perfect slap. That’s how I feel when I’m on. I love this shit. I do it for young ninjas who live like that, to let them know that the raggedy Cutlass you rap in can turn into a million-dollar studio, or a stage with ten thousand fans.

You often speak of Islam and occasionally rhyme in Arabic. Can you explain your faith, and how is your current incarceration testing it?

I first realized that I was something other than what I saw on the wall at church as a young youth. I was raised in a religious family and my mother is very open to truth. I saw a lot of other kids getting baptized and I asked, “Why am I not baptized? Everybody is happy for them. Can I do that too so everybody can be happy for me at church?” My mother said, “When you understand what it means to [be baptized], then it is your choice. It’s between you and Allah.” By the time I was around ten years old, I heard KRS-One rapping about knowledge. That’ was the second album I ever owned after [Too $hort’s] Born to Mack: [KRS-One’s Boogie Down Productions’] Criminal Minded. The cover was a likeness of Malcolm X. “Love’s Gonna Get You” was my favorite joint. As a kid, my dad would make me rap around all the dope [fiends] and hustlers. I was only a kid and I thought KRS-One was a Muslim, so I said, “I’m gonna be a Muslim when I grow up.” That’s really when it first crossed my mind. Arabic is the international language of Muslims worldwide. We pray in Arabic, we recite the Quran. Anywhere in the world there is a brother greeting you and speaking in Arabic. One in every five humans are Muslim! People don’t realize that.

You’ve got several different names. How did you get them and what do they mean?

I am the fourth, I come from a long line of strong and solid bloodlines, so obviously I was given the names of my father and his father. As for the names you hear throughout my music, along my path I’ve been many places and around many cultures, and my peers tend to bestow these names upon me. As for my [rap] name Husalah (pronounced “Hus’la”), I mean, I’m in a Federal prison for distribution of narcotics, so what more do I have to say? I should have chosen something like “The Husalah That Got Away,” because you truly do manifest your name. But I look at it like this: the name Husalah has the root “Hus” in it, [short] for “hustler,” but it also has the word “Salah,” which means “prayer” in Arabic. So I guess you could say that my name means “remember Allah.” That’s better than [a name meaning] “drug dealer,” at least to me. I’m Muslim before anything.

Since you’re currently incarcerated, is there anything you’d like to say about the informant who snitched on you? How close were you to that person, and why do you think they did it?

I was told on by a close friend, and even worst a Muslim. But Hiram was destined to fall, and deep down when you know that people around you aren’t cut out for the level of crime you’re committing, it’s your fault for fucking with someone that weak in the first place. The money canceled the risk, but to be perfectly honest, the streets have a strange way of giving those who cross it what they deserve. May Allah bless the souls of the countless many who fall, and those who have yet to [fall] but still owe the game. For me, I accepted the possibility of prison, even life if it came to it, that’s when you have a grasp on how real this shit is. I might get life or I might not live past this summer - that’s the mindstate of a true hustler. It’s a harsh reality you must accept when it comes to this street shit. When you get to a certain level, you hear it over and over: “It’s either prison or death.” For me, it happened to be prison, and for that I am thankful. I paid my price and I’ve got receipts. I stayed solid and paid the game its taxes. How about you? Ask yourself if this is a reality you’re willing to accept. This shit ain’t for play. I sacrificed for every dollar I ever made. With this hustlin’ shit, it’s not about an outfit or a chain or a car. It’s not on you, it’s in you.

What can you tell us about your experience being on the run from the law? How long was it ‘til they caught up with you, what were you actually doing, and how much rapping and performing were you able to get done during that period?

[The Feds] had been investigating me since May 2001, and [they] said that I distributed somewhere around 20 to 30 [kilos] until I was detained in July of that same year. I was snatched in a huge Chicago sting on July 3, 2001. I could smell the [4th of July] barbeque from the county jail yard in Cook County [Illinois]. I love Chicago, they showed me nothing but love, but the police had nothing on me. I was not driving and I hadn’t touched a single kilo myself, so I was released. I moved to New York the next month and tried to resume my music [career], but when 9/11 came I left New York. Around Thanksgiving [2001] the house I was staying at was raided, and I was named as a fugitive. I remained free until a week after my child was born in January 2003. I mostly stayed in the many projects I knew, from my own - the El Pueblo projects - to all over the town, OAK, even Shoreview in San Francisco. I would be walking like I was a regular tenant, seeing Fed cars and just acting like I belonged there. I felt at home right in the places they would never think I was, right in the middle of the ‘jects. All I did was watch over my little young hustlers I knew. I lived how they lived, like I had nothing left. I had money, but when you can’t go home? What good is it? I slummed it out. I barely rapped. It was like a dream that was real. I knew I had to face this shit, and all I could do was thug it out until they got me. Here I am, still solid and feeling great, like a real ninja should, no matter what.

After your sentencing, what was your mindstate for the next few months knowing you were going in? How did it affect your work ethic and your motivation to be in the booth?

When I was sentenced [to five years], I was almost happy. Five years seems like a long time to an ordinary person, but when you live this shit, it’s either that or death. I would gladly hop on a few years on the shelf over the “big ride” [death] any day. I was relieved it was over. I felt like I beat it because they dropped [my charges] from conspiracy to possession. Conspiracy comes with a mandatory minimum of ten years, and I would’ve had to do whatever [time] I got, no choice, no options. Real ninjas take their time, period. Anything else and you’re less than a woman and you should sit down to use the bathroom. You’re a bitch, period, but you bleed from your face when you get lit up not from your vagina like a traditional woman. I made a few more songs and went to prison as a man. My music reflects me, so that’s what the fans got.

Can you tell us about any of your personal experiences or addictions with dope? You’ve made references in your songs to hop and china white. How real was it for you?

You ain’t right for that question. What about the young dudes who are waiting to hear me say, “I sprayed heroin on my weed.” Dope ain’t cool. That’s how I look at it. Don’t fuck with it. You might find yourself with a gorilla on your back when you thought it was only a monkey.

How’d you first get started pushing weight? After your rap career popped off, why keep moving it?

I come from a long line of street dudes, like I said, we all even share a name. When I was coming up, I was Lil Boobie James and everybody said to me, “Boy, you’re going to be exactly like your daddy.” He’s a good man, real solid, but I thought I was going to play sports or some shit like that. I was against grinding. My pa’tnas started selling dope at age 10 or 11; that’s how long my hood was. I’m from a legendary project of the East Bay, the quiet money capital. So with all the respect the people had for my father even though he spent a lot of time in prison it was as if he never left. His blood was in me, hidden. I loved him and when I heard stories of all the street hustles he put down, it was almost like the people of the underworld looked to me to be the new king. All the old school friends who knew my dad supported me, protected me, and raised me from a crumb snatcher into a young ninja pushing [weight]. I was trying to be like my big brother Spice Trig and Sauce Kelly, R.I.P., you know, dudes who stood for everything that is sold. And before I knew it, the world was in my hands. The sacrifice almost seems like nothing. All the death and destruction was collateral damage in the struggle. My mind got fixed on “getting it” and taking this thing far past what any person could imagine. It became my identity. I started high school as the skinny dude who was the class clown, and the girls never took me seriously. They said, “You’re cute, but you dress dusty.” The rich kids had Jordans on. I had on Cortez and Five O Ones. I got snagged with about $60 worth of crack at school, and they said, “You’re smart and we hate to have to do this, but you can’t play basketball.” I never looked back. By the next basketball season, I came back to the school and showed up at the game. But this time I wasn’t playing ball. I was ballin’ on they punk ass! I was the cutest dude in town by then. I was Young Hus. That shit made me. Soon after that, C-Bo came and put me into the studio. I could not stop [moving weight]. The hustle was still in me. Even though we made good money as rappers, the streets had more to offer. The risk was nothing to me; I’d grown accustomed to death and destruction. I was raised in it and before I knew it, I was almost the only one left of my original crew. I miss my people, but the struggle must go on. To this day I look around and say, “Damn, where did everybody go?” Allah’s got them.

You’ve rapped, “I sold crack all my life, many dreams I killed.” How can you reconcile this with yourself? With your faith? With the plight of Black people in this country?

You know, that’s one of my worst fears, the punishment I must face. I can try to convince myself that I had no choice, but I knew better. When you commit evil and you have a relationship with Allah, you shall be held accountable for everything you do. I remember nights I had close calls busting at people, getting busted at, car wrecks. Sometimes I was running from the police; they were all over the hood and I refused to leave. I was into the overnighters real heavy. That was me, the young ninja with the stupid two for ten jumbos. I remember hitting gates, barely getting away from the boys. I would be in somebody’s backyard and I would look up and see that the moon was so bright it felt like it was daytime. That’s how much I stayed out at night. I would think to myself in those people’s backyards, “God is not protecting me right now. God would never allow me to behave like this. What I’m doing is the work of Shaytain, the devil.” That’s who was with me right then. I felt like that many nights. I am sure I must pay. It hurts me. Even if I knew not at the time what I was doing, it still hurts. Other times I would be out of town, out of state, and I would pick up money from people: shoe boxes full of bundles of money, and the money would reek of death; blood. One time I even had to get another room to keep the money in. It was screaming every story of every soul who had been destroyed for my personal gain. It made me feel sick inside. Until I went to the mall. I’m joking, but it’s not that funny. Sad but true.

Why are you currently serving time?

I was put in Federal prison for Possession with Intent to Distribute more than five kilograms of cocaine. I received [a sentence of] 60 months. I never spent a night in prison until I came for this. I had a long run [of freedom] so I can’t be mad. If you get money the ways I did, be prepared to do time. If you aren’t prepared, get out. You’re not cut out for it. It’s coming. Every empire falls, from the great Romans all the way down to YOU, Joe Hustle. Who are you, anyway? Move over. Here comes the next baller. You had your time; how did you spend your profits? Here are some years to think about it. Now get back, and when you get out if you think you’re ready, try again.

Now that you’re down, do you think about life on the outside? Were you truly happy? Was there anything you see now that was trapping you, mentally or spiritually, or that contributed to your demise?

I always knew I was in a fortunate situation. I knew that if people understood me or not, I would still be who Allah intends me to be. It’s been a rough road and I paid so much. I sacrificed a lot. I lost a lot. I lost friends, I lost love, I hurt a lot of people, and for that reason I remained distant from most. I accepted [my lifestyle], and I didn’t wish to have any passengers along on the path I took. I drive coupes on the streets, two-seaters. I do my own thing. My reality may seem to be the next man’s nightmare, but at the same time, my actuality is the next man’s dream. I dance in the middle of a war zone and somehow I don’t have a scar. Emotions is only based on something you miss. I don’t even know what emotions are; all I know is that I feel alive. I would go through it all again if that was what it took to know what I know now: Allah is greather than anything great, and I am a warrior.

People are making mixtapes and albums with certain Mob Figaz on them. Does that bother you?

I’m in prison; they need to keep the grind alive. I’m cool with it. I don’t look at it as disrespect, as long as the Mob is keeping it lit. I’m good; staying healthy and avoiding busting heads every day. This game we grew up in is vicious. The life we are forced to live is deadly. Most street ninjas don’t know that what they ride with every day on the block would only get them two years in state prison but can get you 20 years in the Federal system fast. Only a few ounces of crack is damn near a ten year [sentence] off top for a first-time [offender]. And if you’ve got a [gun] now it’s about ten more [years]. It’s crazy. Ten ounces of crack will get you more time than ten kilos of cocaine. Why? Because young blacks deal crack, and rich people like Lindsay Lohan snort coke. Crack is only a processed version of its true form, cocaine. It’s like that old song, “They Smart Boy.” Watch out. This shit is no joke.

Should we expect to see a complete Mob Figaz album anytime in the future?

I have faith that we are going to record and release an album, but we’ve been through so much. I’m happy to see my ninjas alive. Feddy sustained a bullet to the head and not only is he alive but he still talks more shit than before. We’ve all been in legal trouble. We are fools to have went through all this crazy shit when all we had to do was make music. The people pull for us everywhere we go. When I came to prison, people knew the song from the first and only Mob Figaz album and I forgot them. I was so caught up in trying to be some type of overlord that I forgot about the people and the music. But if I get rich we all get rich. If Rydah gets rich, we’re all rich. If Jacka gets rich, we’re all rich.

Since you’ve been in the Feds you have an anthem on the streets “Cuttin’ it Up.” It’s performed in your name and fans go dumb. Does that surprise you?

I always was the one in the group to have my own fans. I always had the super grimy dudes and women who liked what I brought to the table. I was cool with just being on the hook, or having the start off verse, and letting everybody else shine. I like to see everybody get on, because deep down, I know what I’ma do. I’m great and it takes time for people to see that. I won’t tell you I’m great, you’re going to have to find out that secret. People started to get that special secret while I was in here, so now it’s not just the grimy hustlers who love me, but regular people too. Who would’ve known? Regular people like maniac music. That’s kind of funny to me.

Has the music game changed since you started?

A lot has changed. People rap about selling kilos but they’re wearing fake chains. It’s crazy. I was a young ninja with dreams so I support even the smallest rappers. As long as you’re a solid person, I fucks with you. I’ll even do your crazy dance. I love black culture and everything that is project and ghetto. I’m gonna need everybody to make a hit song so the whole hood can do a concert. We can have a million dances that white people love and the hood can have stars again, not just dope dealers, who might only be there until they get shot or end up here in Federal prison, looking at pictures of what we had. Whatever it takes to feed the kids, I’m all for it, even the songs that sound like they were [recorded] in the bathroom. Take [that song] to number one so Junebug can stunt and buy a car and some rims, so I won’t have to give him a ride. I drive two-seaters and the other seat is for baby with the big butt, so you need to get your own car so we can get in traffic and stunt on everybody.

Who did you look up to as a youngster that influenced your rap career?

I grew up in the Bay Area, and I really didn’t look up to any particular rapper. I looked up to the dudes who my favorite rappers were talking about and emulating. Two of them to be exact, who I happen to be on the yard with. Both are known as legends, Bay Area icons, who inspired everything from how we walk to how we hustle: Lil D and JB. These two men sacrificed a lot to remain men with honor and integrity, and stood for everything that is honor in the world that people glorify in music. To me it’s not just that they are legendary hustlers. They stand for ambition and strength, traits that any person can look up to, not just street people.

You’ve got a unique style. Do you have a stylist?

My mom is my real stylist. I’m from El Pueblo and staying dipped is what we do. Even when I was young and dudes pulled overnighters for Jordan money, I had to have Gucci sneaker and kick money. My hood stays stupid clean. Mobsters, hustlers, and players 100% across the board. I’m the type of dude that can knock you out with a left hook while you’re still thinking, “He won’t fight me with a coke white $600 sport suit on.” Before you know it, you’re down flat. I’m everything fake dudes wish to be, live in the flesh. Shitting on people. Having fun.

How have you been spending your time in prison?

The first year I was wilding out, like every young ninja that come to prison. Slapping the shit outta anybody I wasn’t feeling. I was winning fights, but when I got moved to a [higher security prison], I had to think, “Hold on, player.” So I learned how to do my bid like a real ninja; feeding my mind, striving towards my faith in Allah. Work out, soak up game, bullshit around, talk shit, listen to all the different types of lies you hear in prison. Everybody says they had thousands of bricks. Some really did, so it’s fun to hear it all. If you know somebody in prison, your actions are all we have to go on. If you don’t look out, how do we know [that you love us]? This shit is our reality. Look out for whoever you love that’s in a place like this. It’s real shit.

I see you’ve been working out. What’s that about?

You peep that? (laughs) I’m working my supermodel game for when I peel out in that new stupid coupe. I can’t let my car look better than me.

What should we expect when you come home?

Don’t expect anything. I am a Muslim before rap, before anything. My path is the will of Allah. I don’t mean to sound like I’m preaching, but it’s true.

Have you been writing songs?

I really don’t write in here. I’m an artist who works on emotion and vibes, and I’m not in a place that exudes creativity. I look up and see a thousand ugly dudes. How could I be feeling it in that circumstance? I do listen to a lot of music from all genres and I have a lot of ideas. The verses fall into place for me, but the music and feelings are first. Verses are only words, but the music moves the soul.

What’s the latest book you read?

RIYAHD-US-SALEHEEN, a book of habits and fortress of the Muslim. I read it every day.

You’ve got a good view at Terminal Island, huh?

Yeah, my bunk actually sits right on the L.A. harbor, so I’m beachfront. This is actually an island, and I always wanted to have a beachfront estate. I never imagined it would be a Federal Correctional Facility (laughs) but I have a great view. I’m right on the water and I sleep with the sound of the waves and the tide rolling in. My life amazes me sometimes When I get back, the world won’t be the same.

Is there anything else you’d like to say?

Everything a man goes through can only make him stronger or destroy him. Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it. People have their priorities fucked up, and the reality of life is that this shit is not a joke. Have faith in Allah, and strive for what you believe in. To everybody in the system, stay solid, and believe that Allah does not bestow upon any man that which he can not handle. Even when this shit seems like a no-win [situation], keep pulling. Shout out to my young ninjas in this shit who I’ve been bidding with: JB, Big Boob, Mark Young V, my brother Mike Mike, Slick G, my pops, everybody that’s down, everybody from the Pueblo area. If I’m on, you’re on. Most above all, the uhmmah across the world. Allah the Glorified and Exalted is greater than anything great.