Rebecca Marx
Rift: First off, you hail from Virginia Beach-begs the question of why Minnesota?
Ced Linus: My brother (Prince Carlton) and I came here to play basketball at Bethany Lutheran College. We started doing music and quickly saw that Minnesota is a great place for independent music. So we decided to build our label here.
Rift: MN has a well-established Hip Hop/Rap scene, was the potential of a built in audience part of the decision to establish yourself here?
Ced Linus: Absolutely. I feel like clubs and bars are not afraid to give you a chance to perform at their venue. There’s always been a love and admiration for local music.
Rift: Is there room for everyone at the table?
Ced Linus: I look at the table being bigger than Minnesota. We travel a lot and do many shows in other states and other countries. We all don’t have to play the same lane and try to do the exact same things. We all can be creative and build different avenues to have our label be successful. When I was in London, I saw a huge Polica poster in the underground. That’s the type of impact we want to have at a label.
Rift: How do you set yourselves apart from well known MN collectives such as: Doomtree, Rhymesayers and Soul Tools, to name a few.
Ced Linus: My brother and I love coming up with our ideas and being true to the music that we love and grew up on. We all are individuals with our own stories and our own visions, and we all want to make our own history. I have a lot of respect for the other labels that were named. We are really cool with Soul Tools.
Rift: Soul Tools is amazing! Is the scene as a whole inclusive, or do you find it exclusive?
Ced Linus: It’s all about how much you are trying to hustle and how genuine you are about it. The thing I love about the music scene is that you get out what you put in. It’s simple. I think our work ethic has always made us feel included.
Rift: Do you see the competition as an asset, a challenge or a hindrance?
Ced Linus: It’s an asset for sure. You can definitely look at it as motivation. But it’s only good when you are happy for the success of others as well. If we are not happy for one other, then it sets music scene back.
Rift: Pledge Empire Records is going at the speed of light right now, what are you most looking forward to as 2015 comes to a close?
Ced Linus: Sti-Lo Reel has put out his album Martial Law which is a great album. We are also excited other artist we have on the label and what they are bringing to the table. Matthew J is an incredible artist and we are excited about him and venturing into other genres of music.
Rift: The upcoming show at Public Functionary, how did that come about?
Ced Linus: Well I met Tricia (Khutoretsky) a while ago at the gallery and was inspired when I walked in by the setup, and by the art. So, I had the vision for the show about a year ago but just getting around to putting it together now. I love the bands that we have on the bill. It also has me working with artists from genres of music other than hip hop. I love listening to indie rock, so to put a show together like this means a lot to me, and also to work with Riftmagazine and getting to know Rebecca is a blessing.
Rift: It has been a fun collaboration for sure! The Public Funktionary Take Over (12/19) feats. Ced Linus (of Pledge Empire Records), The Friendly Beers, Bae Tigre, Warehouse Eyes and Beasthead, is quite a top notch sampling of the Twin Cities music scene, curious, why not a showcase featuring acts solely from the label?
Ced Linus: Showcasing the labels artist is something we have been doing non stop for years and gonna continue to do, but we are trying to push ourselves to new heights and be creative with our approach to music. That’s what keeps us from burning out. Sometimes working with new people and meeting new musicians and networking can be beneficial to everyone at the label at some point.
Rift: What does 2016 have in store?
Ced Linus: We have so many things plans. My album will be coming out very soon. Matthew J has some new material he’s putting out also as Louie P. Definitely gonna shoot more short films. We have an Australia trip coming up. We have been blessed as a label and can’t wait to continue on our journey.
Don’t miss it, details here: Pledge Empire Takes Over Public Functionary 12/19 7-11pm
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