“I’ve been sitting on it and sitting on it,” Payne said. “I just couldn’t wait much longer so I went the DIY route and put it up as a PayPal kind of deal. I just couldn’t wait. The older it gets the more you start to hate it, and the less it makes sense so you don’t want to be a part of it. A lot of it is timeless, but a lot of it was poignant for the moment so it had to get out.”
There are plenty of upbeat numbers on “Patty Marcell,” but Payne doesn’t focus on club thumpers or simple-minded pop fluff. This is straight-up underground rap, which balances R&B and funk elements with more experimental tendencies.
“The album has got a little bit of something for everybody, but it’s definitely not for the weak of heart,” Payne said. “You’ve got to think about it so if you don’t like thinking then get ready. People have told me, ‘Man, all I hear is you talking all the time. I’ve got to think so hard. It’s like reading a book.’ I’m like, ‘Good, I’m glad.’
“You will have to think about this, if you want to, but it can mean whatever you want it to mean,” he continued. “It gets political here and there. I try to steer away from that but sometimes you can’t help it because it’s weird out in that world.”
Payne isn’t afraid to play the clown at times, or dwell on lustful thoughts, but he is focused on creating serious, cerebral rap.
“Unfortunately, people think hip-hop is funny,” he said. “They think it’s a joke, because a lot of what’s out there, especially stuff on the radio, is a joke. You tell people you rap, and they’re like, ‘That’s hilarious — tell me a joke.’
“It’s hard to be taken seriously, but hopefully you can reach those few people that like what you do,” Payne added. “There’s a giant audience, but I’m rapping for the 10 percent of the fans of the genre, and hopefully they’ll dig it. That’s all I’m out for.”
Artist info: www.myspace.com/crybabygenius.
Contact contributing arts and music writer Don Thrasher at donaldthrasher8@aol.com.
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