Photo Credit: Hadas Di
Ho99o9, everyone’s favorite hip-hop anarchists-of-the-moment, have no trouble attracting controversy and chaos, even when they don't appear to be trying. Back before their United States of Horror debut album was released in 2017, the industrial-rap duo was already winning acclaim for its edgy mix of hardcore rap and punk histrionics.
Ho99o9’s live shows, meanwhile, are infamous for their exhilarating onslaughts of brutal distortion, punishing live drums, rumored episodes of indecent exposure and vocals that evoke Chuck D., Trent Reznor, Bad Brains and God knows what else. The L.A.-based duo even got bounced off the Warped Tour, an indignity usually reserved for emo kids who get caught cutting in line.
All of which made Newark natives Eaddy and theOGM that much more beloved by critics and a growing legion of fans. Ho99o9 even won favor among the gallery set, as evidenced by a pair of performances at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, a hallowed institution that's apparently more attuned to their approach than the Warped crowd.
Prior to moving westward, the two 20-something rappers were members of JerseyKLAN, a hardcore hip-hop collective whose approach was as stridently political as Ho99o9.
Recently, we caught up with theOGM—he's the one who favors dreadlocks and crop-topped ski masks—to talk about punk vs. hip-hop audiences, Warped vs. Juggalos and the unassailable joys of slasher movies.
Recently in Newark, a poster for two city council members was spray-painted with a swastika. Do you still have family there? Do they feel racism is getting worse there, like it is everywhere else?
theOGM: I haven't heard anything about swastikas being spray-painted on political posters, but as far as New Jersey goes, yeah, I still have family there. Are they affected by racism? I wouldn't say they are right now, not directly, because they live around people who aren't racist, and they work with people who aren't racist. I'm not saying that it's not around back there, but it's everywhere, not just New Jersey. So that's a constant battle, that's something that you will talk about for the rest of your fucking life, like till the end of time.
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Since starting Ho99o9, you've played in an unusually diverse range of situations. Which have you found to be the most interesting: Warped, SXSW or the Gathering of the Juggalos?
theOGM: Well, technically we never played the Warped Tour. We were scheduled to play, and we played the kickoff show in L.A., but we got kicked off of the tour. So, for that I say, fuck you. And as far as SXSW goes, I think that is a great platform. We played it for like a few years and it's opened so many other doors for us. So that shit is, like, great. And the Gathering of the Juggalos is probably the most interesting festival that we've ever played, just because of the vibe, the people, just the unity that they have amongst themselves.
Having done tours with acts from these two genres, how open-minded would you say industrial-rock audiences are, compared to hip-hop audiences?
theOGM: It really depends on where you are and who you're opening up for. I mean, if we're headlining a show, they know what they're getting and they're ready for it. But then, if we're opening up for a band, we never really know what the audience is going to be like until we see them. Because generally, some people are attached to that band that they're coming to see, and they don't want to open their minds to the other bands. And some people are like, “Alright, well, I'm here to just catch a good show, so I'm hoping that their opening act is good.” And then, when their minds are blown, that shit just sends them to a whole other spiral.
One last question: What's your favorite horror movie?
theOGM: Right now, off the top of my head, I would say Texas Chainsaw Massacre, the 2003 version, and then I would say The Devil's Rejects by Rob Zombie.
Why those?
theOGM: Well, with Texas Chainsaw Massacre, it was dark, gruesome, really well shot, scored really well. And then I'd say The Devil's Rejects because I like his gory style and some of it reminds me of Quentin Tarantino. I love Quentin Tarantino films. That shit’s tight.
Ho99o9 will play at 8 p.m. on Saturday, June 8, at The Rave, 2401 W. Wisconsin Ave. For tickets, visit therave.com.
