Mr. Dibbs of Atmosphere interviewed by Cityzen.

Interview by Shawna Adams:

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Mr. Dibbs on baby wipes: "I mean they have showers, but some days you're just like '...Why?' By the end of the day you see baby wipes and it just makes more sense."

Atmosphere
Interview w/ Mr. Dibbs
Sat. August 7, 2004
Randall's Island NY

Cityzen: Could you introduce yourself and your role in Atmosphere?

Mr. Dibbs: I am Mr. Dibbs from Atmosphere and I do the beats for Atmosphere.

Cityzen: So how did you guys get started? What first lured you into hip-hop?

Mr. Dibbs: For me it's the same story every DJ will tell; I saw DSP on MTV and that's what made me want to become a DJ. That and there was a The Clash video called "Radio Clash" and that kind of sparked my interest.

Cityzen: So are you guys all from Minnesota? How did you guys all meet up to form Atmosphere?

Mr. Dibbs: I have an event in Cincinnati called Scribble Jam, and that's where I met Slug. That was around '96, and Atmosphere had been a group since '91, sort of a rotating lineup, people coming in and out, but Slug was always the main guy. Well, actually, he was the DJ and eventually he ended up being the lead MC and different DJs would come and go. Then we met and just kind of fell into it. Shawn (Slug) is from Minnesota, Ant's from Minnesota, and I'm from Cincinnati.

Cityzen: Why did you guys choose Epitaph, a mainly punk label?

Mr. Dibbs: It was the best deal for what we were trying to do. It wasn't like they were going to tell us to do this type of song or that type of song; we pretty much were given free range with our music. Also, Epitaph has really good distribution - that's what it is, a distribution deal.

Cityzen: You guys were on Warped last year too. How does this year's Warped compare to last year's? You guys are playing a bigger stage this year and drawing a bigger audience, definitely.

Mr. Dibbs: I think it has a lot to do with the Epitaph deal. Kids that listen to everything Epitaph are out there supporting us so you'll see the kid with the big Mohawk in the front row, which is unusual but awesome. There were always a lot of punk rock and indie kids at the shows... somehow we managed to attract that crowd as well as the hip-hop crowd.

Cityzen: I read that you guys have a huge chick following?

Mr. Dibbs: (laughs) Well that has more to do with Slug than anything else.

Cityzen: Who's your following?

Mr. Dibbs: All the hardcore kids I guess...

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