They say the best method for revenge is to fight fire with fire. But what if the source of dismay is not fire but water? With New Orleans still reeling back from the aftermath left by Hurricane Katrina (and preparing for another courtesy of Gustav), 9th Ward native and Lava House Records recording artist K-Otic is matching the overflow of water that forced him to relocate to Shreveport, LA with a flow of his own. At the time of the interview – which was back in May – we find him feeling right at home, deep inside of the Queensborough section of the city, where foreigners don't want to be once the sun goes down. With that thick New Orleans accent very much intact, he, along with Wide Open Records exec. Big Pooh, chopped it about the incarceration of Lava House head honcho Anthony Mandigo, the dirty industry, and the rebuilding (or lack thereof) of the N.O.

All right. Let's take it from the beginning. How did you get into the whole music game?

K-Otic: My mama used to always listen to music, then I had my my homeboy Larry; he used to go to school in Uptown [New Orleans], and you know that's all the rappers. He went to school with UNLV, everybody. He put me on with the rap. So by him going to school Uptown, I started fuckin' with him.

I used to be shy as a mu'fucka when I was small. A nigga moved to East New Orleans, a nigga started fuckin' around with this music. That was like '89, right after my grandma died. I guess my grandma went to heaven and blessed a nigga. So in '89, we started a group. We was doing shows for Partners-N-Crime, Fiend, Soulja Slim – when Soulja Slim first came out, when he first started shootin' that dope. That nigga would come to Club Rumors in the 9^th Ward. They killed so many people in the mu'fucka, guess what that bitch is now? A FUNERAL HOME! If you pass down St. Clark, that bitch a funeral home, Pooh. Everybody used to do shows in there. In '89 a nigga was dancing. In '92, I was writing raps.

That come from a jailhouse. The Chaotic Ward, nigga, in muthafuckin' Angola [State Penitentiary]. My nigga got the Chaotic Ward still going on right now. It's a ward with nothing but crazy muthafuckas. My nigga Corey came home, he “Chaotic minds, nigga.” I said, Yeah! Niggas try to steal that game [his rap name] but if they ain't never dropped before '99, tell 'em, “Stop that shit.”

I think I changed the game!

[Laughs] I don't know, man. Shit crazy, man. You where I'm at – Queensburg [Queensborough]. Me and my dog Shell, from Trill [Entertainment] – me and him was on a park [at the Louisiana Fairgrounds] and we was rappin' and shit. There was some niggas; they had a little dude from around here. He said, “My dawg got a record label.” They took me to my nigga Cadillac Black – he in jail, doing 12 years. So he told me [about] his homeboy at Lava House Records. That was Mandigo. Boom! That was a rap. A nigga had all them connects like that! My dawg in Queensburg doing his thang, fuckin' with a Cedar Grove nigga. How I'm not gon' have the city?

Always, man!

Aw, man! Them bitches is tearing away history. They could've at least kept the pavement. They could've kept that. Damn, they gotta take the ground, too?! Down there? Shiiit. Them bitches done scraped the ground up. Took everything. So when I go down there, I be wanting to go down there like a tourist. I don't really wanna think about the surrounding areas that is gone. Thank God [that] Master P made them videos back in the game, with them in them projects so that niggas see that shit.

If you ain't got money and you just wanna live-- best believe mu'fuckas working hard down there, mayne. Mu'fuckas working so hard down there, they ain't got time to talk, nigga.

Big Pooh: You better not get no money and go back; they knocking asses off.Oh, they started back to doing that now?

K-Otic: They was killing mu'fuckas while the hurricane [was happening]. Shit, I fuckin' climb on the boat, the bitch shootin'! We on it with the Coast Guard, nigga, [and] niggas shootin'. They killin' ass. Like me – that's why I say I really wanna go back like a tourist, too, 'cause I can't just go back like the old K-Otic used to be. I go down there, mu'fuckas see me all nice and cool, chillin', high, they know one thing: “That bitch got something.” They coming to get it.

Pooh: ...VL Mike.

K-Otic: Rest in Peace to VL Mike. He was a cool lil' nigga. The last time I seen him was right before the hurricane, on my block, about two houses down. Nigga was sittin' in a fuckin' cat-eyed Mercedes, it looked like. Down there, when you living that life, you can't go home, man.

Word on the street is that Lava House isn't united now that Mandigo is locked up.

K-Otic: Everybody still good. Everybody had to do their own thing. You gotta have your own thing poppin. It's just like ya mama and daddy takin' care of you. They put you out, you gotta get your own, mayne...Not really puttin' you out – just showin' tough love, with motherfuckas going to jail. Shit like that slows a lot of shit down. Everybody just trying to get it. Once everybody get it, everything is all good, you know what I'm sayin'?

Since the last time I talked to y'all, what's changed?

K-Otic: Nothing, just that mu'fuckas went to jail.

Pooh: Faces. Before Mandigo went to jail, a lot of new faces surfaced after the deal [Ratchet City] got with Polo Grounds. But now that he in jail, a lot of faces have gone elsewhere. It's still the same nucleus of Untame Mayne, [Big] Poppa, and Angie Locc. That's basically what's pushin'-- and [producer] Phunk Dawg. You know how it is, man, when people get caught up in law shit like that. People really try to separate theyself away from 'em, feeling that it's gon' be some more shit coming to them. But, shit, Mandigo – that's my boy. I fucks with him. People always remember the bad he did than the good. You got a man that brought a little youngster out the 'hood platinum, off his movement.

K-Otic: HURRICANE [Chris] CARRYING MANDIGO'S MOVEMENT!

Pooh: And he try'na ride itto death--

K-Otic: See, we ain't get into all that!

We can get into it now.

K-Otic: He need to stop saying that he the Ratchet king! He ain't the Ratchet king. See, they don't want us to get into-- See, that's a whole 'nother--

Pooh: Stealing Swags.

K-Otic: That's shit we been quiet about. That's why I don't really go out: Muthafuckas keep asking me about what's going on with that Polo Grounds. Man, I don't know. Somebody hatin' on my people, man, and it gotta be some inside work, y'heard me.

Last time I talked to Untame Mayne, he said Polo Grounds wasn't really talking to him..

K-Otic: 'Cause somebody hatin', man. It gotta be Hurricane running, crying to his people, like, “Don't put them boys on, man.” That's how mu'fuckas do in the game.

Polo Grounds didn't tell y'all what was going on or nothing?

K-Otic: It's all good. Wide Open/ Lava House done good shit for a nigga. Fuck the bad shit. Niggas ain't never done no bad shit to me, so fuck what them haters talkin' about, y'heard me. Bitch burnt up and throwed away all my clothes, y'heard me. The first nigga that got me some other clothes was the Ratchet Man. We still gon' blow 'cause we got the streets, dawg.

Any last statements?

K-Otic: Much love to Queensburg. That's like my second 'hood. Tell 'em Queensburg is K-Otic's second 'hood.

Pooh: Free Mandigo. Free Cadillac Black. For gotdamn sure free that nigga. That's a mastermind. Free him.