10 Questions with Terrany Johnson - Tee Double

By Sean Claes

For those who have been in the Austin music scene for more than a minute, the name Tee Double is one you’ve heard. Native Austinite Terrany “Tee Double” Johnson is a 25-year veteran of the scene, and he’s done it as an independent artist. He is literally a chapter in the book (2016s Seduced By Sound) on Austin music.

He is an artist, producer, entrepreneur and August 1, 2017 will mark the release of his 30^th album, Bless The Child.

Perhaps a big part of the reason he’s been a relevant mainstay on the Austin scene and in Hip-Hop in general is his willingness and desire to give back. It is not surprising that in 2010, just one month after INsite dubbed him the “CulturalAmbassador of Hip-Hop” the City of Austin announced “Tee Double Day” on September 30.

He is very involved in the business of helping other artists hone their craft. He is a member of the Texas Chapter of the Grammys, has spoken at numerous conferences as a leader in the Hip Hop movement, founded the non-profit Urban Artist Alliance, sits on the advisory board for several non-profits. Oh, AND he spends about 10 hours a day in the studio recording, writing, and as he states it…expanding his catalog.

INsite’s Sean Claes had a moment to catch up with the legend.

Photo Credit: teedouble.com

Sean Claes: You’re moving in on 25 years in the hip-hop business in Austin, Texas. How have you sustained yourself and kept your passion lit?

Terrany Johnson: Yeah,that is a hell of a long time and I have been very blessed to sustain. One of the things I learned early on was to diversify what I was trying to do and where I wanted to be in the future from licensing,consulting and teaching other artist about the music business.

Claes: You’ve paved your own path in your music by being self-employed, self-publishing and self-promoting. What opportunities do you feel you’ve afforded yourself by going this path?

Johnson: Well, one of the main things is more time to be with family as my time is based on how and when I choose to work. But anyone who knows me know I work ALL the time. It’s also giving me ownership of my craft and where it is used and sold which artist don't have these days.

Claes: In August 2010 INsite featured you on the cover with the title “Cultural Ambassador of Austin Hip Hop” a title, you’ve certainly earned. How do you feel the culture of Hip Hop in Austin has endured and what is the status in 2017?

Johnson: The culture of Hip Hop in Austin is an ongoing thing from booking our events to getting our artist fairly compensated by venues. As a long term artist it is my responsibility to keep the scene on track with solidifying the foundation the culture stands upon so future artist have a great start and aren't starting backwards.

Claes: In the height of the Black Lives Matter movement last year, you spearheaded a compilation of local/area artists called Black Mics Matter. You mentioned it was not a release for profit, but a release for “dialog and spiritual return.” What was the impetus behind the release and what was the effect you saw?

Johnson: I wanted the project to be about more than “It sold a million copies” but more an actual voice from the artist in the community who are being affected by the things some only see in the news.

It showed other black artists they have a voice and when put in a form that everyone listens too, because who doesn't like Hip Hop in some form, then you can have a powerful dialog as the attention that project received showed. It’s still resonating in the community as I hoped it would and a new breed of artist are taking that model and moving forward with new ideas.

Claes: Although it doesn’t seem to be front page news these days, how do you feel the voices of Black Lives Matter are being sustained today?

Johnson: The voices never left but the news cycle changes every half hour so there are still strong movements going on in the communities that won't be on the front page. Austin’s Austin Justice Coalition with Chas Moore and others are truly making a stance and being on the front line for justice and a educated voice for the victimized.

Claes: You’re very involved in the community. Tell me a little about your involvement with The Grammy’s, Black Fret and the Urban Artist Alliance.

Johnson: I was on the Board of The Governors for The Grammys and the education committee on how to assist in bringing music education back into schools for children who if they had the tools might be able to find their new path as I did when I was around 8 years old.

Black Fret is a non profit dedicated to assisting musician in growing their careers by giving grants and a strong team of advisors which I am one to guide them how to use the grants in the best manner for their career long term and not just for the moment.

Urban ArtistAlliance is truly at my heart as it was created to fill a void form other organizations not catering to the artistic development of the black music community in Austin. So instead of whining or begging for another group to it for us I created it myself and used my knowledge and community support to make it grow and my relationships to get the attention I wouldn't normally get if I hadn't made these relationships over the years. We do educational events, consult artist about publishing and ownership that is rarely spoken about.

Claes: Who are some of the local artists who are doing it well? Who out there should people sit up and take notice?  

Johnson: Easily there is MOBLY who is touring strongly and creating amazing music. Magna Carda has been consistent on their output and brand building and both are Black Fret grant recipients.

Claes: How do you feel Austin sits right now with the support and progress of local Hip-Hop?

Johnson: Austin is and has always been slow to recognize it’s gold mine in Hip Hop. Hip Hop artists work so hard here but don't always feel like the love is returned even if we are called the “Live Music Capital of the World,” so shouldn't that mean ALL music?

Hip Hop is such an economic driving machine globally it should be embraced more by the city and have its voice amplified not just when something goes wrong at a club but when something goes right which honestly is most of the time.

Claes: When I was a kid, it was all about NWA, Public Enemy, Tupac and Ice-T. There seemed to be a voice of young men coming up to point out injustice, stand up for something and throw their struggles in the face of an America who had ignored them, their culture and their neighborhood. Who carries that torch today?  

Johnson: I agree,as before Hip Hop was compressed it only four labels and there very small non Hip Hop based departments there was a message being released about love yourself, build a positive future and still have fun but it wasn't booty booty booty every minute Ha!!

Kendrick Lamar of course is at the forefront because his artistry is on a very high and consistent level with points being made in his music and his visuals he release for his projects. Even the gangsta rappers have a place i the mix as they are coming from a place of struggle and pain which all need to hear but most don't have the how they turned it around page of the story and I think that is because labels and new A&Rs don't think that will sell so they tell artist not to focus on that but let's cookie cut the other stuff and force feed the listener.

Claes: What is next for Tee Double? Playing anywhere soon?

Johnson: Working on my 30th album Bless The Child and doing plenty of licensing work for movies, commercials, video games and voice over work.

Back to what I said earlier about diversifying so I can stay busy and generate revenue without always having to be on a stage and play for tip jars as most booking agents aren't trying to pay an artist what they are worth just what they will give you.Often it’s beer and a tip jar.

Claes: Anything else you’d like to add?

Johnson: Yeah, for the artist, keep focused and moving forward and never let anyone stop you from your dreams or goals only YOU can do that.

Find new circles of resources to expand your brand whatever it may be and then share those ideas with newer artists so we don't have a generational gap of success but a continued lineage of winners.

Love the art, community and what you started out in this music business to be and stay the course.

Be The Impossible.

Find out more about Tee Double at www.teedouble.com and www.urbanartistalliance.com

--

Sean Claes is the owner of Austin's INsite Magazine and has been a freelance entertainment writer since 1996. This is week 27 in his "52 Weeks of Austin Musician Interview" series. See the others here: 52 Week Project

Guest Column + Free Track by Tee Double - Inner City Blues

Terrany "Tee Double" Johnson - Photo by Amanda Garcia

Inner City Blues
By: Tee-Double

Growing up in Austin,Texas some may think with the many bars and festivals and hip clothing stores and such that the racial tone is virtually non-existent.

They would be wrong. It is an ongoing struggle, not just in the entertainment section of Austin, but in everyday life. There have been many shootings of kids of color and little justice. Often hard court battles follow if the families want compensation for their unreplaceable loss.

I can remember walking back to school from lunch when I was at Reagan High School as a freshman and a truck driving by me and my friends with some guy yelling "Get back to school nigger!" 

This was not my first time hearing the word but the first time it was directed in such a negative and violent way.

I went home that night and wrote I believe one of my first songs which title I can't recall but it got my pen moving and helped me recognize I had a voice and many thoughts my friends had as well but couldn't utter for whatever reason.

As I've grown I've been blessed to achieve my dreams in music by releasing many albums and being on many advisory and governor boards, but each time I sit in those board rooms I think "what can I do to advance the reach of artists of color in Austin?"

So I founded the Urban Artist Alliance which is designed to educate artists on how to own their "masters" recordings and publishing so in the future they might have revenue streams coming from their dreams they recorded in hopes of a deal or just to express.

With the Trayvon Martin case the issue of race has risen its head higher than before after a nice nap of people being concerned with other issues.If you're not black our of color you could never understand the suspicion placed on you when you enter a retail store or a music venue and people thinking you will steal, kill or fight.

Some love to blame the culture of Hip Hop as a launching pad for this but in actuality when the culture was controlled by its creators it was the CNN of our neighborhoods, telling us the truth of the politics affecting us and the police brutality we finally saw after Rodney King but NWA had rapped for years and many folks of color already saw.

What is race? A competition to the finish? A jockeying for position? What is the end result? To dominate another people or gender? 

I speak for those who have no voice 

to say these inner city blues 

won't hold me down 

or make me sing 

a song of woes 

in a field of depression 

but allow me to celebrate 

the strength of a people 

who for years have been told 

to stay in your place, 

 cry in silence 

and keep it moving.

So I say sorry world WE no longer are silent but as joyous as we could be as justice is within reach for all people as cycles return. The next race could be yours and this pain might finally be understood.

I could go on but I have more songs of struggle and and the overcoming of to write. 

Shine on.

Free Track:

Download "Sorry World" by Tee-Double

"Sorry World" is from his 2013 release Rosie's Boy. Buy the album here

Editor's Note: Tee Double was the on the cover of the August 2010 issue of INsite Magazine. Read that story here: link

August 2010

August 2010 INsite - Download here:





August 2010: Download JPG Here
Cover Story - TEE DOUBLE / 30 Austin-Only Businesses /

August 2010 Cover - TEE DOUBLE

Tee Double
The Cultural Ambassador of Austin Hip-Hop

In “The Chosen” from his 2005 album, The Growth, Tee Double entreats:

"So, I'm reading magazines, and I'm waiting for the day

of the double-page spread -- letters above head,

'Texas Tee Double is well bred.'

These rhyme sheets I speak are well read ...

Put me on the cover your newsstand, man;

On wax or live band, I crush the groove."

By: Thomas Yoo.
Photos: Arnold Wells

And why not give the man what he demands? After over seventeen years in the Austin music business, Tee's list of accomplishments and accolades seems to just go on and on. In June, Tee released his self-produced fifteenth album, Vintage Vizionz. After thousands and thousands of local hip hop shows and representing Austin and Texas throughout the North American underground hip hop scene for years, the Austin Music Awards finally pronounced Tee as the 2010 best local hip hop artist.

As the recipient of shout outs from underground hip hop veterans, Aceyalone and Del the Funky Homosapien, and Rolling Stone Magazine, Tee’s acknowledgments have amassed. Over the years, he has evolved from emcee to producer, entrepreneur, and impresario, having founded the studio, label, and distribution service provider, Kinetic Global. He has also, along the way, become something of a cultural ambassador for Austin hip-hop music. He has been appointed as an Advisory Board Member to the Austin Music Foundation and has worked as the National Urban Hip-Hop Coordinator for the South by Southwest music conference, as well as with the Texas Chapter for the Grammys in its "Grammys in School Program." The Texas Music Museum has also recently invited Tee to be included as one of the first hip hop artists in the Museum.

Given these achievements, when was the last time Tee made the cover of a local magazine? In 1996, he was featured on the cover of the XL, the weekend pullout in the Austin American-Statesman. It was also the only time. Fourteen years, numerous albums, and countless live n performances later, Tee seems only to flourish and continue to redefine the boundaries of his art form.

Tee is quick to point out that most Austin publications are reluctant to put hip-hop on the cover: "Maybe they just don't really see the value in it. I get asked all the time, for all the things I've done in Austin, 'How come you've never been on the cover of the Chronicle?' Going from artist to producer to working with all these big organizations in town, and juggling all these hats and still being considered a true artist ... usually, when you move into the music business sector and entrepreneurism, people slowly stop thinking of you as an artist. I'm still keeping my quality high musically and still putting out records."

Not that Tee is losing sleep over that, much less letting it slow him down as an artist: "It's really up to them. Maybe they see Austin hip hop as just something that's happening in town but hasn't really broken through the door yet, and they don't really have anyone on staff who's really in tune to the local hip hop scene -- to really know what's happening, to know who's doing stuff ... I can't really fault them for it. I'd love to see more of it. You know, of course I'd love to see myself on the cover of a few magazines. I mean, that would be nice, but I don't get mad about it, and I don't bitch about it. I just keep being productive and doing my music and doing what I need to do for my hip hop community, and, if that means I never get on the cover of any magazine, then I'm fine with that. I've had other accomplishments that can balance that out, where people did recognize it."

Does Austin hip-hop in general get the respect that it deserves? According to Tee, definitely not, but the Austin hip hop community is at least partially to blame for that: "For one, we're in Austin, and a lot of people outside of Texas don't know that Austin is the capital. I was on tour, and I was like, I'm from Austin, Texas, and they're like, is that in Houston? They don't have a clue. I can't really fault them for that. A lot of that is because, artists in Austin still haven't figured out how to make a collective of our own -- how we can develop a strong kind of like "political party" of hip hop artists--where we can go to the venues and say, hey, we want to get paid more for our shows, or we want more local hip hop artists at the ACL fest. Just like you have the rock artists, there's hip-hop here as well. Until we realize as a whole to really organize and structure ourselves for the bigger picture, we're all going to get overlooked, and only a few of us will make it through the cracks and do something big or whatever. As a whole, there's still going to be that struggle."

Oh, you're one of those who still think that hip-hop is not real music? When asked how he would respond to such skepticism, Tee, who sees himself as a kind of spokesperson of the art form, answers: "Try to do it. Take turntablism, for example. There are things that you can do as a DJ, that you could never do on a guitar. You could never move both your hands as fast as a turntablist. Or take emceeing and freestyling -- the way some people freestyle, it's like a jazz player, like Miles Davis playing his horn or Coltrane ... there are so many notes, so many inflections, so many ways of flipping the words. Really try it, and you'll understand that it's an art form."

Or perhaps you just haven't actually heard true hip-hop? Tee continues: "I'm not talking about the simple stuff you see on Saturday morning cartoons or the McDonald's commercials. Those things are not really hip-hop. Those are just takes on hip-hop. Those are kind of like slowed down marketing things to get you to buy the McNuggets."

What is real hip-hop? Tee invokes KRS-One: "Rap is something you do; hip hop is something you live. Real hip-hop is when you wake up and you breathe it. I can just be walking around the street and the store, and I'm rhyming and I'm freestyling ... I've always got a beat in my head. That's real hip-hop. I don't just become Tee Double when I'm on a stage and am in front of a mic. Hip hop is me all day, everyday." Tee even hears beats in his sleep. "If I'm sleeping and going through one those R.E.M. moments, where you're dreaming ... I'll come up with whole songs in my sleep. I'll wake up the next day, and I'll have a whole song done without writing anything down."

Tee describes the new release, Vintage Vizionz, as "a collage of different textures and different styles and sounds" while nonetheless trying to maintain a cohesive "sonic plane," where these variations still all fit as an album. "I usually go in with a focus to make sure that not all my songs sound alike. Where you can hear the record, and you can think that a different producer produced each of the different songs, but really I did everything. Some songs have a more live jazz feel. Some have the real raw hip hop drums and samples.”

What has the response been like thus far? "People are digging it. They really respect that I’m not trying to sound like what’s on the radio right now. I’m not trying to change my sound. I’m not trying to fit in the mainstream machine of music. I’m still doing my own thing.”

Vintage Vizionz offers a sampling of Tee's range as an emcee and producer of music: from the rugged, synthesized beat of "So Vintage" to the jazzy, piano-laden tracks, "How Can it Be," "Feel So Right," and "Material Ibex," to the bass-heavy, elliptical "Galactic Sun" to the live band feel of "Full Circle" to "Something Nice," a love song that includes a drum sample from Purple Rain.

A love song? Now that may truly be the ultimate test of the versatility and creativity of an emcee, as such efforts can and almost always do immediately devolve into pure corniness. Nevertheless, Tee manages to walk that ever so fine line here in a similar way to The Growth's "A Love Interest." Tee described the creative process behind "Something Nice": “The beat led to the lyrics. I made the beat and was like, wow. The music in that track has kind of a Michael Jackson Off the Wall feel to it. I thought that was a cool little track and would be perfect for a love song. I couldn’t get on that track and rap about me being the best rapper. It wouldn‘t have made sense. That goes back to me having to know how to really create songs and not just produce songs on whatever topic. I just sat down and wrote the lyrics and it just fit. It works.”

One need only dig a little deeper into Tee's catalogue with albums such as Return of the Artform, Bio-Music, and Live at Lucky Lounge to gain a fuller appreciation of his versatility as an emcee and producer. Tee tackles subjects ranging from growing up in Austin to lessons learned in the music business to touring the country with Aceyalone and Del. In "Look at Me Now" from 2009's Bio-Music, Tee touches on his father's passing -- a glimpse at his maturity as an artist and his ability to make music out of personal subject matter, a feat that proves impossible for most emcees to pull off artfully. That is not to mention the "club banging" beats and more conventional-yet-heady lyricism and clever one-liners that also permeate each of these albums.

To truly appreciate Tee as an artist, however, you really need to witness Tee perform at a live show, improvising over the beats and melodies of his fellow Boombox ATX musicians. Watching Tee freestyle, whether you're a true hip-hop aficionado or a neophyte, it is instantly clear that you are beholding something special. Tee effortlessly flows from one rhythmic cadence to the next, using his voice, intonation, and, indeed, his every breath as if it were a musical instrument in a seemingly endless stream of lyrics, rhyme schemes, and syncopated rhythms.

“Freestyling, man, to me, is spiritual. Just to think about the process, if you would, to come up with thoughts and words that rhyme or are rhythmically in tune with each other. You really just can’t sit there and be like, I’m going to start freestyling. We’ve all been around people who are freestyling about whatever and it’s like di-di-di-di, da-da-da … you know, real simple patterns, kind of like patterns you learn when you’re a kid with nursery rhymes. A lot of people still incorporate those things from memory into how they freestyle. That’s why their freestyles or raps sound like nursery rhymes. To be able to really push the limits of thought, which is what I really try to do, ... I’m like, how far can I go in my mind and come up with ideas and words and do it on the spot where it makes sense? I think there are few people that can do that and do that well. It’s definitely a spiritual kind of experience. You get into a trance. A lot of time when I’m freestyling, I don’t remember what I just said … it just comes. It’s kind of like you zone out. Then, if you have a good crowd, an energetic crowd, that’s just going to make your brain waves move faster … and shoot those nerves … then you are really going to be on your game. It’s definitely a gift, and I feel blessed to be able to do it. Freestyle has been my thing forever. I mean, that's just what I’ve always done, but, when I went on tour with Del and Aceyalone and Zion I and all those guys, it really stepped my game up on what freestyling really is. Anybody can freestyle. There‘s really nothing to that, but to do it artfully and creatively and to do it in a way where whoever is standing around you won‘t even try to freestyle after you‘re done -- it raised the bar of it.”

Doesn't he ever run out of things to say? Is Tee ever at a loss for words? “When you’re writing songs, words can come all day. To me, that is the easy way. You can always say, I need a new word that goes with whatever, but, when you’re freestyling and you run out of words, then it kind of comes back to being the artist, where you can use the words you have but use them in tones -- use them musically where words don’t actually rhyme per se. I use my voice and respect my voice like an instrument, kind of like a jazz player. I’ve got all these notes and have this range of notes I can pull from ... where I don’t run out of words or frequencies or tones. I can just keep doing so many things.”

After thousands upon thousands of shows, how does Tee get hyped for a show? "I just love doing it. I love getting on stage and rapping and seeing the look on the faces in the crowd like, 'Did you hear what he just said?' or just interacting with what I'm doing. I love it that much, where, if I was 80 years old, I'd still be trying to kick freestyles. I'm not doing it just because it's trendy and it's cool and it's something to do, and I'm going to wear skinny jeans and try to copy someone else's image to fit in to what the marketing is doing now. I'm Tee Double. This is me. I'm doing it. I don't do any special meditation or anything. It's just like, is my mic on? As long as people can hear what I'm saying and my mic is clear, let me do the rest."

Other than freestyling at the old folks home someday, what does the future hold for Tee? Tuesday night shows with Boombox at the Highball, writing and recording music, collaborating with other musicians, and continuing to push the bounds of his artistry: "I’m all about writing songs. Let’s be as creative as we can. I’m always about working with other artists. I’m doing some songs now with Tony Scalzo from Fastball -- just stepping out of our comfort zone. I’ve always looked at it like, why shouldn’t I work with a rock artist or jazz artist just because I do hip-hop? I consider myself a musician as well. I perform and I gig as much as somebody that plays guitar. Other artists and musicians want to bring me into their fold, because of how creative I am with my rapping. I’m not just rapping, but I’m musically doing it."