This Page Was Posted On May 8th, 1996
[The following has been edited; a job "SPY" magazine should have done before they published this interview.]
Opio is the leader of the Oakland-based group Souls of Mischief [Uhhhh. . . -StinkE]. Vibe magazine said that their debut album, 93 Til Infinity, "attacked the ears with a keen balance of killer-bee aggression and kool-kid finesse."
Money Making Classics: "Where tha Phuck You At" and "Hotel, Motel."
SPY: What's the most expensive thing you've bought?
OPIO: My car, you know what I'm saying?
SPY: How loose are you with your cash?
OPIO: Everybody gotta have fun, know what I'm saying? Everybody gotta spend money. But at the same time, I'm smart. I got some investments n' shit. That'll open up some doors in the future. Some people [are] just living for the moment. It all depends on how you live your life. If you're like, "I'm just gonna enjoy myself and live my life while I'm up here", that's all good--That makes perfect sense. But me, personally, I see myself till I'm 106, know what I'm saying? I need to have money for some time.
SPY: You mentioned investments. Are you worried that the stock market is overhauled now that the Dow has cracked 5000?
OPIO: I don't know nothing about the stock market; I don't phuck with that. I put some money into some shit where I can get interest off it; where if I keep it in there for a certain amount of time, it doubles. But it's like, that shit takes knowledge, you gotta read about it and all that. I be reading Money magazine and shit. I might try taking some classes on that shit later on in the future, but me, I'm all about making money. Period. . .Definitely I'm not just hella flamboyant with my shit, just spending all my cash on champagne. I mean, a lot of my money, know what I'm saying--I smoke weed and do all that shit. I spend money on that, I spend money on clothes, whatever. Chillin n' shit. But at the same time, I got some money put away.
SPY: You mentioned being around till you're 106. How exactly are you planning for retirement? Do you have an IRA or a 401(k) plan?
OPIO: When you sign with a record company, they don't give you shit--no insurance, none of that shit. Maybe you might be able to get it in your contract; they might do anything to sign certain people, but basically when you sign with a record company, you don't get nothing--no dental, no medical--you don't get none of that shit. You gotta go out and get it yourself.
Copyright ©1996 StinkE Productions