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Lyrically, Federline has a few tunes that address the media and "pavarottis," as he calls the paparazzi. Others recall his troubled teenage years, including "Untold Stories," which samples a Journey track. "Using your life situations and talking about 'em, that's what hip-hop is," he says. "I'm just a real person, man. That's it."
Most of his songs, however, are straight-up club tracks.
"I want to be able to go out there and dance," he explains. "I don't want to give that up. That's a big piece of my life. So in order to do that, I need to get everyone else out there to shake their ass."
Although his album's not due until spring, Kevin's already putting together his live show, relying on knowledge he took in as a touring dancer.
"That's going to be the best part of my album is watching me perform it," he says. "I've seen so many stage performances and so many shows, the ideas I have for this tour are ridiculous. It's gonna be something totally different. You don't see rappers dancing, and I'm dancing for sure. And it ain't gonna be no poppy dancing. The people I got with me are a bunch of street cats who are ridiculous."
Perhaps because of the perception that he's a slacker, Federline takes a great deal of pride in doing his work himself.
"I put this whole project together," he boasts. "I've done it from scratch. I've had little help at all from people, no labels, no nothing like that. From doing that to what it is, it's incredible."
Document Room owner and producer J.T. Meskiel testifies to Kevin's determination. "We start in the studio at 8:30 in the morning," he says. "Kev writes all his own material, and I don't mean on paper. He just goes into the booth and works it out. ... And I've never met anyone who takes negative press in stride, but he's always positive."
Right now, Federline's without a record label — he released "PopoZao" earlier this month via the Internet — and he might stay that way.
"I haven't decided yet," he says. "I'm building my machine that's getting ready to set sail and I don't know, man. I'm gonna use the Internet a lot. You have to use the Internet now, so I figure I'll start my stuff by launching it on the Internet. All I have is time, and without a label, I can do whatever I want. ... All it is is strategizing. You try to find that solution and run with it."
Back in the studio, Federline tosses in "Pot Roastin'," a "booty joint" with sexed-up lyrics over a simplistic beat. After the line "Between the cheeks/ Turn your little girls from sweet to freaks," he lets out a laugh and halts the track.
"I think that's enough!"
He takes in the silence and gathers his thoughts.
"It's crazy how it's coming together, just like a puzzle that keeps falling and falling into place," he says of the album. "When you get knocked down, some other piece falls to help you get back up there. It's been a rollercoaster, blood, sweat and tears on this one."
Federline knows he's got a long road ahead of him, but he's clearly optimistic. And whatever happens, he won't give up easily.
"I'm doing this because it's something that I love to do," he says. "People spend their whole lives in jobs and situations they don't like. So for me, I feel like I'm the luckiest man alive to be able to do what I love to do."
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