Peter Jackson is really doing his thing out there in the game. He’s currently on tour with Leondro, and they’re tearing the stage up out in Canada right now. We caught up with him a few days before the tour jumped off to talk about what he had in store, as well as the empire he’s currently building. He’s breaking so many boundaries in hip-hop, especially with this tour, where’s he’s basically performing an all new project that no one has heard yet. He talks all about that project and more in this exclusive, titled MARRIED to SUCCESS!
U.G. Digital Mag: It’s amazing that you’ve taken time out to talk with us. We appreciate you. How’s everything with the tour?
Peter Jackson: Good. I’ve been going through my set, and I’m getting ready to go to rehearsals. It’s a new thing for me with the music because we reached a lot, and did things different with recording and the people we brought in to help us produce and build these records, so the performance stuff is a lot more in depth for me. Sometimes as a rapper, there’s not much going on when somebody is on stage. We took it to a whole new level. It’s been grueling behind the scenes.
U.G. Digital Mag: How much do you actually put into preparations? Is it a full set-up, or how does it go for you?
Peter Jackson: I’m doing 300-800 capacity. It’s my first headlining gig in Canada, so it’s really big for me. A lot of times, I go out with bigger artists in Canada, usually like Snoop, French, or Akon. This is different because it’s me. It’s naturally a longer set for me, and a lot more of my people are involved. I’m rehearsing a few hours a day. Married to Success is basically a new project for me, so I’m going out performing something that nobody had ever heard. I’m going out to break the records differently. I’m building these records to see what people think, and then put them out. It’s a different concept but I know how important the live show is. In the new year, I’m doing 45 shows with Riff Raff. I’m using this run to get ready for the states.
U.G. Digital Mag: Why is it called Married to Success?
Peter Jackson: At this point, I’m young, and I’m married with 2 kids. Both kids are under two years old. I do a lot of behind the scenes stuff with music in Canada as well. For me, it’s been a way of life. It’s how my family eats. I went broke to rap and I stopped everything else I was doing. It’s like I really put everything into this. It’s like marriage. It’s different nowadays, and people make jokes about it, but marriage is a serious thing. It’s like, I’m European, and my whole culture is about family. My whole upbringing is about family and taking care and providing. The whole stature of being married, to me, is like what I was doing with music.
U.G. Digital Mag: It’s good to make that comparison. It’s great that your family is behind you. You lend a lot of credibility to the idea of having a family, but being able to have this type of career as well. You can be successful in your dreams. That’s major.
Peter Jackson: My wife and I have known each other since we were 14. We weren’t together at 14, but she’s been there since then. She’s watched me come up and she has seen the grind. The commitment you make together in marriage is the most serious commitment you can make because you’re building something. You’re building a family. The amount of jobs and people that work in my situation is the same, but it’s in a different light.
U.G. Digital Mag: It’s a good story for people too see.
Peter Jackson: I appreciate that.
U.G. Digital Mag: Take us back a bit to your journey as a whole. You’ve opened for some of the biggest rap stars, including 50 Cent, Waka, French, Jadakiss and the Lox who you also collaborated with. Snoop is out in Canada right now with Young Khalifa. Obviously you’ve connected with him in your journey. The average person can’t sleep on that. It speaks tremendously to your credibility and what you do as an artist.