Introduce yourself, crew, affiliations etc...

Hi Chaps... My name is Scott Da Ros. Half Italian/half Canadian, born in Halifax, grew up in Lr.Sackville (part of the greater city of Halifax) and now reside in Montreal. I run a label called Endemik Music that was also born in Halifax but was forced to move with me. I also make music, under my alias, Scott Da Ros. I have no crew, only my label mates and there are a few group projects being worked out at the moment. Main affiliations include Granma Music in Japan and I am working on a few more.

You are the man behind Endemik Music how did that come to light? How did you choose the name?

The label started all because of the second album we released, Stigg of the Dump EP. My man was finishing up his debut EP (that featured Sixtoo and Buck65) and he wasn't thinking of what to do about releasing it so I sorta stepped to him about starting a label and that could be our first release. We really had no plans beyond that were concrete. That was the main goal... get this record out. Before we released that album, Buck approached Stigg about releasing Synesthesia (around the time when he was in negotiations with Warner). We agreed, because Buck is a huge part of Halifax rap to me and I was definitely a fan. It was good to release this album first because we got to deal with a bunch of shit... Like not being able to release the album through distribution and not be able to sell it to stores (only one in Halifax) - this we found out after the album was being pressed. So I scrambled and worked a deal with Hip Hop Infinity to sell it exclusively and then Buck would sell some on tour. It worked out well; it became the number one seller at HHI (even though they later shorted me for about 800.00). So, that's it.

Endemik (endemic) means - Prevalent in or peculiar to a          

particular locality, region, or people. It was meant as a reflection of Halifax and the hip hop scene. But has spread to mean more for me...

What are the challenges and limitations to running an independent label?

Not much money. Sad but true. No way to properly get your music out there in public. You can do it but it takes a long time. Internet helps and word of mouth. The way the infrastructure is set up within the music industry makes it hard to turn over a profit unless you start with something huge. But, I could complain about 50 million things... No point... I would like to continue busting my ass and spreading the good word. Karma might exist.

What is your favourite Endemik release so far and why?

That's a hard question to answer. I have to equally say Bleubird, Skyrider and Stigg. Stigg because the beats are so nasty it hurts, it was also one of the main reasons the label began - to release that album. Bleubird because I was there for most of the recording process and it was amazing to see that much truth put into a record... and he can rap - I didn't realize how good until I witnessed that. And Skyrider because it made my head twist when first I listened to it and I wasn't able to pinpoint any other album I've ever heard like it. And that's no stretch... I really couldn't figure t out... I want someone to point me something so I know where how to pinpoint the audience - haha. There is so much going on in that album but you really can't find it unless you focus. It's also based on some things that struck me pretty hard...

You have released two 7"s when can we expect a full length?

Yeah. A full length can be expected this year... most likely in