by SCOTT C

Cazwell buys his socks on 14th Street. At 99 cents or less, this no-frills, one-stop shopping says a lot about the simple yet effective approach of NYC's (arguably) best-known gay MC. Songs like "I Buy My Socks on 14th St." and "Do You Wanna Break Up" aren't exactly getting played alongside Cam'ron and Jadakiss, but Caz don't care. Once half of the now-defunct electroclash duo Morplay, the Boston native was able to get some love outside of New York, and as a solo MC, he continues to rock the mic in his own special way. The Mirror spoke to Cazwell over the phone from NYC.

Mirror: A couple of weeks ago on ZED TV, they did a show on gay hip hop and showed this documentary about two lesbian MCs and this other gay rapper. The documentary was very personal, but I still didn't really get the feeling that there was a queer hip hop scene. Is there a scene that you consider yourself a part of, or do you just do your thing regardless?

Cazwell: If there is a gay hip hop scene, I do not consider myself a part of it. As far as making music goes, I don't consider myself on the same level with someone else simply because we're both gay. I have played at lots of queer hip hop shows, but I don't feel that my music is necessarily compatible with any other gay person that I've met. Just because you're gay doesn't mean you're talented or good. You're gay.

M: What sets you apart from another MC, aside from being gay?

C: What I try to look for in another MC or producer is somebody who can bring a different style. Let me elaborate. There's two directions that people seem to have taken with gay rap. Number one, you're gay, therefore your whole persona is a gay MC, so you talk about being gay, lesbian and gay rights, or that you love to suck dick and you're a guy - this is like your whole thing. Or, there's the other side of that. Because you are gay, and have grown up with a straight family in a straight world, you have to kind of adapt yourself and readapt yourself when you come out. A lot of gay people have taught themselves to think outside the box. So I couldn't really show up at the Source Awards, having broken the unspoken rules of hip hop, and expect to get welcomed, but I can create my own space and my own sound, being creative and approaching music differently. Gay people are never going to be accepted by mainstream hip hop, and I don't care.

M: Has anyone ever stepped to you and challenged your own personal hip hop sensibility?

C: Oh yeah. I've had people come right up to my face and say, "You're not hip hop!" And you know what? I can live with that. I will never be able to live up to the expectation of hip hop, and when gay people try to do that, it's what keeps them from being creative. I don't have time to fight the ignorance that exists. I just want to make really great music.

M: What are the unspoken rules of hip hop, Cazwell?

C: No white faggots allowed! (laughs)

At Faggy Baggy at le Parking tonight,
Thursday, Feb. 10, 11 p.m., $5

>> Music Listings