by THOMAS STØNJUM © 21.05.02

So Tare what made you move to Norway?
I basically moved to Norway to be with my girlfriend Maria. Having been to school in France where we met she had to return to Norway to finish her studies, and I followed. I don't regret the move at all! I'm happy here and have been now for a year or so. Norway is a great place to live: beautiful country side, fresh air, the standard of living is high, the people are friendly and the Hip-Hop scene is very much alive. What more could I ask for?

Wich crews do you put up, and what do you they mean to you?
I'm in three graffiti crews, and two legal hip hop "associations".

-KCW (Killing City Walls): This is a crew regrouping mostly American based writers, with cats such as Rime, Toper, Setup, Onetime, Semz and more. This crew is part of my whole experience in the USA. My schooling there, and all the stuff I saw and went through during that period. The culture there that I had so much trouble adapting to, but also the strong friendships I made. The NY/NJ state of mind WORD!

-TM (True Milk): Italian crew based in Vicenza, created by Kato, with some peeps mostly from northern Italy. For my man Kato! This cat is golden; a real friend, an extremely talented painter and a mad nice kid hehe, also, the name True Milk struck me as funny (I love milk!)

-GPT (Gutta På Tur): Norwegian crew regrouping writers who are into travelling all around Norway, painting, chilling and partying: Neks, Tes, Hoax and Bewer. I love travelling with friends, and have very fond memories of my trips within Norway. This crew is about travelling and having fun, wich I'm def down with!

-RS (Rising Suns): Franco German hip-hop association, regrouping all skills and disciplines, organizers of Summer Sessions annual hiphop event in Strasbourg. This crew evolved out of this big crew EST which I used to be part of, back in my home city Strasbourg (France). Many of my good childhood friends were part of it. Rumour has it that the crew is being revived.

-90BPM (90bpm.com): French hiphop magazine/hiphop ressource on the web, organizers of many concerts and events, based in Paris, France. With my man Donerz from Britanny. We started out creating a French HipHop webring, which evolved into a french hiphop search engine and is now booming with this www.90bpm.com french hiphop ressource on the web.

Having lived in New Jersey, Italy, London, NYC and Norway. How do you view the European vs American graff?
I spent a good amount of time in the States, and was impressed by the diversity of styles and mentalities. Ofcourse all this graff shit comes from there. There are so many crazy talented peeps there like Saber, Rime, Setup, Ewok. But I must keep it real and say that European graff with the evolution I've seen over the years has impressed me more. I think the proximity of so many different cultures, languages and countries creates just a much more interesting graff/hiphop scene, it's more surprising and eventful. It's hard to explain, I guess having been born and raised in France I'm just more used to the European scene. Crazy cats like Tango, Kent, Dare, Bates, Swet and so many more just doing ill shit!

Anyway my vote goes to the European graff scene. Having "taken" the American scene, and pushed it way further to it's limits.