-You moved to Ulaanbaatar when you were 10. How did the environment change?

Until I moved I had never been to Ulaanbaatar, but when I looked down on the city from the plane, I thought, "This is where I belong".  In the city there were so many people and the speed of information was going so fast. I felt the lively city lifestyle was more suitable for me than the peaceful life in the countryside.

-What kind of student were you and how did you spend your school days?

At school, I was the kind of kid who would be classified as a bad boy. I was pretty good at studying though. When I was in 7th grade, I became more interested in music than studying, and since then I wanted to make a living in music.

-Did you start listening to music influenced by the people around you?

Yes, everyone was listening hip hop then. At that time, Mongolian hip hop had just started and there were only a few crews like “Dain Ba Enkh” which was led by a rapper called MCIT. I was listening to more US hip hop like 2Pac and Eminem. I was influenced by his movie “8 Mile”.  At that time, I didn't know there was a profession called a producer, but I thought I would make songs like those artists.

-I heard you tried to understand the meaning of their lyrics, but how did you learn English?

I didn't have a dictionary so I had no clue what they were saying, but I wrote down the words as I listened to the song and just imagined the meaning from the feeling of the song and the character of the rapper. As I listened carefully, I noticed that there were some slang that was used repeatedly.

-That's interesting. Like what?

For example, "Buddy" or "Bro". I imagined "Buddy" to be a puppy and "Bro" to be blood. I found out what they really meant later.

-So you decided to become a rapper while listening to those songs?

Yes, I started writing my own lyrics first. At that time, Mongolian rappers of the first generation, were rhyming in the beginning of rhymes, but as I listened to foreign rap songs, I noticed that everyone was rhyming in the end. So I started writing the lyrics that I could rhyme in the end and found it was easier to rhyme that way. I thought it was cool.

-At that time, it was more like a dream to be a rapper rather than making it a career, right? What specific actions did you take to get there?

I was always focusing on how to improve my rap skills and got better as I did. Ultimately it led me to be able to make a living as a rapper. I still don't know how I became a professional rapper. But first, I became friends with Pound who was also from Ger district, the same area I grew up in and we made a group called “Gangsta Service”. That was when I was 18 or 19. I worked in that group for two or three years and we released one album. By the way, Desant means "airborne troops" in Russian, and the other members' MC names were also unique, so everyone started to remember us.

-I heard that you belonged to another group called "Click Click Boom", how did that happen?

One of my friend, Ka is good friends with Gee who is representing Ger district and we clicked. By the way, I work as a solo artist too, and also I’m still a member of Gangsta Service as well. Mongolian hip hop crews are different from rock bands, we can belong to many groups and work together when we want, it’s free.

-When did you start your label “TOONOT”?

I started it in 2017 so it’s been 5 years now. I used to belong to a label called Hustler Music until then, but this was the first time I made an official company. We produce songs and music videos.

-Earlier you said you still don't really feel like a professional rapper, but when did you feel your music was really selling?

I've always been convinced that if I keep making songs, they'll eventually sell, but when I really realized was when Gangsta Service's song "Hood" became a hit in 2008 and the music video was started playing on TV. That's when we were recognized as the second generation of Mongolian hip hop.

-Which of your songs would be the most popular?

Probably "In this game" I put out about 3 years ago. I captured hip hop as a game and rap about the life I’ve been through and my crew. The reason why I said the game for hip hop is we put it in the form of a proper label, setting up a system and rules for making music within that, and raising the quality and level of the songs. I thought I’d be able to expand what the first generation of Mongolian rappers have built.

-What would you say about the happiest moment in your career so far?

I’m happy to have an opportunity to come to Japan, perform at events, and have an interview like this.　

-What is the current Mongolian hip hop scene like? What styles are popular now?

About 80% of Mongolia's music is hip hop, so I think I can say it’s occupied by hip hop. Style-wise, trap and drill are popular among teenagers. Everyone listens to Mongolian hip hop, as well as overseas hip hop.

-How has Mongolian hip hop scene changed since you started 17 years ago?

It's changed a lot. In the past, we didn't have a label to put out our music, and since we got better equipment, the level of skill has gotten better. A lot of things used to be unorganized, but we've created a system that allows even young people to progress step by step. Hip hop culture has now spread widely throughout Mongolia.