The bizarre album made by psychotic criminal Mark ‘Chopper’ Read
It is not unfamiliar to hear about rap artists who have been involved in crime. However, rarely do you hear a full album from a serial offender who presents as insane, highly dangerous and criminally deranged. This was not the case when, in 2006, the Australian robber, arsonist, kidnapper, and fraudster Mark ‘Chopper’ Read released his debut project.
Over the years, hip-hop fans have disturbingly heard about MCs gouging their own eyes out, engaging in cannibalism, chopping off their own penises. However, these fringe figures are swiftly disowned and told to seek help. Rarely have these individuals had their music listened to or their albums reviewed.
Putting together an album is no easy feat, and for many artists, it can be the downfall of their careers. Unlike a mixtape, a rap album can’t simply be a collection of unrelated tracks; it has to be a carefully crafted and curated group of songs that are related and sonically a package.
That said, some artists, like Lil Wayne, leave several years between albums and relentlessly release mixtapes to great success. However, some hip-hop albums are so unbelievable that people question why they were even made in the first place.
The above can be said of the 2006 album Interview With A Madman, a rap album recorded by the renowned Australian criminal and psychopath Mark ‘Chopper’ Read. Mark Read has been incarcerated and found guilty of breaking almost every crime it is possible to break.
He was sent to prison and released on and off for over two decades and spent only 13 months outside prison between the ages of 20 and 38. He was involved in kidnap, assault, armed robbery fraud and more. During his lifetime, he created havoc and, even while he was incarcerated, began prison wars.
In 1998, he was released on parole, and although he was questioned in 2002 about a missing person, he never returned to prison. However, he did record a hip-hop album. Called Interview With A Madman, the 28-track project featured some of the biggest names in Australian hip-hop.
Writing for Redbull about some of the weirdest rap albums of all time, Australian native 24 Karat Kev spoke about the project, stating, “I won’t say it was impactful, but Chopper Read had a really random rap album back in the day with some of the biggest hardcore hip-hop figures in the country.” He continued, “He had international guests on there, and a lot of local formative hip-hop acts from back in the 90s and 2000s. Acts like Brad Strut and Lyrical Commission were on there. Bias B was on there. Phrase was on there.”
He concluded, “I remember watching the YouTube video for it years back. When I was researching that we looked it up again, and it’s pretty random. It’s just Chopper Read standing there and a ballerina dancing in the street with some Japanese gangster. The concept was kind of weird, but I liked it.”