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AHH Stray News: Steve Harvey Helps, Ice Cube Gives Back, Mos Def Goes Classical
(AllHipHop News) Radio host Steve Harvey will host a mentoring weekend for 100 New York area teenaged boys this weekend, along with a special New York City edition of Family Feud. Hip-Hop mogul Steve Stoute will join BET executive Stephen Hill, CNN’s Roland Martin, ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith, Dr. Steve Perry, and Geoffrey Canada, who will all take part in Steve Harvey’s Mentoring Weekend for Young Men in New York. The celebrities will make appearances at WBLS FM’s Circle of Sisters, in addition to partaking in a special edition of Family Feud, which will take place at the Javits Center in New York. The mentoring weekend begins today (October 7th) and runs until October 9th.
Hip-Hop star Ice Cube surprised hundreds of students at his alma mater in Los Angeles earlier this week, where he presented a $5,000 donation to his former high school. Ice Cube teamed with Best Buy Mobile and the Grammy Foundation to make the donation, which will support the school’s music programs. Ice Cube appeared at Taft High School in Woodland Hills, California in support of a music education initiative being supported by the Grammy Foundation and Best Buy’s philanthropic organization @15 and Best Buy Mobile. Over $1,000,000 has been pledged by Best Buy to support music programs involved with the Grammy Foundation’s charitable organization.
Brooklyn rapper Mos Def will perform with the Brooklyn Philharmonic Chambers Players next week during a high-profile performance in New York. Mos will hit the stage with the Brooklyn Youth Chorus, and Mellissa Hughes, who will perform with the Brooklyn Philharmonic Chamber Players at the New Sounds Live event. Chamber Players from the Brooklyn Philharmonic, and Mos Def, will perform arrangements by Grammy-nominated composer and clarinetist Derek Bermel. The event, which is free, is taking place at the World Financial Center Winter Garden and begins at 7:00PM. For more information visit http://www.artsworldfinancialcenter.com/cgi-bin/Go.cgi?q_id=1175.
Mayday Ft. Grafh “Afraid Of The Dark”
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Jimmy Henchman’s Brother Sentenced To 12 Years In Prison Over Cocaine Operation
(AllHipHop News) The brother of incarcerated Hip-Hop mogul James “Jimmy Henchman” Rosemond was sentenced to 12 years in prison yesterday (October 6th), for his role in a massive cocaine distribution operation that raked in more than $10,000,000 per year.
Jimmy Henchman’s older brother Kesnar Rosemond, 50, was sentenced to lengthy prison sentence for cocaine distribution, wire fraud and identity theft related charges, according to the New York Post.
Kesnar Rosemond had already pleaded guilty to the charges in hopes of a reduced sentenced, but he was given the stiff sentence for the severity of the charges against him.
Prosecutors claim that Kesnar Rosemond used an unnamed New York auto dealership to steal loan applications to use the information to open fake accounts, using FedEx and other shipping companies, to send millions of dollars in drugs and cocaine across the country.
The tactic opened numerous innocent people up for investigation and interrogation and added to the complexity of the brother’s scheme, according to prosecutors.
The feds claim Kesnar’s younger brother James “Jimmy Henchman” Rosemond operated his management company CZAR Entertainment as a front for a Continuous Criminal Enterprise (CCE).
Jimmy Henchman is accused of using his business to send hundreds of kilos of cocaine in cases used for music equipment to various recording studios, and then using Fedex to send the proceeds to mailbox drops in vacuum sealed bags on the West coast.
Last week, prosecutors charged Jimmy Henchman with possession of machine guns and silencers, after the weapons were turned up during a raid of one of his properties, as part of an investigation that began in 2008.
Rosemond, who pleaded not guilty to all charges, is facing a life sentence if he is convicted on the drug and gun charges.
Russ Parr: The Media Titan and Cultural Critic Speaks
As one of the United States’ most-successful radio personalities, Russ Parr has cultivated a reputable entertainment brand over the past two decades. To date, his nationally syndicated radio show covers 24 markets and reaches 3.2 million listeners. Since 1996, the revolutionary partnership between Radio One and the Russ Parr Morning Show has redefined the style, pace and influence of contemporary “urban” broadcasts.
Capitalizing on his cultural capital, Russ Parr has expanded his media empire into the world of cinema. His most-recent project, 35 and Ticking, features cast members such as Kevin Hart, Meagan Good and Tamala Jones. With the release of Parr’s forthcoming theatrical feature, The Under Shepherd, Russ will continue to establish himself as one of Hollywood’s premiere “triple-threats”: writer, director and executive producer.
During a promotional campaign for the DVD release – September 13, 2011 – of 35 and Ticking, Russ Parr managed to squeeze some time out of his busy schedule and settle down for an interview with Clayton Perry – reflecting on his early years as a stand-up comedian, the evolution of “urban” radio, and the professional lessons he learned in Hollywood.
AllHipHop.com: When you look back over the past two decades, what do you consider to be your greatest contribution to the industry as a radio pioneer?
Russ Parr: One issue that I have worked to bring attention to is the eradication of domestic abuse, which is something that I don’t think I’m known for it , but I have spent many years trying to bring as much attention as possible to this issue. It kind of started for me back when I was working in Los Angeles – decades ago. I used to get phone calls from young girls that were getting beat up by their boyfriends. From the very beginning of my career, it has been a major personal cause.
AllHipHop.com: Most people tend to think of radio as merely a source for entertainment. Is there a particular guiding philosophy that made you use and capitalize upon this platform as a tool for social mobility and uplift?
Russ Parr: Sometimes you’ve got to do what you don’t want to do in order to do what you want to do. And I kind of live by that, even to this day. I love my job, but sometimes you’ve got to put up with some crap to get some sugar. And that lesson has been at work throughout my career.
AllHipHop.com: What do you consider to be the greatest obstacle that you had to overcome in achieving success and having longevity in the radio business?
Russ Parr: Before I made my start in radio, I used to do stand-up comedy. That has to be the roughest job in the world! [laughing] In a way, it’s like you strip yourself naked onstage every night. One night you kill, and the next night you’re being booed. And it’s kind of a rough business. And I think it prepared me for the career that I have now. You look at criticism, you look at people that don’t want to see you do well. It doesn’t phase me because I went through the worst of it just being up onstage, and living and dying every night. That was one of the roughest jobs that I’ve ever had to do, and got very little money to do it. But it did open the doors for me. It gave me an opportunity to further my career. I didn’t really have a lot of radio experience beforehand. I used to drive up to L.A. from Central California and listen to a lot of the wild pop radio. You know, Dr. Donald Rose, and guys up at KFRC in San Francisco. They used to do like really crazy comedy stuff with bells and whistles, sound effects. I didn’t invent it—but no one was doing it when I was doing it. So I kind of stole that concept and made it urban. I’d be on the radio and it would sound like six people were on the radio because I had all these different sound effects going and all that whole nine. So, I think I might have revolutionized, just a little bit, or one of the revolutionaries in bringing a brand of comedy to urban radio.
AllHipHop.com: When you look back over the past two decades, in particular the labeling of certain stations as “urban radio,” what has been the biggest – or unexpected – change in the industry?
Russ Parr: Back in the day, they wanted to control your content. They always fell actually in music-intensified stations like what I’ve always worked on. They always wanted us to kind of dumb down our conversations. They didn’t really want us to engage an audience if it’s about an issue that affects all of us. I was fortunate to have bosses who embraced me having a point of view and taking a chance on losing our listeners because they didn’t like my position. And to this day, I’ve always engaged an audience in topics that affect our community. And that wasn’t something that we used to do with that. It was like play it safe. Don’t say anything that’s going to p### anybody off. So, I think that has changed. I think the other thing is that radio has become less gut and more research. I think that kind of hurt. Now we’ve got to go test this record to make sure we can play it heavy. Back in the day, you don’t research. You go with your gut. You say: “Wow, that record sounds hot. I’m going to play it.” Now you’ve got to go send it out to some organization and they’ll play the hook for somebody over the phone for fifteen seconds testing whether they like it or not. You’ve got one or two people controlling the whole sound of the country. And that’s how it would look to me.
AllHipHop.com: Throughout the course of your career, is there a defining moment in which you went against research and followed your gut instead?
Russ Parr: I’m really proud that I have been able to be a trendsetter. There is a double standard in our business, putting women in the focal point. I have been blessed to be able to give several individuals positions that they rarely would have been hired. Almost everybody that I’ve ever worked with on my show started off as one of my interns. I made it a point to share the knowledge that I had with people and teach them what I knew. If you work hard, you deserve an opportunity to get a shot at being on the radio. If I need a different voice or whatever, I’ll put you on. That has always been my thing. I’ve often had people tell me: “You’ll just put anybody on. That’s unprofessional.” But that’s how a lot of people became big stars. Somebody gave them a shot. And I’m very secure with my ability to be able to share my knowledge and to just pass on or give somebody part of your punch line. I don’t need that. I don’t have an ego like that. And that’s my big thing for me, is I think ego just kills so many careers, and that’s something that I refuse to allow to make decisions for me.
AllHipHop.com: It’s hard to imagine how you managed to balance all of the responsibilities that come with the various hats that you wear in a single day. After looking at your recent press release for your film project, 35 and Ticking, which you also wrote, produced and directed, how did you manage to find time for this second passion? And since the project deals with life, love and marriage, what lessons from the movie have been influential within your own life.
Russ Parr: Well, I think the best thing is that I stay consistent with everybody. In my marriage. With my children. I believe that my kids don’t have to guess what’s coming next, or my wife, or people I work with. I try to stay as consistent as possible. I’m not all over the place. And it’s not difficult to wear so many different hats because I have a very supportive wife. And my kids. I think one of the biggest things that’s always bothered me in my entire life is I’ve always worked morning radio and I never could see them off to school. And I’ve got one in college, I’ve got one just ready to go to college and I got one in high school. And that was something that always troubled me. But I think that because I was consistent and I remained there as a constant in their lives, I learned to say it’s okay because they turned out to be pretty good citizens. But one of the big things for me with the movies, it’s the same kind of thing. I have one rule. And my rule is no one is allowed to yell at anybody. That’s the same rule that I have when I’m working on the radio. No grandstanding. Because I think it’s counterproductive. It slows things down. We shot 35 and Ticking in fifteen days. And I financed the whole movie myself. Sold the house and used the profits to make it. You can’t have people at odds if you’ve got fifteen days to shoot something. So that’s a rule that I hold dear. We had ten people we let go that violated the rule on too many occasions. You get tired. I don’t care if you’re a grip, makeup, costumes, set designer, actor. That rule applies to everybody. And that’s the record I want in Hollywood. Like when you go on a Russ Parr set, you have a good time and you’re never humiliated. I don’t believe in directing by committee unless it’s a large scene and it’s a lot of people involved. I direct per individual, because everybody has to be treated differently. And I can speak personally to these people instead of yelling at them from across the room: “What are you doing?” We have so many people that can be demolished, and you don’t want to demolish or crush an actor in front of their peers. You just don’t do that. But I take a different approach to directing. And I’ve been around directors, man, that just lose it, go off, humiliate people. And that’s the last thing I would expect for you to hear about me from anybody. Because after all, I worked with damn near everybody in Hollywood.
AllHipHop.com: Did you experience a steep learning curve, or did this new love seem to be second nature?
Russ Parr: Oh man, I’m still learning because that’s how it will affect the other thing. I don’t care if you’re the director or you’re an intern. If you see me doing something and I yell, “Cut,” and they’re like, “Hey, have you ever thought about trying this?” I’ll take anybody’s idea. I take them from my son, from my daughter, my wife. I’ll take an idea. Some of them I don’t use and some are, “Wow,” or it will spawn another idea. You got to let everybody do part of the process. And that’s not kiss everybody’s butt and make everybody say, “Hey, this is one, big, happy family,” because there are going to be some beefs. We just deal with those privately. But I want everybody to feel like they’re part of the project. I don’t know everything. I have a learning experience every movie I do. You know the basics. You know what you want out of a performance. I just finished wrapping a movie called The Under Shepherd with Isaiah Washington. I learned stuff from him, as well as other members of the cast and crew. When people develop the wrong mindset: “Oh, I am the director and I don’t have to listen to anybody.” That’s when you start to fail, when you refuse to listen to other people, their opinions and suggestions. That’s a fact.
AllHipHop.com: That’s a life lesson just for everybody, no matter what position they have in life. Having been a comedian, which in certain respects is similar to being an actor on a stage, when did you realize that you had that skill for impersonations? Have you ever shared any of your impersonations face-to-face with any of the individuals you have impersonated?
Russ Parr: Oh, yeah, yeah. Magic Johnson. I never knew I could do voices. I worked with guys like Steve Woods, who passed away a few years ago at 58, at KDAY. And he taught me. He said, “Hey, you’re this person.” And I would go home and look at that person and even take their facial expressions, and that’s how I would come up with doing voices. I never knew I could do them. And also, the phone line disguises. You keep telling somebody it’s Magic Johnson on the phone… After a while, it’s Magic Johnson. Used to do Chick Hearn and Michael Cooper and all those cats back in the day with the L.A. Lakers. But for the most part, man, it’s like you don’t know you can do something until you try. The only thing I can say to you is no.
AllHipHop.com: Is there a particular impersonation that was really hard for you to master that you spent a lot of time trying to master?
Russ Parr: You know, I used to do Ronald Reagan, when he was the governor of California. You know, you’d just shake your head like him. “Well, there you go again.” And it’s just a matter of hearing and seeing the face. But for years I did Michael Jackson and Mike Tyson and all these different characters. It wasn’t something that I could do up on stage live because I actually used the tone of the phone line to hide the imperfections in the character’s voice, which I still do to this day when I do characters. I don’t really do many characters anymore. I hired other people that can do like 50 Cent or whoever. But I don’t even have to do everything anymore. But I think radio really prepared me for directing. I mean, I’m a graduate from Cal State Northridge with a degree in radio and television, but I think I was always looking for a director to direct my first movie. And a lady I’ve worked with for years, Bridgette, said: “You’re the best director I know.” I said, “What do you mean?” She said, “You direct every day doing the radio.” And I thought about it and said, “You’re right. You’re right. I’d been out of L.A. for a long time and pulled some resources together and did my own directing.”
AllHipHop.com: In an attempt to bring awareness to issues of your heart that you are unable to normally share with the public, is there a particular message that you would like to share with your listening audience and the general public?
Russ Parr: I think that it is really important for people, especially black folks, to open their minds to other artists, other directors, other people that can tell stories. From a business perspective, I don’t think people realize that just because you may not like one black film, if you refuse to go to that film, other films will not be made. In Hollywood, black films are put into the same box. Right now, we have to be in the Tyler Perry box. I respect Tyler. I’m not going to knock on his hustle. He’s made money with what he’s doing. But there’s so many other black directors and so many other stories out there that are not getting told because they are not given the opportunity. Some people think there is victory in saying that they are not going to support a project in order to uphold the moral standard of the black community. But the lesson that I mentioned earlier still hold true: sometimes we’ve got to do what we don’t want to do until we can do what we want to do. That model holds true for Hollywood, too. People have to go out and support black films and black artists!
For more information on Russ Parr, visit his official websites –therussparrmorningshow.com and uptoparr.com – or “follow” him via Twitter [@RussParrShow and @TheRussParr].
For more of Clayton Perry’s interview exclusives, visit his digital archive. He can also be followed via Twitter [@crperry84].
Trill Entertainment Preps New Albums By Webbie, Lil Boosie
(AllHipHop News) Baton Rouge, Louisiana record label Trill Entertainment is poised to return to the Hip-Hop game with the release of a new album by Lil Webbie and a new record deal with Fontana, a division of Universal Music Group.
Melvin “Big Boi” Vernell Jr. and Marcus “Turk” Roach, are the co-CEOs of Trill entertainment a label founded by deceased UGK member Pimp C.
In addition to Webbie, Lil Boosie, Foxx and Lil Phat are among the popular Southern artists on the Trill Entertainment’s roster.
The new deal for Trill was announced by Fontana CEO Ron Spaulding, who welcomed the pair to the record label.
“Ron Spaulding has been a good friend to the Trill Family for a long time,” commented Mr. Vernell and Mr. Roach. “We think he understands how to make money in a very difficult business. We are very excited about being with him at Fontana and unleashing some of the best music Trill has ever produced.”
The label will release Savage Life 3 by Webbie, who was sold over 2,000,000 digital tracks, on November 15th.
Trill Entertainment, which is now based in Atlanta, is also planning a brand-new album by Lil Boosie, who is facing a life sentence for allegedly orchestrating the murder of a rival in December of 2009.
“Hiding in Hip-Hop” Author, Terrance Dean’s “Mogul”
Right before the release of his bestselling book, Hiding in Hip-Hop: On the Downlow in the Entertainment Industry from Music to Hollywood (2008), Terrance Dean sent shivers through the industry with the fear that he was about to “out” some of Black entertainment’s most popular artists. But, cleverly, the book was full of blind items and did not name any names, prompting bloggers and readers to play guessing games.
This June, Dean returns with his first novel, Mogul. Centered on the life and career of a rap mogul, Big A.T., who runs a successful label with some of biggest stars in the Hip-Hop industry, including his lover, superstar rapper, Tickman. The book is interesting and relatively realistic in it’s portrayal of the industry, Big A.T., is a character that the reader can love, hate, and love again. But, how is Mogul another blind item? Is the Hip-Hop industry ready for love scenes between men? Is Hip-Hop music and culture ready for an openly gay artist? AllHipHop.com talked to Terrance Dean about Hip-Hop and homosexuality.
AllHipHop.com: What have you been doing since Hiding in Hip-Hop.
Terrance Dean: I’ve written two other books, including Straight from your Gay Best Friend: The Straight-Up Truth about Relationships, Work, and Having a Fabulous Life, worked on some television and book projects. And I just finished Mogul which I am getting ready to tour with.
AllHipHop.com: What was the motivation behind Mogul?
Terrance Dean: Like in Hiding in Hip-Hop, which was my memoir, I really wanted to tell the story from a different perspective and a different character. I wanted to show this gay sub-culture that really does exist, that I think people are more aware of now.
AllHipHop.com: Are the characters in the book based on real people?
Terrance Dean: All the characters in Mogul are inspired by people that I know. Big A.T. is a combination of two people that I know. His character spoke a lot to me because I knew that character and I knew that story. I hope that when people read the book that they don’t try to match the characters with people. Look at the story, look at the plot. I really want people to think, ‘What would you do?’ We find Big A.T. caught in so many situations and challenges. He knows who he is on the inside, but there are so many outside forces that prevent him from being his true authentic self.
AllHipHop.com: Do you think in any way that the book perpetuates gay stereotypes?
Terrance Dean: What do you mean?
AllHipHop.com: I mean gay, hypersexual guys, who are just turning out guys…lying to women?
Terrance Dean: This is the entertainment industry; this is how the industry is on the inside. Look at the images of women and how they are portrayed in Hip-Hop. Hip-hop is a very hyper-sexual industry in itself. People often say that gays are so promiscuous but I think heterosexuals are far more promiscuous. This is just the industry and how it is, period. The industry perpetuates a hypersexual image. Whether hetero or homosexual.
AllHipHop.com: How do we move beyond that?
Terrance Dean: Conversations, books, look at Lil B, he is someone who wants to have that conversation. So many rappers are very progressive and can take the power from the word and ideology of gay. Those who are progressive in the Hip-Hop music have to be progressive enough to sit across from a gay man or woman and have that conversation about how can we grow as a community. That machisimo that hypersexuality is stifling our community.
AllHipHop.com: With a character like Jasmine, (Big A.T.’s female love interest and baby momma) who finds out that the man she is in love with is gay, and not from him, and with the ideology of “down-low” men and the rise of HIV among black women, how should women react to the book?
Terrance Dean: I think a lot of women are going to see themselves as Jasmine. Women who have been in a relationship with a man, and not even look at the sexuality, but are in relationships with men who are not giving themselves to them fully. I think that’s what Jasmine finds herself grappling with. She is trying to figure out who she is as well. I hope when women read her story, and I tried to be authentic to her story, I hope women find themselves thinking about finding their own identity. Jasmine is based on an actual woman.
AllHipHop.com: So, who is your audience?
Terrance Dean: Those who are interested in the industry as a whole. Women. I want women to be engaged. Hip-Hop has formed and shaped the mindset of so many of us. Look at our communities; we are starved, mentally and culturally. Look at magazines like Smooth and King, which keep women posed half-naked on our covers. Look at the HIV rates, black women are the most infected, why? Why is that so? Look at teen pregnancy; I want us to start these kinds of conversations. Look at down-low relationships; I want women to be able to engage in those kinds of conversations. I want the book to make people start to talk more and ask questions more. I think men need to look at this industry and understand how they may be approached in this industry; you will be approached in this industry. In the gay community we need to have these conversations. So many of us don’t identify who we are and we hide. I think African-American men we are more hidden than our Caucasian brothers. We are still hiding.
AllHipHop.com: Do you think a major urban star, a Hip-Hop star, will ever come out?
Terrance Dean: I think we are approaching that age. It’s obviously something that people know we can’t keep hiding and tucking in the closet. Look at Eddie Long and that whole situation, we need to have that conversation. I think a mainstream artist whom someone will never suspect will come out and shock the world. I think that is needed, a homosexual man whom people will never suspect, who fits in their community, and is gay in a masculine form. I definitely think an artist is going to come forth.
Knockout Nation: Butch Lewis’ Spectacular Homegoing Service
Wilmington, Del. – “The Crew” had all assembled at Ronald E. “Butch” Lewis’ casket to pay their final respects – as TV’s Judge Joe Mathis described them, “40 Black men he connected over the years.” Lewis’ coveted “Crew” included actor Denzel Washington, actor/director Robert Townsend, comedian Michael Colyer, actor Leon, actor/comedian Darryl “Chill” Mitchell, Morehouse College President Robert M. Franklin, retired boxer Michael Spinks, singer Keith Washington, Great Debaters actor/nephew Stephen Rider, and many more Black men of stature and note.
“Butch Lewis was the glue,” Rev. Al Sharpton, the eulogist of the hour, reiterated like many who paid tribute to the legendary boxing promoter, entrepreneur, and music label owner at his August 1 funeral. Referring to the Noah and the ark story in Genesis 7, Sharpton said, “Butch said his gift was to take things that didn’t seem like they belonged together, and put them together. ‘The Crew’ exemplified that.”
Lewis’ was a homegoing service fit for a dignitary – so large, in fact, that it had to be held at the Chase Center on the Riverfront, the largest venue in the state of Delaware, with a viewing that started just after dawn. The celebration of life wasn’t for a politician, world leader, or Nobel Prize winner. It was for Lewis, who was known in VIP circles far and wide, yet was still considered a common man to the people in his home communities.
Just as they had weeks earlier for his 65th birthday celebration, the important people came out again, to laugh, cry, and remember Lewis, who died suddenly on July 23 of natural causes at his home in Bethany Beach, Del. They all remarked that Lewis must have known he didn’t have long to live, and as Colyer said, planned a “pretranstional celebration.” They all talked about him living out the “dash” between his birth and death with hard work and passion.
The incomparable Stevie Wonder was there this time, treating Lewis’ family to the one wish he hadn’t received on his birthday – a performance from Wonder himself, who roused the crowd immediately with his soulful rendition of “The Lord’s Prayer.” He followed with classics like “Overjoyed,” “Isn’t She Lovely,” and “Signed, Sealed, Delivered [I’m Yours],” inviting audience participation in typical Stevie fashion.
For this party of a different kind, the list of stars who came to pay tribute read like a Hollywood’s Who’s Who list, including retired boxers Muhammad Ali, Larry Hazzard, Mike Tyson, and Tommy Hearns. From the multimedia and literary world there was Radio One’s Cathy Hughes, BET’s Debra Lee and Bob Johnson, ESPN’s Keith “Clink” Scales, former Universal Motown president Sylvia Rhone, and author/scholar Michael Eric Dyson.
Actors, athletes, and musicians came from far and wide – to name a few: Lynn Whitfield, Tim and Daphne Reid, and director John Singleton; producer Kedar Massenberg; former NBA player Magic Johnson and wife Cookie, former NBA player Charles Smith, and Five Heartbeats actor Michael Wright. Politicians such as Kweisi Mfume, Del. Governor Jack Markell, and former Congressman Mike Castle were there, too.
There were also droves of regular people there – from Lewis’ nearby hometowns of Chester, Pa., and Woodbury, NJ., and from his longtime state of residence, Delaware. In Delaware, the boxing promoter had settled into a well-known rock star life at the beach, where he often played host to close friends like Denzel Washington and sometimes Michael Jordan. Lewis hadn’t needed to work in years – his payday from the classic, 90-second Tyson-Spinks fight in 1993 alone had made him a rich man. But he kept working – and networking – amassing relationships in industries far beyond boxing and sports.
In his eulogy, Sharpton shared a funny story about his efforts to bring Lewis onboard his “anti N-word” campaign some years ago. Lewis, who asked if he could just write a check for the cause, wasn’t about to make the ultimate sacrifice, remarking to Sharpton, “N*gga please.” A few years later, when Lewis wanted him to cross a swamp to meet with and bless an Indian tribe in Florida, an N-word reformed Sharpton simply replied, “N*gga please.” The mourners laughed, at the joke and possibly at the irony of the unlikely friendship.
Lewis was remembered as a man known for heavy cussing and Crown Royal, but who had a special, personal way with everyone he knew. “People need to mind they daggone business,” said Pastor Darrell Freeman who officiated the service. “People think they know people. He was saved…thankfully, man looks on the outside, but God looks on the inside.” The lobby outside his massive funeral was filled with photos – of Lewis with James Brown, several U.S. Presidents, icons like Quincy Jones, family and friends, and every great name known to boxing from at least the past half century.
Whatever Lewis had done, he had done something right.
Former Michael Jackson Video Model Tatiana Yvonne: ‘King of My Heart’
Tatiana Yvonne has written a new book titled “King of My Heart” about her time and experience with the late great, Michael Jackson. Tatiana was a Julliard-trained ballerina and a successful cover girl model in Japan long before her “overnight success” as Michael Jackson’s leading lady in the video “The Way You Make Me Feel.”
But it was the video that made her an instantly recognizable figure and inducted her into Hollywood’s inner-circle. Rumors of a blossoming romance seemed substantiated by an ongoing association between the two, even after the video as Michael invited her on The Bad Tour. Then in the next instant it all seemed to come crashing down.
The origin, it would seem, was “the kiss that was seen around the world.” A unscripted, public kiss during the Bad Tour, denoting the chemistry that had began to spark between them. Though Michael did not appear to disapprove, Tatiana’s accounts, it was believed Michael’s handlers felt it was bad for his image.
Even though Tatiana’s story does not contain salacious details of a torrid affair s in spite of the fact the she has numerous pictures that insinuates an obvious chemistry, Tatiana’s credibility has been challenged and she has been stigmatized from day one.
Perhaps this says less about Tatiana and more about the media and public at large with regard to Michael. Even after Lisa Marie’s emotional open letter and appearance on Oprah after his death professing how profound her love was for him, or P. Diddy’s comical story about how Michael crashed his party in pursuit of Beyonce, there are still those naysayers who refuse to allow Michael to be viewed as a genuine human being capable of love and being loved. Tatiana’s is one of many stories told after the passing of the King of Pop that gives insight to the man, adding a building block to the reconstruction of his image.
AllHipHop.com: You were sought after by Hollywood Royalty like Eddie Murphy, Prince and De Niro. What makes Michael the king of your heart?
Tatiana: Michael was my childhood. The very first time I laid eyes on Michael I was about 3 years old and at that moment I thought he’s the one and I held on to that love and that dream of meeting him since I was a little girl.
AllHipHop.com: What was the purpose of writing a second book?
Tatiana: This second book goes more in depth with my story. Some of the same stories were in my last memoir but this one, I guess you can say, takes it home. And of course with his passing it kind of like took me full circle from the very first time I laid eyes on him and fell in love with him up until his passing….the world lost him. That made it bittersweet…full circle.
AllHipHop.com: How did you handle that?
Tatiana: Honestly…with God”s Love. I am constantly keeping my faith with God. It’s still hard. Everyday I wake up I am reminded the world is not the same as I knew it. To me there is something missing. Someone I always felt in my heart of hearts was my soul mate. So it’s not easy because sometimes I feel like I am half of something that’s no longer here.
AllHipHop.com: I’m sure you would agree that Michael dealt with a lot of persecution and alienation when he was alive but then a lot of repressed love came to the surface after he died and people suddenly embraced him or at least that was my perception….
Tatiana: You’re perception was absolutely correct. I saw a lot of people who we’re not Michael Jackson fans suddenly become Michael Jackson fans who had this new found idolization and admiration that he didn’t have while he was here. What I realized is people don’t always know what they have ’til it’s gone. And that’s heavy and it’s sad but it’s true. I have also seen people suddenly latch on to pieces of Michael out of new found respect and admiration. Even I felt it. I have new fans who have appreciated me more because of that. Because they learned that very same lesson.
AllHipHop.com: That’s a good way to put it, a lesson.
Tatiana: Yeah and it’s not a bad thing. I’ve always thought that’s what life’s about, learning lessons, sometimes the hard way. A person can only tell you so much or teach you so much. That’s what life’s about, living and learning.
AllHipHop.com: How did meeting Michael change your life?
Tatiana: (Hesitates)…Wow!….That’s a really good question; the fact that I always believed that anything is possible with hard work and diligence. It taught me that dreams do truly come true. Even though I believed that, that was actual proof. With all my hard work and training in ballet and believing I would meet him someday…
AllHipHop.com: Anywhere in your thoughts did you ever think he would be interested
or fall for you?
Tatiana: No, I actually never thought that way even though I had a friend who sort of predicted that. Remember I said in the book my friend, whom I didn’t mention by name, said you should move to New York and try to meet Michael Jackson? He’d love you. (laughs) Although I didn’t think that way. My whole thing was just wanting to meet him but I never entertained the idea of us falling for one another. When I did meet him and work with him it all happened very naturally. The chemistry just happened It’s not something I foresaw or tried to make happen. It was just God. But it was the happiest time of my life; meeting him and working with him. I have never known happiness since then. Not that kind of happiness.
AllHipHop.com: I would imagine that would be a tough act to follow be it professionally or emotionally.
Tatiana: Also take away from that the fact that he was the greatest entertainer who ever lived. He was a guy. When we we’re falling for one another it was about two people. It wasn’t about his status or this larger than life image. It was at first but after we broke the ice and got to know each other he was just Michael, the guy.
AllHipHop.com: The way people view Michael has always been very polarized. They are are either viewing him as subhuman and being dehumanizing or deifying him.
Either way people don’t humanize him enough to believe a beautiful woman such as yourself could fall for him. Since his death there have been many stories of him being flirtatious. Would you say his behavior qualified as flirtatious?
Tatiana: Oh completely. You tell me. The scene where we run through the car my heel had gotten stuck in the car’s upholstery and Michael grabbed my leg trying to help me pull my foot out of the upholstery. I was so taken aback and so in awe that he touched my leg in such an intimate way that I pulled away and ended up falling outside on my butt. The next thing I know Michael had grabbed me up and was wiping my butt off with is hand not in a derogatory way but in a flirtatious way. When I looked back he had a devilish grin. He was a normal red-blooded male.
AllHipHop.com: I saw an interview with Vicki Lawrence around the time of the video and you we’re talking about you and Michael and she joking, cutting you off and was being very rude. It’s seemed like a wasted opportunity to hear about your relationship.
Tatiana: What she was doing was squandering my opportunity to grow so the public took me as a joke and didn’t take me seriously but just saw me as some video vixen struttin’ her stuff. She even snapped “Those dance lessons sure didn’t pay off” Michael didn’t think so. He thought my walk was sexy. He said my “walk was my dance!” It taught me a lesson about how really the industry treated Michael. I was under his umbrella. So it was a reflection of how they always kind of dogged him and would always play him off like he was a weirdo and now they we’re making fun of me because I was growing out of that camp. It’s like Firpo Carr (MJ associate) said, “Being a Michael Jackson associate is not for the faint of heart or weak of the knees.”
For more information on King of My Heart, click here.
Jamal Simmons: Political & Media Guru Gives Back
Over the past three years, with regular appearances on CBS News, CNN, and MSNBC, Jamal Simmons has become one of the media’s most recognizable political analysts. Simmons’ candid commentary has established him as a “fresh voice,” and he has been featured in the New York Times, International Herald Tribune, and Politico.
Channeling the power of social media, Simmons has launched an innovative fundraising campaign for the Rosa Parks Scholarship Foundation: “$40 for 40 Kids.” With his help, 40 high school graduates in Detroit and surrounding Michigan will receive financial assistance to attend college.
Simmons received a Parks Scholarship in 1988 and enrolled in Morehouse College; he graduated from the college and recently received their Presidential Award of Distinction. Simmons also earned a Master’s degree in Public Policy from Harvard University.
As he prepares for the official launch of the “$40 for 40 Kids” campaign, Simmons squeezed time out of his busy schedule for an interview with AllHipHop.com, reflecting on the value of strong communication skills, his evolution as a political analyst and the importance of receiving his father’s “tough love”:
AllHipHop.com: When you reflect on your personal life and the decisions you’ve made over the years, what can you attribute to your upbringing and parents’ influence?
Jamal Simmons: I have been influenced in two primary ways. My parents and my grandparents loved me unconditionally. They told me that I could be whatever I wanted to be, and they expected me to do the best I could at whatever it was I chose; but they never told me what to be. And I think having the freedom to make those choices for myself was incredibly important, but I also had the discipline of expecting me to perform at whatever it was that I was doing.
AllHipHop.com: Since you were never explicitly told what to do, is there a particular life event that catapulted you into political journalism?
Jamal Simmons: My dad has always been involved in politics. My grandfather was also, but he was more of a union organizing guy, and my dad was involved in electoral politics in Detroit where I grew up. My dad worked for then Mayor Coleman Young back in the 1980s. So I grew up around it. I grew up handing out leaflets, going door-to-door on Saturdays for hot dog money! [laughing] As I got older, it was something I had then developed an interest in myself; and so I continued to volunteer on campaigns and do all those menial tasks that really mean so much in a campaign, like door knocking and phone calls. Before email, letter stuffing.
AllHipHop.com: Having started out so young, when you look at your experiences, are there any lessons or pieces of advice that have guided you through the years?
Jamal Simmons: Yes, I’ve had a couple. First of all, despite the fact that I really did come from a loving family; it wasn’t really very traditional. My parents were never married. They split up when I was less than two years old; but I lived with both of them at different periods. I lived with my mother until I was 13, and then I went to high school. I was getting a little rambunctious, so I went to live with my father. We went to see Boyz N the Hood, and we were laughing about how similar the story was. Where we grew up in Detroit, was a similar neighborhood to the neighborhood in that movie. It was a pretty tough neighborhood. You grow up in a tough neighborhood in the inner city and all the things happen that happen. You get robbed and you get in fights and friends die, and there’s drugs and all that stuff that goes on.
But again, I came from parents who exerted a lot of discipline on their kids. And the second thing I’d say came from experience. I got in trouble when I was in college. I got cut off from my parents and had to sit out of school. I had a false arrest that ended up getting taken care of. All this happened at the same time, and I think there was a moment where I had to look at myself in the mirror and decide what I was going to do. And I credit my dad now – for having the will to cut me off – despite the fact we got into a huge argument and we stopped speaking to each other for months. I had to go out and get two jobs; go to work and save money; and eat potatoes and ramen noodles every night. One of my jobs was in a restaurant on the weekends. At the very least, I knew that I would get two good meals on the weekends. During this time, I really learned how to take care of myself. If you don’t work, you don’t eat; and that’s an incredibly important lesson in life.
AllHipHop.com: Is there a particular obstacle that kept you grounded?
Jamal Simmons: Other than being hungry? [laughing] Well, you have certain problems that come along with being young. You have roommates that cause you trouble. We had problems paying the rent some months. It’s just all the stuff that happens when you don’t have any money. So I certainly went through a lot of that. I had another experience when I was a little bit older and I was in graduate school. I did a summer at Citibank. I thought at one point I may want to go be a banker. But after I got into trouble, I got myself into school with the help of my parents, and we decided we were going to split the cost. I had to pay for all my living expenses, and they paid for the tuition. I made the honor roll every semester after that. I really just kind of buckled down and got my act together.
So, by the time I got to graduate school, I thought I wanted to go be a banker. I went to this interview. I’m sitting with the guy, and he’s one of these business consultant types. He was trying to intimidate me a little bit. They draw things out. I mean, if you’ve ever seen a business consultant or any kind of consultant, sometimes they use these white boards and pads and it’s like circles and inverted pyramids and arrows going back and forth. He asked me to explain this problem to him and said: “Feel free to use the magic markers. Decide whether or not the bank should spend money on mortgages in China. Here’s the magic marker. Hopefully you’ll use it.” I’m sitting there looking at the magic marker and looking at this guy; and I got a blank. I couldn’t think of anything. I was totally stumped. I had already been through a year-and-a-half of school. There was no reason for me to be stumped. Then a voice in the back of my head said: “Put down the magic marker.” At that moment, I put it down, and I just started talking to this guy. As I started talking him through this problem, he started responding, and he liked my answer. So while I’m talking, he picks up the magic marker. He starts drawing all these little pictures while I’m talking.
What I realized that moment, though, is that you have to have your own voice. You have to speak in your own way, and very often people will try to put you into their context. He understood things graphically. I understood things verbally. That’s how I communicated. And when I was trying to communicate like he communicated, it wasn’t working. But when I communicated the way I do, it worked very well. I got the job. I hated it. I never went back to banking, but I got the job. That was actually a good lesson in my life, about trusting my own voice, trusting my own way of doing things. And I had to learn that lesson several times. I guess that’s what growing up is about. You may learn something a little bit one time and you make another mistake in another way; but that was an important point for me.
AllHipHop.com: “Finding one’s voice” – this is often a life-long struggle that many people have. Since you’re known as a communicator, is there a particular skill that you can attribute to your success? As you found your own voice, what specific skills did you hone over the years?
Jamal Simmons: Frankly, the most important thing I could say to anyone who is thinking about anything they want to do: learn how to write. It’s just surprising how many people really don’t write very well. Whatever your ideas are, if you have trouble communicating them, whether speaking about them or writing about them, then it doesn’t matter how good you are, because no one will ever know. With the exception of musicians, mathematicians and a few other professions, most of us have to communicate in some way verbally or in writing. So, I think that is very important.
The other thing I would say: find something that you love. When I was young, I was fortunate to not only have parents, but a couple of good mentors, who told me: “Listen. You’re young. You don’t have a mortgage. You don’t really have any responsibilities. There’s no reason for you to take a job just for money. You’ve got to make enough money to live; but while you’re young, do whatever you can do to learn and follow your passion and then you will find a way to make money from it over time. Take all the necessary time. You don’t have to work for money, when you don’t have kids who are trying to eat or a mortgage that has to be paid. Go out and do something you love.” And it’s true. It was great. I had the freedom. Some people get a lot of help from their parents. My dad gave me $200 and said, “Good luck.” [laughing]
AllHipHop.com: Oh, wow! I’m sure you had to be very creative in your day-to-day decisions to make that money stretch.
Jamal Simmons: I was lucky, though. I found a job in D.C. It was a job that I liked and wanted to do. I was working on the campaign for Bill Clinton – and luckily he won that campaign. But, I remember when I was off on the campaign, there was this problem. We were getting our first paycheck, two or three weeks in, and at first they said they were going to send it overnight; then they were late. I was on the road somewhere, perhaps Colorado, and the lady who made the checks said: “Well, how about this? How about I just wait? I’ll just send it tomorrow morning when I get back in.” I remember I called her back after the conference call and I said: “Michelle, I don’t have any money. I have like $25 left. Send me my check. I’m not going to be able to eat. It’s a lot of money.” And she did.
But I was lucky that I was able to do the things when I was younger; to explore and to follow what my heart wanted to do, and it turned out to be something that I was pretty good at. In spite of a couple of detours, like trying to go into banking, I kept coming back to politics and it has turned into something that I have been able to find success.
AllHipHop.com: I’m also intrigued by your work on two charity concerts – 2004’s “We Are the Future” charity concert, as well as Al Gore’s “Live Earth” concert. What insight can you give on music and its power to communicate certain messages? What special connections can be made through this medium, as opposed to alternative channels?
Jamal Simmons: I’ve always liked music. I grew up mostly in Detroit. It’s a big music city. My earliest memories are of my mother cleaning the house with Lou Rawls playing on the big stereo. There was always music around. I do think music communicates in really powerful and positive ways. I came up in the late 80s and early 90s era of Hip-Hop. Public Enemy and KRS-ONE. We were all wearing high-top fades and African medallions. Music communicated to us politically a lot then. All that music captured the essence of a time and reflected what was happening. It also influenced what was happening at the time.
The most significant experience from the “We Are The Future” concert was the time that I spent with Quincy Jones. He said something to me that was really important – and kind of related to an earlier point. One day, I approached him and started a conversation: “You’ve worked with a lot of artists. What is the thing that you think is the most important about somebody who’s got staying power? You’ve been in this game for 50 years. What is it?” He said, “You know, I can make a hit record for anybody. Almost anybody can make one hit record. The hard part is making two hit records. [laughing] You can go in the studio. You know what’s hot on the radio right now. You know what everybody is listening to. You figure out what to do with the music. You figure out some lyrics that make sense. Making one hit record is not that hard. Making two hit records is about one of the hardest things you can do in music, let alone having a whole career.”
The secret, according to Mr. Jones, is honesty. I told him I wanted to be a writer. He said, “Listen, whatever your art is, is that you’ve got to be honest. You’ve got to say what you really think and feel. Sometimes that can be incredibly lonely because nobody else will get it, and sometimes it can be incredibly powerful and everybody will get it.” As an artist, if you run from what’s honest, then you’ll never tap into whatever is great that’s inside of you – and uniquely yours.
Even in politics, I’ve tried to do that. Probably the toughest decision that I made in my political career was the decision to support Barack Obama. I have worked for Bill Clinton half of my adult life. I was very affiliated with him and people who work for him. I had never worked for Hillary Clinton, but I had worked for her husband so I felt a certain pull on me because of it. But there was something inside of me. I don’t know. Have you ever read The Souls of Black Folk by W.E.B. Du Bois?
AllHipHop.com: Yes.
Jamal Simmons: There’s a part in The Souls of Black Folk where he talks about the “two-ness” that black people feel; the American side and this Negro/Black side.
AllHipHop.com: Ah, the issue of double consciousness!
Jamal Simmons: Yes, double consciousness. I just always had a fundamental belief that we can reconcile that matter; and that in fact, America could be brought to appreciate what makes us unique as Black people, and that we as black people could understand and appreciate what made us different as Black people who lived in America and the ideals that America stood for about openness and opportunity. Even though the country has not always lived up to those ideals, it has always been a country where those things were possible.
And so, sitting there watching Barack Obama run for president, I just couldn’t shake the fact that this was an opportunity to get there. This was an opportunity to see that “two-ness” become one for at least a moment. I remember vividly going to talk to Barack Obama and telling him that I was going to support him. Then I got asked by CNN to be the person who argued on his behalf. The campaign was in favor of that – and I spent the majority of 2008 supporting his candidacy publicly – which was incredibly important for me. I felt honored to be able to do it. It gave me a lot of opportunities in my life that I never thought I would have.
AllHipHop.com: As I hear you talk about honesty, I’m reflecting on my own life. As an educator of elementary school children, I’m concerned about the limited discussion on the challenges facing public schools, and the readiness of American students’ for the global marketplace. So, I’m really excited to hear about your “$40 for Forty Kids” campaign. I know you received a scholarship when you graduated high school. What factors persuaded you to create similar opportunities for other students?
Jamal Simmons: When I graduated from high school, I got a scholarship from the Rosa Parks Foundation, and it made a big deal. Back then, $2,000 had a much bigger punch on tuition than it does today, and it really helped me close the gap to pay for Morehouse, which was pretty expensive compared to Michigan State. Morehouse was three times as expensive, so I credit them, my family and a couple of other people with my being able to go to school. As I got older, I hit a lot of roadblocks and needed people to help me get through them, and so I also began looking for ways to help people. Two or three years ago, I rediscovered the Rosa Parks Foundation. I think I was looking at something and I thought: “I wonder what’s going on with them.” I looked them up on the Internet, and I sent them a check. So they reached out to me and asked me to speak to one of the graduating classes a couple of years ago; and for the last three years, I continued to send checks.
This year, they came to me and said, “We really could use some help closing the gap to make sure we can continue to write these scholarships for kids. We don’t want to lower the number of scholarships that we offer; and after the economic slowdown, we lost some money in the stock market from the endowment.” And as we continued to discuss funding concerns, I thought: “I’m turning forty this year – and I don’t really need anything. It would be a good time for me to give something back.” And so I made a commitment to help them raise money this year. Since I know all these fancy pants people in the country now… [laughing] …maybe I could put some of that to work! [laughing] I hit the phone and the email and started asking friends to help out in a really easy way – go online, post on Facebook, and send out tweets supporting the foundation. If we could get just some small percentage of the people who follow and friend each other on these social networks to donate $40, they can help 40 kids in Michigan get scholarships to further their education.
For more information on Jamal Simmons and the “$40 for 40 Kids” campaign, visit his official website and “follow” him via Twitter [@JamalSimmons].
For more of Clayton Perry’s interview exclusives, visit his digital archive. He can also be followed via Twitter [@crperry84].
Red Hot Chilli Peppers’ Flea Talks Hip-Hop
Honestly, I’m not sure if rock-n-roll enthusiasts debate over the G.O.A.T. in the same manner Hip-Hop junkies discuss the best MC. If there is a raging discussion, I’d definitely throw the Red Hot Chilli Peppers in the arena of candidates right there with acts like The Rolling Stones and U2 (personal preference, people!). Now, it is safe to say that the Red Hot Chilli Peppers (presently comprised of Anthony Kiedis, Michael “Flea” Balzary, Chad Smith and Josh Klinghoffer) don’t care about those trivial matters so we won’t walk down that path.
However, AllHipHop.com had the unique opportunity to talk Hip-Hop with Flea, the master bass player of the Red Hot Chilli Peppers. The result is a really cool interview with a legend that likes Dilla so much, he shed tears of inspiration. Enjoy this conversation as Flea extols Hip-Hop from Grand Master Flash to Ghostface to Odd Future and check for part 2, where he delves even deeper. (Editor’s Note, the rest of the conversation with Flea continues in a separate piece, where he explains The Red Hot Chilli Peppers’ new album, I’m With You.)
AllHipHop.com: Definitely. Um, since this is AllHipHop.com I have to ask you, how do you, you know, you guys have always had a slight edge of hip hop to your music. And even more so depending on who you ask, um, what are your thoughts on hip hop? Who do you like? Who do you appreciate, you know?
Flea: I go through phases, you know? I’m actually, right now, I was doing this thing. I was playing with Erykah Badu a while ago, you know, and she really…(got me into J. Dilla)
AllHipHop.com: Yeah?
Flea: …and I know about J Dilla a little bit and she really…
AllHipHop.com: Yeah?
Flea: …she got me hooked. And for, like, the last month that’s all I’ve listened to.
AllHipHop.com: Really?
Flea: Actually, like, I was up in his house in the mountains? And I was up there listening to, I think, the rough draft EP of J Dilla?
AllHipHop.com: OK.
Flea: It was like brought me to tears because of how beautiful it is. And then…
AllHipHop.com: Wow.
Flea: …and then (as a kid) I discovered – growing up Jimi Hendrix was my big thing, you know? And it was like, as a kid, it was almost, like, what raised me, you know? Like almost, like, almost like a guiding light to believe in.
AllHipHop.com: Right, right.
Flea: And that’s how it started out with Dilla, man. It’s just, like, right now it’s kind of consuming me.
AllHipHop.com: Yeah?
Flea: Like the depth and the width and the long, the far-reachingness of everything he did. The different styles within the, you know, Hip-Hop beats. You know what I mean?
AllHipHop.com: Definitely.
Flea: There’s so much just within that music. So lately, that’s my big thing, but man, I love Hip-Hop and I go in and out. There hasn’t been – I’m trying to think – like things that have, like, recently – things that have really excited me. But, um, uh, you know, these kids, uh, um, The Goblin and…
AllHipHop.com: Odd Future?
Flea: Yeah, the Odd Future kids. I can [relate] just, in terms, like, it’s like wild, you know
AllHipHop.com: Yeah.
Flea: That real, exciting, you know, type of feeling?
AllHipHop.com: Yeah.
Flea: But, um, through the years there’s things that I, like, love. Often there’s things that, often, things that to me are really popular and I don’t want to hear it. It’s like one of those things where I’ve got my, like, my tendency is to run the other direction.
AllHipHop.com: Yeah.
Flea: So it may sound crazy to you, but just recently I’ve gotten into Jay-Z. And it’s new for me! Like, I would hear songs before…
AllHipHop.com: Oh, Jay-Z?
Flea: Yeah!
AllHipHop.com: (Laughs)
Flea: Like, I would hear songs before and would know that it was good, but because it was so popular and so huge and on MTV every other minute I would just run the other way, you know?
AllHipHop.com: Right. (Laughs)
Flea: But, recently I’ve gotten into the Blueprint stuff, but I love Hip-Hop. You know, Wu-tang has been, like, a big thing for me a lot through the years.
AllHipHop.com: Yeah.
Flea: You know, all the solo records, and I love Ghostface and The Apollo Kids he came out with this year. It was good. Um, you know, I go back to all kinds of stuff that I love, like, I’m sitting here with my five year old and turning her on to music. I pull out my Grandmaster Flash and my Sugarhill records, you know?
AllHipHop.com: Right, right.
Flea: ‘Cause for a little kid it’s so colorful.
AllHipHop.com: Yeah.
Flea: And exciting. You know, because she’s sitting there in the morning and I’m making her breakfast and she’s like, “Papa?”, and I said, “What?” She said, “I don’t like to brag, I don’t like to boast, but I like hot butter on my breakfast toast.”
AllHipHop.com: (Laughs)
Flea: So it’s like that, you know, for me, like I said before, it’s like there’s music that’s artistically exciting, and timeless, and there’s music that isn’t.
AllHipHop.com: Yeah.
Flea: And categories just don’t really mean a lot to me. You know? I love Hip-Hop and always have, you know? Since I was in high school and Sugarhill Gang was really big I’ve always been into Hip-Hop, you know?
Ryan Leslie: The Rapper?
Jaheim, Musiq Soulchild, and Tank – some rappers just seem to fit better with rappers than others. Then, there’s Grammy-nominated Ryan Leslie.
The Harvard-educated music man, Ryan Leslie, originally from Washington, D.C., has been known over the years for his Hip-Hop flavored anthems such “Diamond Girl” and “Addicted” with Cassie. The fact that he plays the piano and has an Ivy League educational background may have lumped him into a certain lane with his R&B peers.
Still, Leslie says fans should get ready to see him in a whole new light – as a rapper. MC-ing isn’t new to the crooner, he says – it just hasn’t had its turn in the sun.
AllHipHop.com interviewed Ryan Leslie as he prepares for a special “Black Music Month” performance on June 15 at the 14th Street Apple Store in New York, and later, Tunisia, North Africa on a goodwill mission. He also dropped us his Top 5 Dead or Alive before signing off:
AllHipHop.com: Hi Ryan, how are you?
Ryan: I’m good, Seandra. Thanks so much for having me at 11:30 on a Monday morning! I’m actually going to be talking to London and Paris coming up so…they’re six hours ahead of me, so I’ve been up since about 6 already.
AllHipHop.com: Oh my goodness. Well you did a good job performing at [Hot97] Summer Jam recently, a super quick job, but good.
Ryan: Thank you very much.
AllHipHop.com: Was it your first time at Summer Jam?
Ryan: Well, that was the longest I’ve ever been on stage at Summer Jam. I came out with Jim Jones and Dipset in 2009. I made a record with Jim Jones called “Precious.”
AllHipHop.com: Right, ok. Well, I want to backtrack a little bit, and just talk a little bit about your background real quick for anybody who’s been living under a rock for the past few years and doesn’t know a lot about you. The thing that always stood out about you for me was your musicianship. You play the piano, you know, and you’re not just a guy who walked into the studio without some training. So tell me about your early music years.
Ryan: Well, I come from a musical family. My parents are both musicians. My father, his main instrument was the trumpet, and he still plays from time to time, and my mother’s main instrument is the piano. She still plays and loves it to death. So it was just only natural that me and my sister would be drawn to music as a way to express ourselves and as a way to just have a bond with the family, I mean, we would sing together and it was a really big part of my childhood, and you know, my parents are Salvation Army officers so we didn’t really have the money to have formal training. I mean they tried to pick and choose what they could afford to send us to in terms of education, education and extracurriculars. So my father really, you know, he wanted me to go to karate school (laughs)…
AllHipHop.com: You said karate? [laughter]
Ryan: Yeah. Japanese karate. And my mother, who’s actually half Chinese, her cousin in Canada actually ran a karate school so there were many summers that they would just have me go up to Canada to train. And my sister was actually the one who got the piano lessons. I was so jealous. But what I would do is I would take her piano books, or take my mother’s piano books, you know, and I taught myself all of the musical proficiency that I have today.
And you know that’s not to say I didn’t have an environment to practice in because the Salvation Army has a really rich musical tradition, so I was in band camp for a week out of a year or something like that. Really a lot of the musicanship and my ability to play instruments just comes from my own curiosity and approach to learning which was “hey, if I can’t take classes I’ll teach myself.”
AllHipHop.com: Right. You have a pretty impressive educational background, too, that people might not know about. What did you study when you were in college?
Ryan: Well, I actually went to went to…I concentrated in…I majored in Government at Harvard with a concentration in Economics (Macroeconomics) and Political Science.
AllHipHop.com: But the music, I guess, rose to the surface as what you really felt your passion was. Is that it?
Ryan: Absolutely. Absolutely.
AllHipHop.com: Ok. So I want to ask you about the new album “Les is More” and first I want to ask you to explain the title. Why is less more?
Ryan: Why is less more? Well less is actually a play on my name, L-e-s, and in a lot of my productions or when I’ve actually mentioned my tag in songs that I produce or I’m a part of, I use the shortened version of my name RLES and so this album’s title is actually that everyone’s always toyed with when they hear my nickname RLES. “Oh RLES is more. You should do an album like that.” And at this juncture in my career, I really, really feel strongly about sharing more of myself, and what I mean by that is I feel like there are so many other dimensions to me that I really haven’t shared as an artist to this point, and one of the most probably obvious changes from everything you’ve heard from me is that this album is a Rap album so to actually go from being a Grammy-nominated contemporary R&B artist to deciding his next album is going to be a Rap album may catch some people off guard.
But I’ve been rapping ever since I was a teenager and actually you know that’s because my sister always had the beautiful voice in the family, and I just always had an affinity for Rap as a medium of expressing myself. So I think that calling this album “Les is More” is really just to sort of give everyone or make everyone prepared for an offering which may be way more than what I have offered in the past. And that’s not only from a musicianship tip or in the vein of this being a rap album, but also visually, because I also have a very strong visual concept for this album, and I think visually, and I think visually, starting from the “Glory” video. A lot of imagery that people may not associate with me is really going to be shared this time around. And I’m really excited about sharing it and I really believe that it’s a really engaging and interesting story just because I think that my life’s been really interesting so far, and it’s just a very exciting time and an exciting project for me.
AllHipHop.com: Well, I have to admit, when I heard you were rapping I thought that was pretty zany, only because you’ve been so well received as a singer. You had those summer-time banger-like anthems, you know “Diamond Girl” and those songs that people really crank in the car, and I was like, “Gosh, why would he leave that?” So, are you worried about the transition for some of your fans, how that would affect them, or how they will receive it?
Ryan: Well, I’ll say this. I’m not abandoning singing altogether, you know, I mean, “Glory” doesn’t have any singing on it, but I guarantee that a lot of the other records, or most of the other records I’m just taking over all the duties. So I’m producing the records, I’m playing the instruments, arranging it, but really producing the records. You know, I’m rapping on the verses, and you know, taking care of the singing responsibilities on the books. So it’s not a total departure from what you may have heard in the past. Yeah, when you listen to “Diamond Girl” or you listen to something that I like on my transition album that we had, you know, Pusha T come in and feature on, it’s not totally a departure from what I’ve done on previous albums, you know records like “You’re Fly” and “Diamond Girl.”
On the Ryan Leslie album, they have, the Ryan Leslie album being my debut on Universal, they both have rap verses, and man, you know, it’s just a part of the art and a part of the culture that I’ve always loved and wouldn’t disrespect it by not giving it my all. And I’ve been around and collaborated with enough Hip-Hop artists from Jadakiss to Kanye to Jay-Z to Rick Walsh to Red Cafe to Fabolous to Jim Jones to Lloyd Banks to Snoop Dogg and the Dogg Pound, to know that I wouldn’t, if I felt like I couldn’t do it respectfully, I wouldn’t do it, so yeah, I’m not abandoning singing altogether but this is, like I said, it’s just a part of the culture that I’ve always loved and I have the creative license and freedom to explore it, so I’m going to exercise that license on this project.
AllHipHop.com: Ok, so, well I agree that your chemistry does really work well with Hip-Hop artists like, of course, look at “You Be Killin Em.” I love the visual of you and Neyo and Fab in the studio together. It seemed like you could see chemistry there happening. So what was that experience like working with them?
Ryan: That experience is always great. I think that Fabolous, actually on my very first radio single which was a record called “Used to Be,” when no one else would deal with me, Fabolous took the chance and said “You know what, I think that this is good music,” and he came in the studio and he did a feature on that record. And since then, there’s been such a mutual respect there and we’ve made some great music together culminating in this last remix here, but “You Be Killin Em,” yes, a top ten record in the country, and I mean Neyo is another person that’s really, once again, I was just on my early touring grind, he gave me a look and said “Look Ryan, you come and open for me on some dates in Europe” and he put me in front of audiences of 15,000 and sometimes 30,000 people, and I always had an immense respect for what he does, creatively and…all three get into the studio.
That chemistry was just really, really, really inspiring, and I know there’s been talk about a super-group, and it’s really just a matter of scheduling because all three of us are committed to getting together and just making the best music we can make, so I would have to say that that was one the most inspiring and sort of artistically edifying experiences I’ve had in my years as a music product and artist.
AllHipHop.com: Ok. Well, you talked about production and good producers, and I happened to catch you on the radio this past weekend talking about working with Quincy and how you would like to work with Alicia Keys because y’all have similar styles and you both play the piano and that kind of thing, so they’re on your wish list. Who are some other artists out there that you’d love to work with in the future?
Ryan: Well, I hear that Madonna’s working on a new album. So I would love to be a part of that creative process in some early discussions, but yeah, I would love to be a part of her creative process. I think that she’s one of the few remaining artistic institutions, so to speak, I don’t think anyone can really question the impact that she’s had on culture and music in the decades that she’s been in the business. Uh, Prince as well. Stevie Wonder is on my wish list. There’s a record called “Joan of Arc” which really, really…I released on March 16 this year and got some great buzz online and for the album version, I’d love to have Stevie on it if he would be interested, I mean, these are big dreams for me, but I haven’t got to where I am so far in life without dreaming big, so…Stevie Wonder, and then, you know, just a lot of folks that I’ve been in the studio with and just actually haven’t made records that have been released.
So, Usher, Drake, Rick Ross. I’ve been doing some work with…on “Watch the Throne.” But Jay-Z of course, Pharrell, and I think the list goes on and on, Bruno Mars, so many amazing folks out there that are doing music that I would love to just get in the studio and collaborate with, so I think that’s the short list for the time being. But that list is actually much longer so. This is the APB to any artist that’s doing their thing. You could get at me on Twitter or Facebook and I’m sure we could make some beautiful music together.
AllHipHop.com: I have two more questions and the first is to ask what do you have coming up in the immediate future? Where will you be performing or where can people find your music at?
Ryan: Yeah, well I’m actually performing in New York City as part of Apple’s Black Music Month, I’ll be taking over the 14th Street Apple Store on the 15th of June at 8:30 and that’s a free concert so you know, it’s best if everybody comes early on that. And then I have a lot of great events that are coming up and those are New York events. I’m going to be out in London and Paris performing next weekend for those readers that are overseas.
I’m going to do Lollapalooza which is a big festival in Chicago on the 5th of August. And I’ll be doing some summer stage events, just because I always love performing in conjunction with the city for summer stage. I’ll do Harlem summer stage in August and then one of my favorite venues SOV on July 28. That’s really going to be amazing. And for everybody’s that reading in Australia, I’ll be in Australia in the middle of July as well, Sidney and Melbourne. So, I love to perform and this summer is going to really just be kind of a preview for the more robust tour that I’ll be engaging in in the fall in support of the Album “Les is More”.
AllHipHop.com: Ok, great. I wrote a story on Apple’s “Black Music Month” series and I noted that you were going to be there so we’re definitely going to try to come out and catch it.
Ryan: Please, I would love to have you hear the new album live.
AllHipHop.com: There’s a great lineup with that series, too, so there are a lot of good artists to be seen with you amongst the bunch. So last question I have for you is a question we ask of just about all of our interviewees. And that is for you to list your top five rappers, dead or alive, if you can, and I know…almost impossible. So who would you say your top five rappers are, dead or alive?
Ryan: Man, I’d like to say Jay, Kanye, Wayne, Biggie, and I gotta give a newcomer. Let me give a newcomer. I actually like Drake a lot, too.
AllHipHop.com: Ok, and out of that bunch, whose music over the years has made you say “You know what, I gotta grind harder…because that guy is Phenomenal…”
Ryan: I think Jay-Z’s just the bar for everybody, just from an entrepreneurial standpoint…from a consistency standpoint, from an integrity standpoint. I think he just sets the bar for all of us.
AllHipHop.com: Ok. I like that. Ok, Ryan, well did you have anything else that you wanted to add that we didn’t cover. If not, I have all my questions answered.
Ryan: No, no, I think this is good as long as you come back once the album comes back. Then we’ll do a listening session, and I don’t want to lose all my steam with AllHipHop.com, so we’ll keep this interview to this and the next one will really be about hopefully just really digging into the album and the actual tracks and the music!
Pusha-T Announces Release Date For “Fear of God II”
(AllHipHop News) Clipse rapper Pusha-T has announced the official release date for his upcoming album Fear of God II: Let Us Pray, which will be released in partnership with Kanye West’s G.O.O.D. Music imprint.
The rapper’s album, which will be released with G.O.O.D. Music and decon, will feature 12 tracks along with four exclusive videos and behind-the-scenes footage.
The album, which lands in stores November 8th, features guest appearances from Rick Ross, Diddy, Pharrell, 50 Cent, Juicy J, Meek Mill, French Montana, Kanye West, Tyler The Creator, Kevin Cossom and others.
Pusha-T is also slated to hit the road for a tour of Europe this fall.
Fear of God II: Let Us Pray tracklisting is below:
1. Changing Of The Guards ft. Diddy
2. Amen ft. Kanye West and Young Jeezy
3. Trouble On My Mind ft. Tyler, The Creator
4. What Dreams Are Made Of
5. Body Work ft. Juicy J, Meek Mill, and French Montana
6. Everything That Glitters ft. French Montana
7. So Obvious
8. Feeling Myself ft. Kevin Cossom
9. Raid ft. 50 Cent and Pharrell
10. My God
11. I Still Wanna ft. Rick Ross and Ab Liva
12. Alone In Vegas
Musiq Soulchild: Traveling Down the Wise Road
Album after album, Musiq Soulchild never fails to deliver. And with the release of his sixth album, musiqinthemagiq, the world has been reminded that there is quite a bit of “magic in the [music].” His latest release pays homage to the traditional elements of R&B, while incorporating contemporary elements of urban music.
During a promotional campaign for musiqinthemagiq, Music Soulchild managed to squeeze some time out his schedule and settle down for his second interview with AllHipHop.com – reflecting on a decade of recording, stepping outside the R&B box, and embracing fatherhood.
AllHipHop.com: During our last conversation, in promotion of onmyradio, you were in the midst of a move to Atlanta. How have you enjoyed the transition?
Musiq Soulchild: Although I live in Atlanta, I have not spent that much time in the city – especially within the last year. I’ve been all over the place – New York, Atlanta, and I was out in L.A. for a little while. But Atlanta has a real calm pace, which allows me to see things from one perspective, compared to New York, which has a different pace and sense of urgency.
AllHipHop.com: Since you are constantly on the road, traveling and performing, how does that wear and tear on you as an artist? How do you keep yourself grounded?
Musiq Soulchild: Being on the road is a challenging thing. I wouldn’t necessarily say that it always wears and tears on me. But there is some wear and tear. I just don’t wear it like that. Like life itself, anytime you’re up and you’re moving around and you’re doing stuff, it’s going to be taxing on you. I try to relax as much as possible. I try to get as much rest as I can. Whenever I’m out, I try not to stress myself out or allow myself to be stressed out. A lot of people question sometimes about how come I don’t like to go party. Because I don’t really have the energy for all of that after I get done doing what I’m doing. So I just try to maintain myself and stay focused on what’s important. And whenever I can, any time the opportunity allows, I really like to do nothing. If I’m not at home and I’m staying at a hotel, then I just try to go to my hotel and get me something to eat and just chill.
AllHipHop.com: With age comes wisdom. With over a decade of experience in the music industry, do you find it challenging to stay true to your roots while remaining competitive in this current music landscape?
Musiq Soulchild: My whole career has been a mix of very challenging things but also some very inspiring things, as well, and I’m grateful for them; even the things that were a bit of a hassle. You’re not going to like everything about everything, but it do help you to appreciate it all. If everything was all good all the time, you wouldn’t really appreciate it because you would just take it for granted, you would take it as a given. So besides that, I do have those otherwise moments to contrast the good moments. It’s helped me to appreciate the good moments that much more. But overall, the fact that I’m where I am ten years removed and I’ve accomplished the things that I’ve accomplished. I’m nothing less than grateful and honored, even to the fact that people still care about me for my albums; that they still are looking to go get them and spend money on them and still come to the shows and still asking for me; not just recognizing that I’m still here or whatever, but they’re still asking for me. That’s really dope for me.
AllHipHop.com: Your latest project is entitled musiqinthemagiq. Going off of what you just said, I’m going to flip the title around a little bit: “magic in the music.” As a long-time listener of your work, I have always found magic in your music. When you look back at this recording experience, what does this particular album mean to you on a personal level? At this point in your career, do you feel like you have to prove anything?
Musiq Soulchild: I guess it’s just that it gives credit to my credibility. I never felt like I had anything to prove, but I do recognize that because there’s so many people out there doing it and there’s a lot of competition; at least in the beginning, nobody really knew who I was. You’ve got to give people a reason to care. That’s just the basic laws of business. You’ve got to give them a reason to want to invest in what it is that you do. I mean, anybody doesn’t just spend money on anything just because you say so. You might think that you’re dope but the rest of the world is not obligated to, unless you give them a reason to remember that. When you’re consistent in what you do, that generates confidence, with your audience and within yourself. People don’t like that unstable state of mind when they go to invest in something. Is it going to be good? Is it going to be in a way that I like it? When you can reassure them every time you come out that whatever you do they’re going to like it and they’re going to enjoy it; that’s what motivates me as far as that’s concerned.
As far as like the title of the album, you flipping it is actually what I did with that turn of phrase, “magic in the music”. I just flipped it because a lot of people say, “the magic in the music” but nobody’s ever really talked about what that magic is. And I started thinking about that saying and starting thinking about how it would apply to a whole lot of people in a lot of ways and I couldn’t really come up with anything. I mean, I came up with the idea as to why and what it was as far as other people were concerned, but only the person or the people that make the music can really speak on it the best. So when I started thinking about me, I started thinking about: “Well, what is the magic in my music?” And aside from all the other contributing factors like the producers that I’ve worked with, and the writers, and the fans, and the studios; or the time that I made the songs, and the films that I was inspired by; I’ve always given credit to those things throughout my entire career. But I very rarely, if at all, own up to my contribution to what the magic would be in my music. So that’s why the title is musiqinthemagiq. It’s saying that I am the magic that’s in my music.
AllHipHop.com: I appreciate your insight! Throughout your career, you have always made it a point to give people a more realistic perspective about romantic relationships. What elements do you think are the hardest to convey?
Musiq Soulchild: It’s a challenging thing to express to people the fantastic notions that people have as far as how relationships are and how they progress and how they transpire. The challenging thing is helping people to understand that not only do they not always go that way, but they don’t always go however they go for everybody in the same way. And I think a lot of people jump into relationships with a really high sense of entitlement and a really unrealistic sense of expectation, which leads to a lot of disappointment. And there isn’t enough acceptance: not just acceptance of the other person, and not even acceptance of themselves, but more so acceptance of the situation of being whoever they are trying to be with somebody else, if that makes sense to you. I guess a lot of people expect people to respond the same way that they would.
If somebody’s in a relationship and they do things to show that they care and that they love that person, and the other person doesn’t express the same thing, then they automatically just assume that they don’t care. That’s not fair because, especially if you don’t really know that person and especially if that person has their own way of showing how they love and how they care about someone, they will allow that situation to ruin the potential of how much they can progress with that other person. I learned that myself, that just because a person don’t say the same things that you say or do the same things that you do in the way that you say them and in the way that you do them, it doesn’t mean that they don’t care. It just means that they don’t do it that way.
So instead of expecting that person to be you, why don’t you accept that person to be whoever they are and try to get on their page, rather than trying to get them on your page all the time. Because with all of that, you’re going to be by yourself if you’re trying to be with somebody that’s like you all the time. But you’re asking to be with someone else, and you’re asking that someone else to make room for you in their lives. And I don’t think people consider that either, the fact that they’ve got to make room in their lives for somebody else. When stuff starts to get a little uncomfortable, then people want their own space back. It’s like you’ve got to either accept that person and what comes with it or leave that person alone.
AllHipHop.com: Very true. On the album, the song that I gravitated towards the most was “Yes”. When you hear this song, what thoughts immediately come to mind?
Musiq Soulchild: Well, this song was written by Claude Kelly; and when it was submitted to me, I thought it was pretty cool. It reminds me of something that I would say. It’s the same topic that I discussed in the song “Don’t Change”. Two or three years from now, if you ever wonder will I feel the same about you or even if the love that I have for you will last, I’m telling you, yes. Because things naturally change in relationships. People change. But whatever the changes are, if you’re wondering if I’ll still be willing to be there with you and adjust with you and do whatever is necessary to still be with you, then the answer is yes. The whole point is I don’t want you to ever worry about if I’ll still be there. If I told you that I love you, and if I told you that I’m going to be there for you, then that’s my final say. You don’t have to keep asking me and keep guessing. It is what it is. I’m here for you.
AllHipHop.com: Over the years, you have always wanted to showcase more of your talents outside of what we consider the “R&B box”. One of the things a lot of rappers tend to do is come out with mixtape albums that whet the appetite of fans in the midst of recording their formal albums. These mixtapes also allow them to experiment and be flexible in their artistic expression outside of a major studio release. Have you thought about any other outlets or avenues to showcase what we typically see? Or are you facing any difficulties in trying to showcase alternative sides of your artistry?
Musiq Soulchild: Yes, actually. The difficulty is when it comes to R&B or when it comes to singers, at least in the style of music that I make, and really that I make it in musically and professionally, it’s not always a welcome thing for us to do something other than what people know us for. It’s like if you sing ballads, then that’s all people want from you. If you flip the script, then it kind of turns people off – no matter how good it is. They’re just fixed on how they think about you, and that’s all they want from you. And that’s been a huge challenge for me throughout the years. However, you look at somebody like Kanye West. People have been more receptive to change. You can be a beat maker and you can rap on your own sh*t and you can sing your own sh*t. And even with Lil’ Wayne, he went ham on Autotune and just letting everybody know: “I know that I can’t sing, but I can throw some Autotune in that sh*t and you wouldn’t even care.”
People are more willing to allow artists to be more expressive in different ways. And I’ve attempted to give it a shot, and it was definitely met with a lot of opposition because I tried to go about it professionally. I tried to get the label involved and all of that. And they were like: “Look, homie, you already got a brand. Stick to that.” So now I’m thinking about just doing stuff, especially nowadays with all of these outlets. I’ll just do stuff and put it out, not necessarily for profit but just to showcase the fact that I’m capable of doing other things than just what you’ve been exposed to. So definitely keep your eyes and ears open for other stuff other than my doing my label Musiq Soulchild thing. Look forward to me doing other stuff, and in other ways; possibly even under different names.
AllHipHop.com: Well, I definitely look forward to those releases! Since the music industry goes through cycles, a major testament to your longevity is the fact that you have survived in an industry that has not been kind to male R&B artists. If you think about your contemporaries, who were on the scene when you first started, and then look at who have remained active and relevant, why do you think you have been able to accomplish this feat?
Musiq Soulchild: To be honest, I really don’t know. I really don’t know how to answer that question as far as what is it about me that set me apart from everyone else. But I do know how to answer the question as far as what was done for me to accomplish that. Typically that was that I just kept working at that. I maintained my focus on what was important and what was important to me with you guys being entertained by whatever it is that I do. So, I’ve never put out anything that’s just been totally about me, that’s just been like this is what I want to put out 100 percent. It’s always been a collective process that I’ve always incorporated outside influences and people’s opinions and things like that. And I’ve done that on purpose because if I’m going to try to entertain a broad audience of people, then it helps to get information from outside of myself.
I can’t think of everything, and everybody in the world don’t listen to the same stuff or don’t like music for the same reason. I just like to always learn about different ways to get my music out, different ways of expressing myself and different ways of communicating my music to different types of people. I listen to all types of different music. I personally have never been genre-specific, but the industry is in the way that they have these different categories and they sort of demand you to appeal to different demographics. Even with the [critic’s] process, you’re categorized and you’re awarded according to the category that you’re in. Personally, I’ve never looked at music like that. I’ve always looked at it as it’s just the same thing being expressed in different ways, and it all depends on who you’re trying to entertain. So I just try to stay open. I try to stay grounded. I try to stay optimistic and forward thinking. I try to be as innovative as I possibly can. I try to be versatile. I try not to redo and remake the same thing over and over and over and over again.
There’s a certain magic to being persistent, but it’s also a slippery slope because you can be so consistent that people tend to stop caring because they kind of see you coming after a while. I don’t like people to feel like they can see me coming. If anything, I want you to at least know that whatever I put out is going to be quality work, but I don’t want you to always assume, “Oh, he’s just going to put out a ballad and that’s it.” It’s like no, there’s a whole lot more to me than what you’re getting, and I would like to get it to you, but I can’t get it to you if you just expect a certain thing and try to keep me in a box. Outside of that, I don’t know.
I definitely have appreciation and respect for anybody else that I started out with and came out around the same time. But I also know this thing ain’t easy, man. This is a very challenging business for a soul singer, because that’s not necessarily what’s necessary to become successful. You don’t really have to be that passionate. You don’t really have to be that artistically substantial in order to make a hit or to make a name for yourself or to get a check these days. Anything could pop off nowadays. And that’s another thing: the fact that there’s an audience for what I do. I give a lot of my success to the people who supported me, my fans and different people in the industry: different companies, different institutions, different businesses. I’ve gotten a lot of support. I’ve definitely been blessed.
AllHipHop.com: Between the release of onmyradio and musiqinthemagiq, you became a father. After listening to your latest album, I know that fatherhood has not necessarily influenced the content of your music, but I wonder how has fatherhood impacted the day-to-day decisions in your music career.
Musiq Soulchild: Well, simply it just changed because now it’s not just me. Now I have my own personal family to take care of. It’s not like my brothers and my sisters and my mom and my dad who have grown up and take care of themselves and I just look out every now and again. Now it’s about this person who doesn’t know how to take of himself, and his mother and I – we’re his only source of anything. And with a child, not being able to provide is not an option, so it definitely ups the ante as far as how I go after things and how much harder I grind and my lack of tolerance for unnecessary things. I’ve been a very patient and tolerant individual. After I had my son, all of that tolerance went out the door. It’s reserved for him. There is a lot of foolishness that’s going on in this game. I’m sure you probably heard of it before, but a lot of crazy bullsh*t goes on. I used to just recognize it for what it was and kind of give people passes because I don’t really get too much into it. I just find another way and find another way. But now it’s at the point where it’s like I don’t even have time to entertain it. So in that way I would say that’s how fatherhood has changed me.
For more information on Musiq Soulchild, visit his official website and “follow” him via Twitter [@MusiqSoulchild].
Bright Lights For Runway Star
Music Producing runs in the blood of Los Angeles, CA producer Runway Star. As the daughter of Richard West who worked with Deke Richards of the Motown Records producing group The Corporation, Runway Star was practically raised in a recording studio and sure enough she followed in the footsteps of her father. The recent winner of a BMI award for the Cali Swag District hit “Teach Me How To Dougie,” Runway Star is in a rare category in Hip-Hop – a female producer. There are many female rappers and DJ’s but coming across a female producer is pretty rare in Hip-Hop. AllHipHop.com sat down with this young talent to discuss her career and more. Hopefully this will inspire other females to develop their studio skills to do the same.
AllHipHop.com: Congratulations on your BMI Award.
Runway Star: Thank you. It was a fun experience. It was my first time at an event like that. When they brought us (Cali Swag District) on stage to accept our award, the hosts asked us to teach them how to Dougie, but right after that they announced Drake and nobody directed us off of the stage. We were standing up there when Drake came up to get his award. So he came up on stage while we were there and we all felt kind of awkward. But he was real nice about it and even congratulated us for our award.
AllHipHop.com: It was your first event. You live and learn. Did you get any surprised reactions when people found out that you produced the “Teach Me How To Dougie” song?
Runway Star: Yes! People were pretty stoked – especially at the BMI Awards. Kurupt came up to me and expressed total shock. Dawn Richard from Dirty Money was pumped about the whole thing. Kreayshawn tweeted me a shout-out saying that she was totally excited that I’m a female producer. It caused chaos on my Twitter account. I’m getting so many followers.
AllHipHop.com: Has anybody asked to work with you?
Runway Star: Kreayshawn, YG, Dawn Richard and a few others have expressed interest.
AllHipHop.com: I’ve been on the look-out for a female Hip-Hop producer and I’ve never encountered one until now. There has to be more out there but I don’t know of any. Do you?
Runway Star: I honestly can’t name anybody else but I’m sure that there are others out there working. I was just fortunate enough to have a record that went completely out of this world. I’m sure there are other girls out there getting it in.
AllHipHop.com: Why do you think that females haven’t crossed over to the producing side of the business like they have done for the emcee side of it?
Runway Star: I don’t know. I haven’t been able to identify what it could be. I’m stumped on that one. It’s really interesting that you don’t really hear of any females producing. You might hear about Alicia Keys doing a piano part on a track and getting a producers credit but you never hear of anybody going in there and knocking out tracks. I haven’t heard of anybody since Missy Elliott.
I grew up in the studio running around with my dad – learning all of the different gear. Over time I took interest in actually wanting to pursue this as a career. I picked up on different keyboards and learned how to EQ a track.
AllHipHop.com: At what age did you start learning the ins and outs of the studio?
Runway Star: I can remember as far back as five years old. That’s when I received my first Casio keyboard. It would play those cheesy little tunes and I would sit on the floor toying with it.
AllHipHop.com: Your dad must be happy.
Runway Star: My father was happy – even now with all of the stuff that I’m currently doing. He would always call to tell me that he heard “Dougie” on the radio. He would drive me crazy (laughs).
AllHipHop.com: Do you remember the first record that you sampled? Or the first beat that you made?
Runway Star: The first record was Betty Wright’s “I’ll Be The Other Woman.” That was a long time ago. As far as the first beat? That’s a cool question. I can remember way back being in the studio and learning how to work on MPC. I made a little beat to learn the gear but it wasn’t anything special. I made it just to get familiar with the machine. I really can’t remember the first actual beat that I made because I’ve been in the studio tinkering with the equipment forever.
AllHipHop.com: You made the “Teach Me How To Dougie” beat. Most people rock with a high-tempo beat when it comes to a song about a dance. You took a smooth approach.
Runway Star: That was my vibe for that day. I’m a big fan of The Neptunes and they keep things simple. They let the artist build the beat up with the vocals. That was the stance that I had when creating that beat. I used Reasons and Pro-Tools together. For the drums I used the Tom Tom’s and the 808. I just flipped it all together to make it work.
AllHipHop.com: Since then you’ve teamed up with another producer to form a Production group called The Makerz.
Runway Star: I teamed up with Nigel Starr. Nigel is really good with melodies and playing the piano. I can play the piano just a little bit – not the way he can. He’s also an engineer so his ears are as tuned as mine. It made sense for me. Together it just works out amazing.
AllHipHop.com: Why not stay solo?
Runway Star: I just love our effort together. It’s so hard when you have to do things by yourself. It’s so much more fun when you have someone you can work with and share that energy together.
AllHipHop.com: What tracks are you two working on for other artists right now?
Runway Star: Me and Nigel are working on an EP for an artist named Young De. We’re also working with another named Ceekay Jones who just released a new song that we produced called “Gucci Punk” with Taxman from The Kottonmouth Kingz. Nigel and I directed the video for that song also.
AllHipHop.com: That’s right. I read that you went to Film school.
Runway Star: Yep. We did everything for that song – produced it, directed and edited the video.
AllHipHop.com: I understand that you’ve come out from behind the boards and in front of the mic as an artist.
Runway Star: Yes. It’s pretty darn cool and pretty darn scary (laughs). I have a song out called “All Spaced Out.” We are getting ready to shoot the video for that in a couple of weeks.
AllHipHop.com: Was it your plan all along to become an artist?
Runway Star: I honestly just wanted to be a successful female music producer. When you are in the studio, it does cross your mind. You wonder if you can try being an artist. It kind of just parlayed in to that. Growing up though, my mind was just on producing. When I was young, Missy Elliott was the Queen of the world making beats and songs. That’s a whole other side of the world to be the person making that track and not having to be the person performing. That was my train of thought. After time I become comfortable with the idea of taking that step in becoming an artist.
AllHipHop.com: Was it awkward for you being the person that gives direction to the person that takes direction?
Runway Star: It’s definitely easier when you’re telling someone else what to do. But that’s where Nigel and I work together well. We feed off of each other and it’s a comfortable environment. I guess I’m open to the critiquing.
Jim Jones “44 Mag”
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Twista Ft. Mello Tha Guddamann “Tony Montana Freestyle”
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Big Sean “I Keep It G” [Snippet]
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Hip-Hop Rumors: Black Star Returns?! Shakurs to Sue Over Sex Tape! Palin A No Go for 2012!!
Blacksmith vs. Duck Down
If you’re in the NYC area for this year’s CMJ Festival, you might want to catch the Blacksmith vs. Duck Down show on October 22 that will be featuring Jean Grae, Buckshot, Talib Kweli, Smif-N-Wessun, Pharoahe Monch, and more! In the meantime, enjoy this clip of Black Star from The Colbert Report…
The Shakurs Are Ready to Sue Over Sex Tape:
TMZ spoke with a spokesperson for Pac’s estate, who was VERY clear, “We will sue anyone who tries to sell a Tupac tape” The rep insists … only the estate has the power to authorize the use of Tupac’s image for commercial use … and there’s NO WAY the sex tape will ever get the proper approval. We’re told Tupac’s mother, Afeni Shakur, is aware of the tape — and has told her spokesperson, “Get the legal team ready because [we] will not allow someone to put it out.”
Currently, the Shakur estate is trying to single out the person(s) responsible for the marketing of the tape. It is believed that the female featured in the video is behind the sale. For those that don’t know…the tape is said to be from 1991, is 5 minutes long, and features a woman going down on Mr. Shakur. How exciting! Not.
Jay-Z Has Some Words for J. Cole Who Has Some Words For Fans:
“J. Cole’s success is testament to amazing artist development and Cole’s hard work,” Jay-Z said, via press release. “I want to congratulate him on a #1 album, and more importantly, a great body of work.”
Cole World: The Sideline Story is in stores now!
Illseed’s Quickies:
Irv Gotti wants the Def Jam President job. Thoughts?
The Transporter’s Jason Statham will be joining the cast for the next two Fast and Furious sequels which will be filming back-to-back for release in 2013 and 2014.
The theme song for ESPN’s Monday Night Football has been dropped after Hank Williams Jr.’s remarks about Obama and Hitler on a nationally televised news show last week. Williams has since apologized, but uhhh…
America can rest easy for another four years. Sarah Palin WILL NOT be running for President in 2012. Thank God.
Ron Artest Metta World Peace is taking his skills from the NBA to the “Laff Mobb,” a comedy group based out of L.A. His first big show will be on 10/28 at Planet Hollywood in Vegas.
Timbaland Ft. Veronica “Give It A Go”
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