“Jesus Walks” is a song that is neither my creation nor Kanye West’s creation. It was given to us by the Creator and we were used as a vehicle. So, for me to say “I did this much, he did that much” would be kind of selfish. That’s a song that I’m just glad that I was allowed to be a part of.
Did you guys feel that hip-hop needed a song like that at the time?
I would say that it was necessary because it created balance, you know. I’m not saying it should all be positive, conscious rap, because I see problems with Talib Kweli, Mos Def, Common, etc. But when it comes to commercial radio, there needs to be balance, and then you have a song like “Jesus Walks.” When did someone ever do a commercial rap song like “Jesus Walks” that was still hood? We brought balance to the game.
That was fresh
But I tell you what, it’s a difficult war to wage but I’m fighting.
Hip-Hop's Destructive Mindset
How exactly do you intend to help create change and balance in the game?To create balance as an artist, you first need to get certain statements out of your mindset, like “I wanna get this paper, I wanna get this paper.” That’s one thing that’s destroying artists, that’s destroying hip-hop as a whole. There are two phrases that are killing us as a people, “I’m just trynna get this paper, man” and “You’re a hater.” “You’re a hater” means: “Don’t criticize me for anything I do, I am blissful in my ignorance, and you are a hater!” And, when you say “I’m just trying to get this paper, dawg.” What that means is: “ I don’t care who I hurt to get it, I don’t care what I gotta do, I’m a get rich or die tryin’ (no pun intended).
[Laughter]
But you know, as a saying, “I don’t care I just want money” and that is the biggest syndrome that our culture has ever had. It’s reminiscent of somebody having a mannequin in front of a mirror, and the mannequin has all nice clothes on. And, then you’re like “Oh I like the way those clothes fit” and you go and buy the outfit, and it doesn’t feel right, doesn’t look as good on you. When that mannequin gets broken down, they put the same clothes on a new mannequin. That’s what’s going on in hip-hop; they’re replacing every rapper every year. And I’ll tell you the other side of the fence if you don’t mind.
Sure, go ahead.
We do need to be economically independent, we do need that paper. We do need to stop hating on each other, and I realized…this is why I say I have a problem with Mos Def, Common, and Talib Kweli – we (myself inclusive) go around and preach it but we aint in the hood, we aint in the community. See, the community produced [Young] Jeezy, the community produced 50 [Cent], Lil’ Wayne, etc. The community produced them because of a lack of our presence in being there to represent them.
Do we necessarily have to be in there to represent them? What if we’ve been there and we don’t wanna remain there?
I don’t think you have to stay there but you definitely have to be there. The children don’t relate to Talib Kweli, because they don’t see Kweli like that. I don’t know, I don’t walk in their shoes. Keep in mind, all of this is just my hunch and I could be wrong. Don’t get me wrong, Talib is my boy, Common is my boy, I love these dudes, period. I’m just speculating for the bigger issues, I’m not coming at these dudes. I’m just talking about what I believe to be a cure to people saying that they don’t relate to these artists. I don’t think the reason is the music, I think the reason is the presence. The kids gotta see the presence; it’s gotta be more than “we saw Mos Def in a movie”, more than “he’s a superstar, he comes to the hood and gives away turkey.”
How do you plan on separating yourself from these guys? Do you have any community-based programs? Well, I go around and speak to kids in public schools. I went to a school the other day and it was a class of 25 kids. I asked them what they wanted to be and everyone wanted to be a rapper, a model, or an athlete. I was disgusted, because I know that they have a better chance of being successful as a scientist, a doctor, or a lawyer.
They don’t see the options
They don’t see the options, and I had to question myself and my career. But, then I looked at it and said, ‘Wait a minute, I co-wrote “Jesus Walks” so I deserve to be here.’ But a lot of kids don’t deserve it, they know they can’t rap, they know they can’t sing but they convince themselves that they can so that they can still make money.
What’s it going to take to change those perceptions?
It’s going to take death, fighting, a few victories for the good side, anger, crying, and overcoming the number one killer of our people – fear. I have a mix tape coming out on mixunit.com called Plugg City, and it represents the unification of the Midwest. It features Q-Tip, Talib, Mos Def, I’ve got a lot of Chicago artists on there, a lot of Kanye.
