Karriem Riggins: True Virtuoso

[Elano]

When an artist has the ability to make music that crosses made up categories and genres of music he or she is exactly that, an artist. Producer, Drummer, beatmaker and quiet as kept emcee Karriem Riggins has ironically lived everywhere except the South which explains his musical diversity. He currently resides in the sunny and inspirational City of Angels (Los Angeles) via the Motor City and the Big Apple. At an early age he played with the likes of Donald Byrd, Oscar Peterson, and has transcended his music and in addition has created time travelling rhythms with the Common who he has created an upcoming EP with and worked on the Smoking Aces Soundtrack, Erykah Badu, Talib Kweli, the late Jay Dee aka J Dilla, Consequence and Madlib who he’s working on an album with which as of now has been dubbed the Supreme Team which will be released off of Stones Throw Records. He’s also worked with Kanye West on the Mission Impossible Soundtrack and countless other musicians that if you never check the liner notes you may pass on and never hear or realize who Karriem or “Riem” as he is referred to is. A true virtuoso who considers himself a student at all times while walking on the shoulders of greats like late Max Roach, has created an avenue in which he can clearly walk to his own drum.

Scheme: We lost a great artist and drummer in Max Roach, what did his craft and music mean to you growing up and throughout your career?

Karriem Riggins: He’s one of the innovators of be-bop and drumming and he took it to another level. I listened to a lot of his records that he did with Clifford Brown, they did a lot of albums together and he was very influential on my drumming and my whole perspective on music because I studied be-bop at a young age.

Scheme: What are some your favorite pieces whether solo or in a group of Max Roach that you still play to this day?

Karriem Riggins: My favorite is live at the Bee Hive (Clifford Brown & Max Roach) Live at the Bee Hive.

Scheme: What was it like growing up in a family full of musicians? In addition what was your relationship like with your father outside of the studio and how important was that to you as an artist and as a individual?

Karriem Riggins: I learned so much from him about being dedicated when it came to practicing. I was always taught that practice makes perfect and he really put in so much time on his instrument and studied harmony so I had to do my research at a young age. He never forced me but he left the door open if I had any questions, he provided different opportunities for me to go listen to music. He basically taught me about being dedicated to the instrument and respecting the instrument.

Scheme: What was it like at a young age playing with greats like Donald Byrd and the Ray Brown Trio and what did you take away from them respectively and what crazy stories do you remember?

Karriem Riggins: One of my first recordings was with Ray Brown, Oscar Peterson and Milt Jacskson, and I did it live at the Blue Note, and I was so nervous that when I left the hotel I left my cymbals and I look at the drums and there’s no cymbals! They were like we have to go on stage in 10 minutes and my hotel was 10 minutes away. So I didn’t say a word and darted back to the hotel, got my cymbals and made it back just in time as they were walking on stage. It all worked out and it was a memorable night and a memorable recording.

Scheme: What life long lessons did you learn from these people that you still keep with you to this day?

Karriem Riggins: Live everyday to the fullest, a lot of those older cats played with so much finesse, and finesse with life and were really chill and everyday was thought out.

Scheme: What was the transition like for you to come straight from school to be thrown right in the middle of the music and perform in your adolecscent years?

Karriem Riggins: When I left high school I joined the Betty Carter Jazz Ahead and that was a school in a sense. I still feel like I’m in school now, playing on stage I learn something every night so I feel like we add on everyday.

Scheme: We have to talk about it, when did you first meet Jay Dee and how did that come about?

Karriem Riggins: It was in 1996 and I met Common and he was working on One Day It’ll all Make Sense and Q-Tip was telling him about Jay Dee, that he needed to go to Detroit and work with Jay Dee and at the time I was living in Detroit so when Common came into town he was like come over to this producer’s crib and check some of his beats. So I went in his basement and he blew my mind with beat after beat after beat. Then we just hooked up and he started booking sessions when he was working on Fantastic Volume II and I came in and played drums on a few of the tracks.

Scheme: I assume jazz was your first love, when did you get introduced to hip hop and when did you realize it was as cool as jazz and what artist(s) did it for you?

Karriem Riggins: When I was 10 years old (lol) I was listening to UTFO. I heard the Fat Boys Stick’em and that was one of the hardest tracks I heard during the eighties. I started making beats in middle school around 7th grade. I just kept at it and learned new rhythms on the drums and kept growing.

Scheme: As opposed to any other instrument what made you gravitate toward the drum?

Karriem Riggins: I just feel rhythm so deep in my heart. I love the bass and piano as well but I gravitate towards rhythm and love percussion in different tones.

Scheme: I’ve witnessed Questlove perform and for lack of a better word I’ve seen him just spazz out! Do you ever realize when you’re caught in the moment and just lose it and what is that feeling like?

Karriem Riggins: It’s like meditation, whenever I get on stage it’s meditation. Music is so deep as a drummer because you have to mentally keep the time and also create something new that people can really vibe to and it’s not the same thing every time, so its like a mediation for me every time I perform.

Scheme: What is the process like for you when it comes to creating a sound from the record store all the way to the beat machine, drums and piano?

Karriem Riggins: There’s really no process for me truthfully. When I go to the record store I don’t know a lot of names so when I go to the record store I pick them based on the cover because usually, if the cover is really artistic the music is as well. So with that being said I listen to a lot of records just gambling really. It’s really just creating from scratch, I may start with the drums first, I may start with the sample first and then just bring them together.

Scheme: For me when it comes to jazz I still find myself listening to Monk, Davis, Coltrane (John and Alice) and Sun-Ra, but I don’t find myself gravitating towards the contemporary jazz. Now some, not all sounds like that elevator, restaurant music and that’s no disrespect to it, but do you feel that some type of authenticity has been pulled away from the art of jazz?

Karriem Riggins: I feel like in every genre there’s something pulling away from it. There are a lot of real artists that are still creating stuff that’s very innovative, but I don’t think they’re getting the type of respect to push their stuff out further. There’s Nicolas Payton, Roy Hargrove, they’re a lot of brothers still doing that traditional jazz. You have to really dig for them like we have to dig for the hit records back in the day.

Scheme: Do drummers have particular styles? In other words what would Karriem Riggins label himself as a drummer?

Karriem Riggins: A virtuoso, because I play a lot of funk, brazilian, afro-cuban and I feel like every genre I can touch on. If I get a call to play with Sting tomorrow I can do that gig, Diane Krall or the Roots. So I try to make sure that I can stay versatile.

Scheme: How do you feel technology helps or hurts jazz, we’ll get into hip hop later.

Karriem Riggins: I feel like we should utilize the technology but I don’t feel like people should be lazy and instead of playing a whole song and just loop it up for four bars. I feel like it needs to be utilize in a better way.

Scheme: You went from Detroit to New York to California. What caused you to go from the New York all the way to the west coast?

Karriem Riggins: At the time when I moved to New York in 93, 94 it was really popping for Jazz, it was really the Mecca. That was really me going to NY and going to learn from a lot of the greats growing up. Roy Haynes, Kenny Washington and others were playing in New York so I could just check them right around the corner. I did that four four years and then I felt like I was touring so much I was paying a lot of money on rent so I moved my stuff to Detroit and then it slowed down when I started doing a lot of production. I was on tour with Common and we were in L.A. and we were driving around and I just decided I wanted to live here so I got a crib there while I was on tour.

Scheme: If you stayed in New York and hadn’t made the move to L.A. do you think your sound would have been any different?

Karriem Riggins: Nah I don’t think so. It slowed down a lot in New York too. I may not have been as inspired if I didn’t move out here. I link up with a lot of brothers out here that are inspirational. Like Kanye will call me and say come to the studio tomorrow and lets work. There’s a lot of jazz cats that come and play here so its very inspirational.

Scheme: On your myspace page you have God is Love…

Karriem Riggins: Everything we do is from God, when you hear a gospel song sometimes and people feel it. There are certain cords and harmonies that can make you feel a certain way and that’s definitely from God.

Scheme: What’s that like when you’re in the studio with a Kanye, Bilal, Common, or Madlib who think outside the box and the next box for that matter?

Karriem Riggins: It’s a blessing, when I work with Common we’re definitely working for a better cause. We did a lot of interludes with James Poyser on Finding Forever and Common are creating an EP because we made so much music during that time. So this music definitely touches souls, saves lives and heals through God.

Scheme: Recently there was a big “to do” at Virginia Tech campus concerning Nas performing. They labeled him a gangsta rapper and we all know Nas is not a gangsta rapper. Do you ever fear people will misinterpret what Karriem Riggins purpose is?

Karriem Riggins: I think some people can really judge a person from what they say. I feel like as a rapper you need to watch your words because you’re touching millions of people and people can judge you from your whole career based on that. So I just watch what I say and watch the people I’m around, I can’t control the rest.

Scheme: Lets talk about Karriem Riggins behind the mic.

Karriem Riggins: Yessurr (laughs)!

Scheme: The joint you did with Madlib is crazy!!!

Karriem Riggins: That’s one of the first songs we did together.

Scheme: How long have you been emceeing and were you at any point intimidated by it ?

Karriem Riggins: I do so much it’s kind of hard to stay on one thing because I’m always doing everything. Common would be working on his album and I would come up with a chant or something, recently I started writing to whatever beat that inspires me and I got a lot of rhymes man (laughs). I met up with Madlib and he gave me 7 beat cd’s with 50 beats on each. So we decided to do that album together and we have five albums in the can. We have five jazz albums and we’re trying to finish the Supreme Team album. Madlib and I actually have a jazz group call the Jahari Masamba Unit and it’s coming out on Stones Throw.

Scheme: Which is a good segway because on the Volta Por Cima joint you have with Madlib you say, “Label better PUSH…no floppin it.” How did Stones Throw come about and what is your relationship with Peanut Butter Wolf and the label?

Karriem Riggins: I love those brothers. I feel like they are pushing good music out to the world. There’s not a lot of labels that would sign acts like Madlib. For them to put out jazz, hip hop, and beat albums is dope!!! There’s no other label that does stuff like that.

Scheme: What’s it like to be immersed in jazz just as much as hip hop which automatically makes you the middle man, whats that like being in those two worlds at the same time?

Karriem Riggins: If I looked at it like that I would get confused (laughs). Its all really relative to me. Its all in rhythm and feeling, basically hip hop is very simple but you have to keep it in the context so its not so over there heads. A lot of people won’t understand Dilla’s beats.

Scheme: How has the relationship been with your son and seeing him grow with you through the music. I would imagine he’s as much of an inspiration as the people you work with?

Karriem Riggins: It’s a blessing being around him, he’s been my fuel since he was born. It’ll be a year November 27th. It’s hard when your touring a lot but I try to be around him as much as possible. I make sure I see him everyday or a few times a week.

Scheme: If you could critique yourself what would you say?

Karriem Riggins: I have a lot of work to do.