Krs-One new interview

[Elano]

Class is now in session, kids:  The Teacher is back with his 2008 course. Having over 20 years in the rap game under his belt, numerous classic songs, and a deep commitment to the Hip Hop community, KRS-One is truly a man who needs no introduction.  Currently he has been busy with the ‘re-launch’ of his Stop The Violence Movement, the Koch Records release of Maximum Strength, a collection of unreleased material dating back to 1999, and a new upcoming project with Buckshot to be released on Duck Down Records.

Recently OkayPlayer had the honor of sitting down with the notoriously outspoken legendary emcee to chop it up about various topics ranging from the state of rap music today, the validity of Souljah Boy’s career, the presidential election, the fuel that keeps his Stop the Violence movement afloat, and why at times he feels “sick of adults—like Michael Jackson.”

OKP: With as many years as you have been a part of this Hip Hop culture…how do you feel about rap music’s progression/or deterioration in terms of creativity and quality music?
KRS-One: I think its all innovation. I like some of the new stuff that’s out. I don’t like all of it though. But your self expression is your self expression. I can’t compare one person’s with another. Most of what everyone is doing today still has the traditions and elements of Hip-Hop from earlier years. Souljah Boy responds to the truth of Hip Hop and so does Lil Wayne. Wayne started out with the down south style but is now more and more lending himself to the core of Hip-Hop. Because if you are to be successful in rap music you need credibility with the culture and the community that produces that music. So the younger generation actually gets it. They get it more than we did in the '80s! When I came out with “Self Destruction” in the 80s, radio didn’t want nothing to do with it. BET wouldn’t touch it. It was MTV that played the “Stop the Violence” movement. We don’t have that problem today. Rap City is now fully behinds us as is BET’s Steven Hill who is hard to get support from on anything. So I think times are better. But this is a biased opinion because I’m fed up with adults. Sometimes I feel like Michael Jackson; I don’t even wanna deal with adults.

OKP: [laughs] Why is that?
KRS: They’re too ignorant for me. Children are the smartest people on earth. They get it and they get it quickly. Me, I’m 43. Other 43-year-olds are a waste of time. 30-year-olds are a waste of time. When you wanna talk about peace and love, they don’t get it. They wanna drink and party. All of the lewdness and craziness you see on television is not 20-year-olds and 18-year-olds; they are 30 and 40 and 50-year-olds that are pushing that… and that’s a shame.

OKP: You spoke briefly about the “Stop The Violence” movement that began when you wrote a song in 1988 of the same title. Now, twenty years later, are you disheartened at all by the fact that we’re still dealing with many of the same issues as we were back then?
KRS: No, I’m not disheartened. I’m actually more motivated. Kane killed Abel according to that Book. So if the story is true we’ve been killing each other as long as we can remember. It’s human nature. When we feel threatened that’s our reaction. Nature accepts violence as a way of life. But then this thing called civilization came up and people said “I’m gonna build a wall around this body of land and you won’t come in and kill me me and I won’t kill you”. Human cooperation. Motivation. I’m motivated towards civilization. I don’t see society deteriorating; I see it cleaning itself out. I represent the physical embodiment of Hip-Hop. I am Hip-Hop. Period. My children are getting shot in school. My children are the teachers carrying guns to school to protect themselves. So I need to look and see what I’m doing for the situation. Nah, I don’t get disheartened; I get hyped. ..in fact, I’m getting motivated just talkin’ about it now. It’s fuel for the fire. Now, I’m not looking for disaster- like FEMA tries to create disaster so someone can have a job, but still…. I need cats to say explicitly “We are for peace. Stop the violence.” I need 50 Cent to say that. I don’t need Common to say that. I need Cassidy to say that. I need Fat Joe. I need them cats to say it…and we’re gonna get it.

OKP: On your new album Maximum Strength, on the track “Pick it up,” you school the masses about the illusion of democracy in the U.S as well as the true role of the Electoral College. With your views on this country’s quasi-democracy, do you still even participate in the voting process? Or would you rather vote for neither of the two evils?
KRS: When it comes to voting, remember that you’re speaking with a philosopher. ..So my views may not be suitable for young voters. For the common, average voter, I would vote for Barack Obama. I’m also going to vote for Barack Obama. But I vote so that I can critique. It’s the same reason I buy artists’ albums—so if they’re wack I can say that. But I don’t think that you have the right to critique an artist’s album if you have not purchased it. If I’m gonna critique something I have to give my time to know about it. Same thing with Barack Obama.

OKP: The Vapors movie about the Juice Crew is being worked on as we speak and a lot of people are excited about it….do you worry about being accurately portrayed in the film? Do you think you’ll be slated as “the bad guy?”
KRS: I win either way. It’s a 3-way win. If I’m depicted as the bad guy I win [laughs]. I love playing the bad guy. In fact, I hope they depict me as the bad guy. If they depict me as the good guy, as some kid with a very trivial role in the grand scheme of the Juice Crew movie, then that’s a win for me too. I don’t mind taking the humble role because the Juice Crew was the biggest crew of the day. Marley Marl and Mr. Magic were gods. I Do NOT compare to them in 1986-7. Tony Yayo is supposed to play me and Talib Kweli is supposed to play Scott La Rock. Even if they’re only in the movie for 5 mins then that’s still a win. The third win is the fact that the story of Boogie Down Production and the Juice Crew is a real story with a million witnesses. So they can tell whatever story they’d like [laughs]. They’re dealing with a real story and real witnesses. So if you want the film to be successful then it’s gotta be accurate.

OKP: Later this year you’re releasing a collaboration album with Buck Shot on Duck Down Records. What can we expect from this new project, and how (if at all) will it differ from your past albums?
KRS: This is more different than anything I’ve ever done in my career! We’ve done 13 tracks so far and they’re all hot. 9th Wonder is a beast, and Khrysis is the man...those are just two of our producers so far. I’m really proud of this album. We meet each other 50/50 on this. It’s just dope. We don’t even know if we’re gonna do another album together but I’m honored I can add this to my resume. Yes, I am part of the Duck Down family; I’m not officially signed to Duck Down…that’s important to know because I do have management [laughs] but none-the-less we family all the way. I can’t wait for the KRS/ BuckShot tour so we can really show you what we can do.

[QuietTruth]

 

[QuietTruth]

Tony Yayo is supposed to play me