BROTHER J (X-CLAN)  (September 2006) | Interview By: Zuka

     Dubcnn took some time to speak with X-Clan member Brother J about the groups foundations and what they are all about, we discuss the upcoming album "Return To Mecca," how the death of founder Professor X affected him and those around him, touring with Jurassic 5, working with many westcoast producers on the new album including DJ Quik, Quazedelic and DJ Khalil and much more in this interview.

As ever you can read this exclusive Dubcnn interview and we urge you to leave feedback on our forums or email them to zuka@dubcnn.com.

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Interview was done in September 2006

Brother J Gave dubcnn a shoutout, listen Here

Questions Asked By: Zuka

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“The X-Clan is basically a messenger group and we were based out of Brooklyn. We were part of an organization called the Black Watch Movement and the Black Watch Movement was created for youth to embrace the struggle; I mean to embrace the mission of obtaining freedom, justice and equality for people, for all people. Being based out of Brooklyn, seeing the oppression of black people, we were a black nationalist program because we wanted to see an improvement in our neighbourhoods and where we lived at, so when we put that out there through the music. It wasn't meant to be a separatists situation. It was us representing where we came from and who we are, so X-Clan started from that perspective and people embracing our music understood the universal appeal that we had on every club and hip hop institution throughout the country and throughout the world, so it became from a Brooklyn based situation to a full respected organization worldwide that would gain freedom for our people.”

“We talk about more things than politics. We're not a political group. I'm not here to contest the government solely. My thing is to deal with energy issues, my thing is to deal with the separation of the family, my thing is to deal with internet girls dealing with selling themselves to older men, generations dropping their ground… We're dealing with so many different issues, so I wouldn't see us as a political group. I would see the X-Clan as a messenger group, we are several different things.”

“I don't get into the political arena, that's not my world. This system was built on something that… I haven't even obtained human rights yet. I haven't obtained civil rights yet. Why would I want foreign office? It's not going to put me in a position to get stronger and it's not like people would be in favor. As a messenger I'm seen as a communist, I'm seen as a terrorist. Every time I open my mouth to say we are being oppressed I'm labelled something, so I don't think I will be invited to the political arena.”

“The original X-Clan was myself and Sugar Shaft and Professor X was our manager and our mentor. When the group started to get a little buzz we added 2 members, which were Professor and Architect, so from there we moved forward to announce the second generation of the Clan. Of course he [Professor X] was included, but this time around he was more like a mentor. I would say partial under guidance or counsel of what X-Clan is because everyone in X-Clan now are teachers and mentors. It's more of an eldership circle. I'm just merely the messenger who speaks on behalf of their wisdom, so as we go around the country and we go around to touch people worldwide I have the guidance of people who have been here before me, years before me. I have the people who have been here from the first inception of hip hop and who were teaching me more about the ?? connection to hip hop or teaching me the more indigenous connection to hip hop, more than I knew, more than I thought I knew, so we offer this wisdom and intelligence to our hip hop audience, letting them know that they can come here for other guidance, come here for guidance of people that's been here for 15 years, more so than my 35 and get guidance from that perspective. A person who has been teaching for 30 something years is going to have a different answer than a little homeboy rapper from around the way who's standing with me or somebody who wants to push their demo out and say I'm the next conscious artist. That's the responsibility with conscious music.”


In December last year there was an announcement that the X-Clan would come back with a new album. Three months later Professor X died. The death of Professor X had a big impact on Brother J.

“Of course it was painful, that was my friend. I tell people beyond the music this is someone who has fought with you and opened the door to you to really see a different side of the streets. Him and his father have done a lot for myself and many other people. A general like that is sorely missed especially when we are getting ready to embrace the battlefield. Him and Sugar Shaft. When I'm on Shaft it took me a minute to get regrouped. This is someone who has been DJ'ing for me since I was a high school cat, all the way through my career and then when we going to put out a production project called Dark Sun Riders. He passed in the middle of it, which really didn't let me complete it the way I wanted to and didn't let it finish building that development house for all the young artists that we have right now, so both of those brothers are missed sorely.”


X-Clan & Jurassic 5 have been touring this summer through the States and lately Brother J has made very flattering comments about Chali 2NA of Jurassic 5.

“Jurassic 5 was one of the original groups coming out of southern Los Angeles. They grew up in one of the hip hop institutions out there called the "Good Life" and I'm associated with the house that inherited the lyricists and the artists from the Good Life called the Project Blowed and we've been with them in Los Angeles back in forth between New York for like 8 years now, so I basically met them there and then we continued to talk and dialogue and build and then eventually myself and Chali went into the studio and done a song called "Funky For You" and that was just this year and that song will be on the album and then their manager gave us the opportunity to ?? this year in December, so since that was such a good run successful they would add us on to this tour as well so they linked us back up with 40 cities with Jurassic for Summer 2006 and it's been nothing but excellent. It's been sold out on every date so far, so we're honored to be a part of this. They have been such a conscious group as far as never selling out to the BS. You never heard them make a booty song. They've always been on top of their game staying true to their focus and I appreciate their consistency in the game.”


The new X-Clan album, "Return To Mecca", is slated for an October 31st release. A lot of beats on the album come from West Coast based producers.

“I've always loved funk music from day one. Everybody that has bought our albums will know we're deep into George Clinton and deep into Zapp. I'm just deep into great music. I love music, but I have such a production circle right now that if I wanted to compete with the major corporations I had to have a major sound, so cats like Quazedelic and DJ Khalil who have produced for Snoop and G-Unit and whoever else in the world. I got Jake One to work with most of all of the underground legends and even his stuff is included in a lot of the mainstream of today. DJ Quik came and done a track with me. Ultra Man has been involved with us forever, ACL of Marley Marl's camp… We have so many people that's hitting us with production right now that myself or any of the artists that X-Clan usually produce, I have no fear as far as the production side is concerned, the rest would be up to the consumer.”

“DJ Quik and the X-Clan used to tour together back in the day, so we did a lot of mid-west runs together. He was one of the first cats to have a live band on stage with the turntables, so he was an inspiration from back then, but when our management teams bumped into each other in the same circles it was just overwhelming. As a matter of fact what really did go down before the management got together we did a show in Detroit called the "Hip Hop Legends", which was last year 2005 and it was extraordinary. They had DJ Quik performing, myself, KRS One, Whodini and MC Lyte and that was that night that I was on it, they had two nights, and me and Quik bumped up and he was like "Hey man whatever it takes" and I was like I'm getting ready to finish the album now. No time like the present and he came through and blessed us with a banger and it came out dope. It was called "Brother Brother" on the third album, originally it was named "Verbal Pimping", but for the fact of how the hook went I just called it "Brother Brother" for the time being and it's a banger. I really enjoyed building this project this time. It's really powerful and spiritual.”


The real question for all DJ Quik fans is: Can we expect more music from Brother J and DJ Quik in the future?

“I'm certain. I would say without question. It was something that we couldn't get enough. We made actually two songs in there and we we're going for a third, but both of our schedules had pushed us off to do other things, so I think when we really seriously get down next time we will really do a 4-5 song run. People can expect good things from us.”


The new album will have a positive character. In a press release about the X-Clan album Brother J said that constant negative input leads to negative livings. Brotherhood is one of the subjects "Return To Mecca" is about.

“One of the first things they hear when they first turn on the album is we're talking about how honoured we are to be soldiers at arms, so the one thing they are going to get from us is that there's a deep camaraderie for our brotherhood and sisterhood within our structure. That's the first step that people have to do. You know when you have everybody nowadays going being loners going and everybody coming out as solo artists and things of that nature. There's no unity, there's no sense of unity in a greater percentage of hip hop right now, so that's part of the negative living. I can't even sensibly fit with my family in front of the TV or the radio and hear something that's comfortable for us to listen to. You know we don't want to sit in front of the Disney Channel all day for our kids. This is hip hop, we should be able to sit down with them and explore the different elements and options of hip hop music as a culture and our album is a reminder of what we've not been doing. Let's see what's right under our nose in our own community, so that's something they'll be getting from this project.”

“Support conscious music. Hip hop is too young to be headed to a self destruction at this point. This music is just starting off fresh, it's giving off its legs. We maybe 20-30 years. When you think of other music that really acknowledged their foundations, we've cut ourselves from the jazz foundation and the spiritual drum of becoming disrespectful to each other.”