Killah Priest talks new album, Jay Electronica, Kendrick, and more

[Iron_Man]

Jason Nelson: What do you think about the response to the album so far?

Killah Priest: Yo, I’m loving it! I’m just embracing it. You know, it’s a good feeling because it’s like if you put a lot of work in and the people appreciate it, there’s no other feeling better than that.
There’s a lot of cats telling me that it’s a classic already (laughs). You know they just keep hitting me with stuff. It’s so much to absorb right now, and this is just the beginning stages. They haven’t even let the music fully sink in. When they let it sit in and understand the subject matter, then we’ll see. But I’m very pleased.


JN: What made you decide to make it 41 tracks?

KP: It’s just something that I wanted to give to the fans and Hip Hop in general. There’s no set boundaries or laws. It’s music. We make it all the time, so why not just do it. The process of it was that I just wanted to talk about different subjects, different things that I always wanted to talk about. So that was my approach and to make sure the beats, the beats had to be right. I always wanted to do a song with my name, my Christian name, my government name, the name that my mother gave me.


JN: You’ve always had spiritual influences. What are your influences today? You have a song called “Ein Sof.” Do you study Kabbalah?

KP: Like I said, I was dabbling into a lot of stuff. I was getting into different types of atmospheres. And you know I’m always in tune with the Jewish teachings. I just went to the mystical parts, the Kabbalah, yeah I dabbled in Jewish mysticism. I got a lot of that influence in there. A lot of study, a lot of influence came in when I did this album.


JN: What books are you currently reading and which ones would you recommend for your fans?

KP: “The Life Beyond Death” by Yogi Ramacharaka.


JN: What is your view on the current state of Hip Hop? How do you feel about the new generation of rappers like Kendrick Lamar that are bringing lyricism back?

KP: Kendrick Lamar is dope. I respect him. I love it. Lyricism is a part of the art that’s coming back around. Kendrick Lamar, there’s so much to be said about him. There are others out there. It’s music and music is a revolving thing. Now the real stuff is coming back. People are starting to put [effort] into it, and I applaud this generation for even looking into that. Because it’s so much we’ve got to fight against, this soft, iPod ring tone type of style. But I don’t concern myself with those types of issues.


JN: People have compared Jay Electronica to you, saying you’ve influenced his style. Have you ever met him? And how do you feel about the comparison?

KP: I have met Jay Electronica. Jay Electronica is dope. That’s all I can say. I met the brother. We hung out for a little while. He picked me up and showed me a lot of love. I felt that. I take it as a compliment, because, he’s dope. For a dope emcee like that, and for people to compare his style to my style, that [shows] we all work together. So if I can do that, I did my job.


JN: Are there any plans in the works for another “Sunz of Man” album or “Black Market Militia?”

KP: Yeah, definitely. I talked to Razah. He’s doing way better now. There’s no problem man for everybody to sit down. It’s just that everybody’s got to come to the table.


JN: What’s the status of The Horsemen? Is there going to be a reunion at some point?

KP: We’ll see how everything plays itself out. It’s too early to tell. But I know one thing, me and Ras Kass, we’re always together. I had a Horseman joint that I held back on this album because it was a little too much. Not that I didn’t come with 41 joints (laughs). At first it was 40 because it rained 40 days. So like Noah, with 41, I washed away all the wack music that’s out there.


JN: You’re hosting Tha Advocates new mixtape, “Digital Dynasty 24,” and the new song, “The Orange,” was recently released. You seem to be in the studio 24/7?

KP: I got so much stuff. I mean, I put 41 out. Imagine, I didn’t even put everything on the album. We’re about to reign. We’re about to take over for a minute, man. We’re about to do a whole priesthood reign. So it’s going to be like I got another mixtape [project] called “Castle Hop” that’s going to come out. I’m also working on my next album called “Planet of the Gods.”


JN: Are there any Wu-Tang plans in the works?

KP: Me and Ghostface are touring and we throw fresh ideas at each other. We’re working on something that is bound to happen. We’re going to get GZA on it. It’s still too early, but it’s going to be crazy.


JN: Tell me about the book you’re working on.

KP: Man, it’s just going to be my life. It’s like [my version of] “The Psychic World” of Walter Reed. It’s going to be dealing with touring and some real deep stuff. It’s going to be like a Tao, like a Bible of things that I’ve dealt with like scriptures. It’s going to be crazy, it’s going to be esoteric, though, so get your thinking caps on.


JN: Is there anything else you would like to cover?

KP: I have a new video coming out for the song “The Winged People.” They going to say I’m crazy after this (laughs).


JN: Thanks for your time.

KP: Peace.