Talib Kweli Greene better known as Talib Kweli is one of the unsung lyricists on planet earth. Born to professor parents (father is a Sociology professor while mother is an English language professor), on October, 3, 1975 in Brooklyn, New York, Talib grabbed ears professionally in 1997 when he made an appearance on DOOM, an album by Cincinnati based group MOOD (Main Flow, Donte and Jahson). He thereafter hooked up with DJ Hi-Tek and the two worked on a few productions that only created buzzes underground. He re-united with Mos Def and together with DJ Hi-Tek, released the ‘Black Star’ album in 1998. The album was immediately hailed by critics because of its afrocentric Hip Hop theme and consciousness. A graduate of Experimental Theater from the New York University, Talib Kweli has to his credit, six critically acclaimed albums (Black Star: 1998, Train of Thought: 2000, Quality: 2002, The Beautiful Struggle: 2004, Liberation: 2006 and Eardrum: 2007) even though much of his works have recorded meek sales. Despite that however, Talib Kweli remains one of the eminent poster boys of Hip Hop. And when he made his way to Nigeria, it was imperative we got him to speak exclusively to us…
Interview By Ayo Animashaun and Olubunmi Amosu
Pictures: James Silas
HHW: So how is Blacksmith Music doing?
TALIB: It’s good, you should do an interview with Cory Smith too, that’s my partner in Blacksmith. Cory is the one who came up with the idea for us to come here to Nigeria.
HHW: So how has the experience been?
TALIB: He (Cory) has been here once…
HHW: No, I mean with you?
TALIB: It’s been incredible. I’ve been to Africa before but this is the Africa… Not to be too stereotypical, this is the Africa that I wanted to come because it seems like this is where the real people are. The real people, you know. I’ve been to South Africa and I met plenty of real people down there but it wasn’t as nearly as concentrated as this. I am from New York City which is a concentrated city, so I really relate to this.
HHW: How is your latest album, Eardrum doing?
TALIB: It’s good. The best part of Eardrum was putting it out on Blacksmith and having my own… and being an independent artiste but of course there is a distribution deal with Warner Brothers but the moves you see us make and the marketing and the promotion of this album and the creation of this album is from Blacksmith and so we have a lot more to gain but also a lot more to lose.
HHW: In all of these years you have been in rap music, you have continued to maintain a low profile, how is that?
TALIB: I think it is part of my personality and how I was raised. I was raised to move quietly and to fill in the blanks. I see what the situation is and I fill in that blank and I think that’s the best way for me to be according to my personality.
HHW: When you look at rap music today, will you go with those who say it has lost substance?
TALIB: I will dare to say it’s been like that throughout history. Throughout history there has always been a popular artiste who makes you wanna dance and wave your hands and there has always been the more underground artiste who wants to give you something more thought-provoking. That will change overtime and one artiste is necessary to the other to succeed and drive.
HHW: From your debut album to Eardrum, what has changed about Talib?
TALIB: I have more experience, more resources and I’m clear on what my mission and vision are.
HHW: Sure you must have met some Nigeria rappers, have they been able to make any impression on you?
TALIB: I met two or three talented rappers. Modenine is the only name I remember, Elajoe and there is somebody else I met but I remember (Modenine) that name because I saw his video and met him later on that day. He wasn’t the only talented rapper I met, I met a few.
HHW: So are you thinking of doing a collabo with any Nigerian act?
TALIB: I mean I’m still new and fresh to the area. I’m excited to be meeting like-minded artiste and I’m sure that collaboration will come out of this.
HHW: That means you will return to Nigeria to do that yeah?
TALIB: I would love to.
HHW: Why did you choose to come and shoot the music video of ‘Hostile Gospel Part 1’ in Nigeria?
TALIB: Our idea was to shoot a video in Africa. Cory had an experience and a connection in Nigeria and especially with Femi and Yeni Kuti who allowed us to come to the shrine (The New Afrika Shine) and film which is a beautiful thing. I mean, my son is named Fela. I know where Fela has taken African music, him talking about the government, the politics. It don’t get better then that for me. Artistes like Fela, James Brown, Marvin Gaye touch me in a way that certain artiste don’t touch me.
HHW: Some Nigerian artistes are battling between keeping it real and doing it with local feel? What do you think?
TALIB: I’ve met Modenine and as a rapper he is very good. During our freestyle session, he had very good metaphors. He expressed this to me that he wasn’t born here and he don’t speak the local language, he told me this, I didn’t know that had an advantage. He said, ‘I don’t speak the language as well as I will like to and so when I make music sometimes it’s hard for me to know exactly how to approach it or how to make a song but I want the people to love me and at the same time I want them to appreciate how I come at it.’ I think there is room for everybody and he said that’s the reason he made ‘Nigerian Girls’ because he wanted to relate to people even though he wasn’t good at speaking the language. I think that’s a beautiful thing. I also think it’s beautiful to maintain your own culture, you need both. One of my favorite artistes in the world is Nelly. I love Nelly, but I don’t own none of Nelly’s album but I love Nelly as an artiste because of what he does in the mainstream culture, the type of music he makes. Nelly can do a mainstream Pop-Rap and create business for the industry where a whole bunch of people are checking for rap. When Nelly made ‘It’s Getting Hot In Here’ that was a great, great day for Hip Hop because that song took over Hip Hop all over the world. That song was all over the world helping more people up in Hip Hop. Now, I can be Talib Kweli, I don’t have to make up a big name. Because of people like Puffy (Diddy), Nelly, the mainstream artistes, they made Hip Hop so big but I can exist in it and get my message across because now they open up ears and the people might want something more of substance if they come to check Talib Kweli. So maybe Modenine can blow up on mainstream and open people’s ears up and they come and check for the other views that we can all exist.
HHW: It’s great to know you, Common, Nas, Kanye are bringing the Hip Hop we used to know back in the face of flamboyancy, blings and big bucks, how about that?
TALIB: It makes me feel good but from my perspective it ain’t going anywhere from my perspective and with everybody focused on all that stuff. I’m still traveling the world doing beautiful Hip Hop music. So, to me it’s never going nowhere (anywhere) but people come in and out of paying attention. But I live a full Hip Hop life so I see the beauty in Hip Hop everyday. I don’t have to turn on the radio or a video to see it cos I live it and a lot of people don’t get the opportunity to live it so they get frustrated because they don’t see it everyday, they don’t know where it’s coming from so they think that it’s gone or it’s dead but it’s not.
HHW: The Don Imus saga has also suddenly raised black-consciousness in the U.S, is America receding to the bad days?
TALIB: I’m from New York City, so it’s Don Imus this and it’s not Don Imus that. It’s not something big. It’s just some type of bullsh*t that’s been going on for 40 years. It’s nothing new what he does. It’s foolish to think that Don Imus could be influenced by Hip Hop when he’s a journalist who has been doing this for years. The reason why his commerce is different from the commerce of an artiste is because he claims to be something more than an artiste, he claims to be something more than a comedian, he claims to be a journalist because he has politicians and people coming over to his shows. When you accept that level of responsibility, you can’t just make random comments about an artiste or an entertainer because you are bringing information to the audience. It might be funny but you’re involved in educating people and when you’re involved in educating people you have to be more responsible with the comment you make.
HHW: And the Jena 6 saga?
TALIB: Now because of the internet we have more information but that stuff never went anyway. Things like that happens everyday in the South of America. It’s just somehow, somebody was quick enough to get it on the internet and expose it worldwide and it became a phenomenon. But it’s not an isolated incident. Those types of things happen all the time.
HHW: I have followed you over the years and respect you a lot, a lot of people have come to the game for the fame, guns, women, drugs. How come the whole essence of the culture has been watered down and everyone is just trying to make money. The knowledge and social consciousness is no longer there, how do we get back on track?
TALIB: The most important thing is not one against the other. We need both and
Will.I.Am from the Black Eyed Peas is somebody I learnt from because I’m not a fan of capitalism at all but I am a fan of making money because I need to feed my family first of all and we need money to fund things. We don’t have to depend on Shell to fund (Shell/MTV Base Making The Video) this to have the money but we have to. So how do we not depend on this big corporation because that’s what it becomes? We have to create it ourselves; we have to create capital and financial gains ourselves. When I first came into the game, I didn’t care about any of that, I didn’t care about the money, my platform thing, I didn’t care about any of it because I just wanted you to think I was nice, I just want you to think I was the best rapper. And when I started achieving people said oh! He is a good lyricist and it became like, okay do I wanna do this as a career, yeah! And how do I maintain my career, I have to take control of my thing but I had no interest in running a record company but I had to start Blacksmith so that I can do the kind of music I wanted to do. I learnt from people like Dead Prez, Boots from The Crew and Michael Franti. These are people who put the activism into people ahead of the music. I learnt from them and I learnt from 50 Cents and Kanye and everybody else who deals with the business aspect of it. When you juxtapose, that’s the way you move forward but if we… it’s never gonna work.
HHW: Eardrum is tight, what’s the sales figure like now?
TALIB: It’s doing well. I mean, it’s doing well. The whole industry is doing badly and poorly. How’s the whole industry doing? It’s doing very well.
HHW: What do you hope to gain from doing something with an artiste like Uchie that is not American, how does it feel, what is it going to achieve for you?
TALIB: It’s a feeling thing. For me, the biggest mistake anybody can make is to limit themselves to their own region. If I make connections with artiste all over the world, it enhances who I am as a person and it enhances my business all over the world. That’s just the selfish aspect of it, I mean creating music that everyone is passionate about is just one of the perks I’m doing this.
HHW: What fond memories of your stay will you take back to the US?
TALIB: The traffic (laugh) and the love of the people, the positive energy in this room and meeting people, up and coming artistes. I went to the (Afrika Shrine) shrine last night where I hung out with Femi Kuti and Yeni for hours it’s a great thing for me. I am surprised about how proud the people are.
HHW: What words do you have for budding rappers?
TALIB: Just pay attention, our job is to be the voice of the struggle. If you pay attention to the struggle, you could add your voices correctly.
QUOTE
“Because of people like Puffy (Diddy), Nelly, the mainstream artistes, they made Hip Hop so big but I can exist in it and get my message across because now they open up ears and the people might want something more of substance if they come to check Talib Kweli”.
