Music
I grew up in a musical household, my Father, amongst many other things is a musician himself. Not only did he play instruments both around the house and onstage, he also very much enjoyed listening to music and having it play throughout the house. I remember my brother and I making our own rock lyrics and performing them for my Dad and Uncle when we were kids, by the time I was in middle school I had written my first “rap”. Shakespeare once wrote “if music be the food of love play on”. If you ask me the character Duke Orsino was spot on. Music has always been able to take a feeling or concept and portray it through sound. The only thing I love more than listening to music is creating it.
Music Manifesto
The foundational aim of music should be to move the listener. The genre, culture, and setting will probably determine what that movement will look like, that be internally, externally, or a mixture of both.
When it comes to many modern western genres the artists are in a unique position. The audience is listening for the instruments, the voice, and also the lyrics to resonate with them. However, when it comes to hip-hop I believe we have a specific responsibility to keep the integrity of the poetry alive. Hip-Hop is not only one of the many voices of the poor; but it has become the theme song for the Black person in the west (next to r&b), with the youth associating their relationship to hip-hop and it’s artists as one of the cornerstone's of their identity. This multiplies the importance of the lyricist staying true, and poses the opportunity to use the genre as a vehicle to educate and improve the mindset of the Black adolescent. Therefore improving their quality of life. That being said, I believe as hip-hop artist we must tell the truth and deeply embed wisdom and health into the music we are creating.
