The Breakfast ClubINTERVIEW: Common & Pete Rock On Respect For Hip Hop, LL Cool J, Kendrick, Jennifer Hudson, New Album + More
Wake that ass up in the morning.
The Breakfast Club.
Morning everybody, it's the j Envy, just hilarious, Charlamagne the guy. We are the Breakfast Club. We got some special legends in the building. Yes, and we got the brother Common and the brother Pete Rock. Well, I'm feeling, man, this is breakfast.
This is a beautiful day man for us to like have a new album and just be together creating music.
Man, I ain't gonna front. I was last night.
I was just like taking things in like, man, it's spent some years of making music, ups and downs, and to be here like just releasing new music and the fact that some people niggas see me on the street, like yo, when that new pet Rock joint coming out of that, I ain't had that in a long time. So I ain't gonna front. I'm feeling like just blessing on a high, man, just a spiritual high.
You be on the street, and this is how hip hop is. If you try to battle Common in anything on the street, it don't matter if it's dancing, if it's rapping, if it's graffiti. He is to the four.
And he participated, He participated in a don't matter.
He is spending on his back, like I know it's back hurt.
After that, Yo, my team be tripping because we was in the prison. Man.
We was, you know, doing some prison work, and this girl wanted to battle me and break dancing. And the girl was like, Yo, she could break dance. She's gonna get you. I was like, okay, So she started doing her little poplocking.
Man. I went down and there some windmill.
It was like it was like, you ain't gonna let the girl in prison be too, and I'm a competitor.
The new album is The Auditorium of All One, produced entirely by by Pete rop Up. Why why is King s theter to cover for this project?
Man?
We wanted to once we got the title the Auditorium, we wanted a dope a dope theater and a dope auditory. We heard about different ones and I looked at king Theatre. Somebody from my team sent sent it to me Nicole, and I was like, Yo, that's it. And I was like, man, are they gonna fit it within the budget? And for a second I called I called my my agent, Mary who books my shows, and I was like, yo, can you help us to get King's Theatre She was like, I'm going there, Tom, I'm gonna get it.
I'm gonna get it. I talked to them and then I went up there. Yo.
I went up there on my own, just went knocked on the door like hey, y'all, you know, we want to shoot a cover.
Me and Pete Rock and the dude.
The security let me in and was like talking to the person like, yo, comment is right here, asking me could I get So it ended up yo, charlam Mane. It ended up being like, man, this was divine order because you know when we was taking those pictures and it said King Theater, I was like, this is dope and this you know, they've had like a lot of historic it's in Brooklyn, they had a lot of historic performances and Diana Ross reopened that spot and actually your failure wife was lived around that area, so it was a lot of tie ins and even just shooting the cover, Pete and I was like, man, we ain't shot an album cover in a minute where you're going through that experience of taking shots and just you know, it was it was dope, man, so so so salute to the King the Yeah.
So how did you get back together? Hey, how do y'all decide to do what album? What was that conversation, like, what do y'all meet your world's meeting and say, let's do this.
We've been wanting to do it since, you know. We did the ice Cube joint and then we did the Sol Survivor album for Loud when I was signed Loud and he wrapped on the joint with Nori and Pun. But I'm skipping a whole bunch. But we met in nineteen ninety right.
Somewhere around the night because I ain't come out to ninety two, so around then in the early nineties, and.
That's when I, you know, start traveling, moving around doing promo tours. Somehow we linked up when we met and I ate his mom's cooking because he brought me to his crib, and you know, it was it was history from there.
Brow did you ever catch any static for producing?
Not really, not really, but you know, yo, but Pete was one of the at the time. He was really one of the only producers that was open to doing it. Even even my great brother know I Di didn't want to get involved just because you know, it just was a lot of a lot going on. So man, Pete was like I've been saying that rhyme out for a minute and Pete and I reached out to Pete and he was like, he took me out to Mount Vernon and he said it was me in black thoughts. He said, I was heated at the time, but you know, but then.
You answered the question turned to calm him down, like you know what I'm saying.
Yeah, yeah, I was.
I mean, but I was. I was in the state where I just wanted to man. I was like, damn, man, I got this like this much. I was ready to get get back at it and uh, get back at Q but uh, you know, it's all love now, so I ain't. I ain't dwelling too deep into it, but I say that, man, he gave me that beat and I was like, Yo, this beating, this is this is what I need for this song. And that was the first joint we ever did. Just went made it in Robbo's basement, his guy's basement. I was like, man, this dude, he came through for me. We've been brothers ever since. And this came about because man, it was a lot like last year, I really like understood how important hip hop is and how like valuable people still like how much people still value it like that. I think it was going to like all the hip hop celebrations like going like this the fiftieth year. I remember being in a Yankee Stadium and I performed at that show. It was NAS and Lauryn Hill, E PMD, run DMC, Man, Mob Deep, BT Joe like it was. I stood in the crowd for like five hours. I never did that at a show, stood in the crowd and just watched. And I was like, man, and saw like the Yankee Stadium going crazy over all these songs, everybody from Ice Q to Mob Deep to Little Kim, and we always enjoying it.
And it made me it just it reaffirmed that, man, this this music is still valuable to people.
And I was like, damn, you know people are paying attention to the lyrics even more, like because I've done certain I've done.
Music and people don't even know I put the music out.
But when I get on to do a freestyle of SOMETHINGE my homies hitting me up about Yo, you heard Jay Cole on this, or you heard you know like or you know of course the battle with Kendrick and Drake. They like, YO, listen to these lyrics. To me, it just felt like it feels like hip hop is alive in a new way right now.
So like I'd always wanted to connect with Pete, I didn't know it would be a whole project. I said, Yo, let's see what's up?
You do? You knew?
How did you know? Pete?
Because I was like, nah, we're doing that, yeah, straight up, Boguard Bully like yo, yeah, I.
Mean but he delivered on the.
Your production is so stellar and it's still soul stella, And I was wondering, you have these beats in the stash or did you make these purposely for common in this past.
I had some in the stash and maybe made some recently, but they were all done. And then you know, I just took a whole bunch and start sending it to him. Well he came to the crib for us. Yeah, and then you know, he sat down and I started playing beans. He was like, yep, yep, yep, that one, that one. Yeah, but he also was sending it. But you also was sending me records too like that.
And that's a process that you know, I haven't been a part of in a minute where where like I'm sitting down and the producers like got the record and he finding us what.
He's about to sample for me.
Pete was sending these these records and I was like, yo, yo, that's it right there, you know, like loop that and and to be a part of that process, it's like a creative thing. I feel like that's how you can come with a sound. And it was even bigger than just us like just making music to be hones. As soon as I got the piece crib, we started talking about life, you know, and that and that, and that's something that's like in the in the process of being artists and creating together. It's like you need to be able to like be connect as human beings like and like man, we were talking about therapy, life, you know, children, and it was just like, man, I'm in that. You sometimes you just know when you're in the right place.
You know, it's energy. Energy.
Energy is like and that got intuition is one of the most like underrated things. And I was like, as soon as I was at this crib, I was like, Okay, we're gonna do an album like and and I felt like we both.
Would put our heart and souls into it.
And I was noticing that his sound was fresh, it wasn't liked.
No, I just took what we did from back in the day and just kind of mixed it in with what's going on today, you know, and we want to we want to rock with the young.
I was going to ask, you know, the celebration last year, of the fiftieth celebration, it seemed like it made people respect hip hop again, and not just the newer artist the older artists. Well, because I'm seeing a lot of the ogi's back on tour and I'm seeing this show sold out, people, have you guys with.
This that bro I was.
I was on that LL Force tour with the Roots for a second, and I did different cities.
Cleveland, Chicago, Detroit.
I'm like, Yo, it's people here like coming in their outfits, like celebrating this music and El's doing like songs that ain't even hit, like hits from his album like one nine hundred l and people rocking to it. Us shit was dope, and that like all that was. I agree that we celebrated the culture. And what made me feel good was like we celebrated ourselves. We ain't have to like wait for it, wait for somebody else to determine what this was. It was like, man, we celebrating ourselves, and it just to me, we ain't know when we were Like when I first started rhyming, I ain't know, like, damn, man, could I could be rhyming? I'm fifty two years old, you know, I'm rhyming like and I'm still and I still feel the love of what is that I have for this culture? And I didn't know when I was nineteen rapping. I'm like I was thinking, like by the time I'm thirty, man, I might not be able to do this right. We just didn't have any blueprints of people who had evolved and grown in the in the industry to be able to find out how to exist and in so many genres of music, they do it right. Like I mean, I'm a I'm a big jazz head and it's a it's a jazz drummer named Roy Haynes.
It plays in his.
Nineties, you know, and I want to I feel like we now feel believe that hip hop can you can be however old and just creating if the music is good, young, old, I mean, just create great music.
I had a discussion with LL recently and he said he had to learn how to rap again, so so common. Do you ever feel like that we're rapping, Pete. Do you ever feel like that with production?
Yep, I feel like that. Well, I'm always at it, but you know there's times where I'm you know, I don't want to make beats, but when I do feel it, it's in my fingers and I'm ready to go. But you know I have that feeling, I go through that.
Yeah, I definitely, I've been through it, like and now. Honestly, that was one of the reasons that I started, like getting into acting was like because I started studying acting, but the reason I pursued it even more was because I didn't want to be making music when I ain't really feeling it, and I got to find another way to a creative outlet but also another way to survive and get out there. So acting was one of those things. And it was times when I came back to rap, I'm like, what do I say? I remember I was talking to Tarik to Black though, and he was like, Nigga, you didn't put out albums just rap, just rap, and it kind of reminded me man just MC. So like, gradually I started getting better and getting better at my craft and going back to mceing and hearing other MC's, like, that's always inspiring. That's always been the thing. When I when I heard naves come out of like oh Biggie, or you know, you hear ghosts in these cats, You're like, damn, I gotta rhyme Andre three thousand. So I mean, but I'm saying that at that time, that was always it, and now I still enjoy that, like I'm hearing some Kendrick or Earl sweatshirt.
You know, I'm like, damn, I want to rhyme.
But you know what, you know the thing with ll if you really think about LLLL I called him one of the foundin fault, right, he give you that early and you would know this. Of course, the rhyme skills and the Gilliens was a lot different, right. It was more I don't want to say elementary, but it was elementary sound versus and then it changed.
With the nineties. Sound is more modern to even this.
But the eighties was so he would LLL had to teach himself how to do it a different way because he would have sounded in the ages.
Still.
Yeah, So the fact that he had to do that and had the knowledge to say, look, I can't go like that means a lot that is. Do y'all ever have to do that with the way you make beats? Because some of the kicks in the stairs, when you hear them old records, you'll be like, damn that sound old, Like did you have.
To don't I don't like?
I like, yeah, nage, you know what I mean?
Classic? Anyway it sounds more.
Classic answer that. You know, I keep my ears tuned to everything you even if I don't like it, you know what I'm saying, I'm still listening. I'm like, Okay, how could I incorporate what I do with this new way? You know what I'm saying. And that's I've been working on that, working on it, working on and then here we are.
And then when I hear it. There's certain new artists that I want to hear on your production. The rhapsodies I like him, the symbols, the Russell and Kendrick Cole Like, I'm like, that's what something they need?
That man, that would be like to hear them, dudes on that you did something for Kendrick before Butterfly, But man, to hear them dudes like the symbols and like you're saying.
Like, shout out to him, Man, these.
Beats, man, I feel like that's the combination. But that the one thing what you said Envy that I feel like I do hear sometimes is you could hear take a producer from that it's started in the nineties, and you can hear they sound and it still sound like the nineties. The thing that Pete that I noticed was like, Man, them snaires and kicks feel fresh, like it's something even it could be a break that I've heard before, but it's something about what he's doing to that break and what he doing to that sample.
Even the scratches.
I was like, I was like, Man, Pele, I don't know why, but these scratches feel fresh to me, and they like we've been heard scratches on records, but it was just I guess the rhythmic of it. I don't know what you've done sonically.
And sometimes I think of DJs like Jay Rock shout out to beat junkies and Jay Rock and had him scratch on on yeah, yeah for sure. Yeah.
And now when you heard the Drake and Kendrick Beef right, that feel you to be like, I want to get back into it, because you were the type that they used to throw shots at you all the time. Shots back.
That's what I do.
So did you feel like did he give you that that that feeling of I want to jump back into this.
I didn't want to think about it. I didn't want to get in the battle because that battle.
But I was I was already enthused about writing, just because I've been hearing like like I said, like whether it was Cat sending me J Cole a freestyle or just you know, the rhymes I was hearing. I'll be going back listening to stuff we like, from Brand New Being to you know, to Tribe.
I was listening to A Daylight a lot.
So I was in the spirit of, like, man, I'm going to write, and I'm gonna write. I'm referencing things in the rhymes that ain't like I talk about stuff that some people might not know, and that's what we used to do in hip hop.
So when I heard the battle.
I was more like man enthus and kind of like what it was to me one of the greatest battles that ever exists, the greatest.
I might have to agree. I do feel like because I've.
Been through some experiences and heard certain songs that means so much to me that I probably ain't been able to give it up. It's like when people be like Lebron or Jordan's. You know, it's like, because I grown up through Jordan's still, but I recognize that Lebron is right there.
Chicago's get mad at me for saying that Ron is right there.
But that being said, I would say, if I'm just being purely true, I do think it was the best battle. But because of the back and forth that they and the way they were delivering records and how great the records were, and I want to say, as an MC like that was a real battle. It wasn't like just as soon as it started somebody had won. Drake was delivering, and he was delivering, and then Kendrick just came and said, yo, I got this, and and did deliver something just to the greatest, not only this song songs and hip hop to me, like meet the Grahams and and not like us it's just classic songs. But I ain't Drake. Drake was not like just sitting down. He was fighting. It was a heavyweight fight. And I saw something you said, Charlemagne, it was it was true, Like it was like obviously the people that are like, oh yeah, you know that ended Drake, that that really can't in the in the man, you know, like you said, that was just allowed some people to maybe feel whatever they were feeling, to say what they wanted to feel about him. But that man established a lot in his career and and people still go go out and see him. Just in this battle, Kendrick just prevails man and brought the people together. So he just won.
That's the party.
And this might be a dumb question, but did you really have the day dream or dreams that you described on dreaming on the new album, because it sounds so vivid.
Well, I actually some of those dreams definitely happened.
And that's one of the things that for me, Like people come to me in my dreams, especially like people that have transitioned have left and passed on. Like that's why I talk about my cousin Adela, who died in a motorcycle accident in Brooklyn two thousand and nine. Yeah, he come, Yeah, he actually used to ride motorcycles. Well, but God bless his soul. Like and all these people, doctor may Angelo, they have come to me in my dreams. But this I was like, let me just be like, because I've been in the MC space.
Like I was like, let me be.
Clever with it and talk about printing and talk about these and just play with the words of it, but also keep the spirit of like what dreaming is and when people come to visit you in your dreams.
Did y'all have a discussion about that? That inspired?
Okay? Because I told him, have comes to me in my dream Troy comes to me in my dreams. You know, everyone I lost, from family members to friends. You know what I'm saying, they come to me. And I take that as a sign and that they're watching me and there got eyes on me.
Yeah, I feel like, you know, the ancestors speak to us in different ways, and I definitely believe. And even though I don't even always remember all those dreams, I still like remember the visits. And then you know, for me to talk about Nelson Mandela when prison couldn't break them me And you know, when Malcolm's talking about Islama Lakem here in the window saying Islama Lakem, I'm thinking about that that by all means necessary, by any means necessary. Picture where he was in the window like all those things. Man, I was just I wanted to give it up for people who've inspired me. It was almost like a tribute to the ancestors, but in a good way. And not everybody was gone either. Like y'all seen Bay, I'm talking, I have.
Those same dreams. I just wonder what are they trying to tell us? Are they just letting us know, Hey, there's something else after this or move according to.
Feel I feel like I feel like like they definitely are letting us know that something is, something else that exists, is deeper than just this human level. And my mother always be talking, man, she say a prayer to me and be like, from the heavenly rams. So I feel like from the heavenly roums that our ancestors can come to us in our dreams. You know, that just may be one way they communicate.
You know the.
Record when you produce Troy right, what was the mindset back then, because usually people didn't do records like that. It was even hard records. It was club records, it was party records, it was street records. But you did a record as a reminisce, as a dedication record. What was the mind framing? What was the labels feeling of putting that record out of all because that's one of the most classic records out there.
Well, I'm gonna start off saying I was depressed. You know, I was really depressed because you know, we lost on a block general too. He was like, he taught me how to fight, taught me this to me, and so when we lost him, like, oh so when we lost him, you know, the whole community was was was crazy. So I went somehow found the strength to go dig through records and I found this record and listened to the whole thing. And when I listened to the whole thing, I got emotional, start crying, and I said that was a sign to say, yo, try to do something with this, you know what I'm saying. And so that's what I did. And I heard these elements in the song, and that drove me to make the beat Man, you know what I'm saying. And when I heard that, Sacks knew it was it. That was it. I was like, no, hook, no, nothing, just rocked that horn. Did cel have that that lyrics already done?
Really?
And he just all he did was like change a few things, but he I can't. When I gave him the bad Or. He had the lyrics, but he just changed some few.
Things to come into the word trow.
How did you feel when you first heard that acronym that's like you reminisce over you.
That was real clever of cl for him to come up with that title. You know what I'm saying, That was that was crazy to spell out my man's name and how that title is. It's this magic was happening for us, Bro, you know what I'm saying, Like everything was coming together.
And did the label want that record out at first that they knew what it was because it was yep.
Because when we finished it, Charlie Brown was in the studio a couple other homies and we listened to it and we crying like this is I had to leave the room, Bro, because the music was it was it was. It was that touching.
That song still does that to people, like people remember their parents, their grandparents, their loved ones when that song comes out. Remember so we hear that he like Jesus.
And we're thirty three years old.
And he'll being talked about it. Marvel Dad, I'm grateful.
For you know, we don't give you credit for to p rock Man always putting dark Skin brothers in the pop that title Come on, come on?
Can you.
At some point?
Yes?
Coming?
You know what I don't give you back?
Then you can't live? Can we leave heavy?
He was very talented and coming up with names. He gave his name, gave Pete, gave me well his brother, my cousin, Floyd, gave me Pete Rock. And he have taught me a lot about like bridges and songs, you know, like just how to structure a song a hit song. And then it stuck with me. You know what I'm saying because he was the first one to notice my talents. He was like, yo, you got something. But he's saying to bring that.
Out, He's saying, who is still that that that black black, like that black pride.
Like as a as a as a chocolate confidence?
For me? Yeah, oh, I mean you know what I'm saying, Like I had the talent, you know, you know I thought I was decent looking as a as a black man. Yes, I just rolled man.
Yeah, we come from that era. We come from the black and proud you know, like even when I listened to you know, on on a God, you know, like you say that there's a god in the spirit of you, And I was like, damn. You know, growing up we had the five percent teachers. We constantly heard that, and it felt good to hear it, because we don't hear that.
No man man.
The more and more I understand why we greet each other as God like in peace when we say peace, God like. I first received that just through hip hop because of the five percent Nation and New Yorkers like brought that to us and we were just saying it, and I liked it.
Just because it felt good.
But the more I understand how much God is in us, it's like it should be said, and we need to acknowledge that. And even you know, you can look in the Bible and it talks about you know, the God, that Christ being in you, you know, and you being christ like or you know that we year are all God. So I'm like, when you start putting together a lot of thoughts about spirituality, almost all of them teach you that the Creator is in you too, and you one with the Creator. So I love that I got that from hip hop and got even more of an understanding because I grew up going to church, so got even more of understanding what it is through you know through putting that together, and now when if I'm at church or if I'm around people who are like really like into just religion, I still can approach them and express to them to God and them.
You know, you got a lie on that song you said my testimony came from all the testing.
Yes, on that a little bit. Man.
I feel like anything that really can talk about from a pure and like a place that resonates it is because I've experienced some things in life, and you know, I experienced things like we all do with that human testing.
That thing of going through.
Things is what allows us to really connect and and that's why I could tell a story I didn't even know, Like when I first started rapping up, I wrapped about abortion in one of my songs early on, and this dude came up to me and was like, man, I decided to have my child because of your song Retrospect for.
Life with Lauren Hill.
And my point is, like I was telling him that was my testimony and me telling what I had been through, and it affected him enough to make a decision with his wife to have a child. And I'm just saying, like, man, we got to go through things to have a testimony that that really means something and resonates. I ain't saying you go out there to try to suffer, but you know, life gives you things, and it's the way we deal with it and overcome it and move through it, and.
What builds character that will allow us to be Like Yo.
When I'm sitting down with people, they listen because they know I've been through something, you know.
So that's the testimony.
Do y'all think people respect the legacies that you two guys have put out? Like I look at other genres of music, right, and they respect the elder men right, the young to the old right. And I'm just remembering as the best thing about it is, I was such a young DJ that didn't know too many people. So I remember getting the common Wax. I remember getting the record it said remixed by Pete Rock, and I remember what that feeling meant. I remember when no disrespect to run DMC, where they fell off a little bit and then they did down with the kids, and I remember all of that. Do you think people understand the legacy that you guys have built and put into this game?
We would want them to understand because we put a lot of hard work into you know, because when they when I didn't run the MC, you know what I'm saying, It was like, Damn, I'm gonna bring these dudes back.
They were trying to come back, that nothing was hitting for them.
Yeah, and then I had to convince Russell and Lea and that I could do this. I'm the man for this, and then had Jams j with me. He came to my crib. We worked on it and got what we got. So hopefully that's a story that they could listen to and learn from and understand the legacy of what we did to make it what it is today. And so even the video, everybody was in it.
It was one of the most videos. Yes, sir, Easy.
Easy, he was in it. Rest in peace.
You know what that.
Record work because they weren't trying to be anything except for what they were at the time, which was Kings of the Game. Yes, forefathers of the game.
You know, I was I was in the clouds because I couldn't believe I just did this, you know what I'm saying, Like brought them back from what was the album? Back from hell was the I'm that.
They weren't messing with each other at the time it was. It was thinking, I just remember that.
And who wrote that?
I think, did you write that for?
Who wrote that?
Somebody for for Down to King?
Yeah, that's the album was Down with the King.
Yeah, but as far as writing, I have no idea.
Somebody wrote that from wrong?
Yeah?
Yeah, you don't want to go back to honor God because you know you got Jennifer Jennifer Hudson on the record. How is it asking your lady for a future? And does she charge you?
Well, let me say this, it was definitely.
It kind of just came pure because I was playing the record and I had the rhyme and Peter sent me the beat and I loved this beat and then I thought it was Aretha Franklin, a sample from Aretha Franklin. And I asked p and he like, na, that ain't Aretha Franklin. And Jennifer heard and it was like, man, that is incredible, Like that's out of all the beats I was playing, and She's like, that's that's my favorite, right, and it's just man. I was like, damn, this kind of give you that soul for Wretha. Jennifer played a wreatha in a movie and I can tell she was inspired by it.
I was like, yo, I'm I'm gonna get her to sing on it.
But I first, after you know, I had the verses in the subject matter. I wanted PJ, who is an incredible artist and writer. PJ is super dope.
You know.
Yeah, she's from North Carolina. It's just super dope. But I had her write the hook. And then also I was like, I want Jennifer to sing kind of what the sample is doing.
And I was like, what's up? You want to do that?
She was like yes, yes because she was excited to do it. And uh, you know, ain't no charge. It to be a fair exchange, I'll do do something.
You know, no.
I give you.
You know, I want to ask to you know, how do you deal with the criticism? Like you you you've dated women in the industry that was and sometimes people.
Go at them.
How do you deal with that? Being their man? But you also know that this is the entertainment world.
Yeah, man, I try to do my best. Do my best too.
When I'm like in a relationship, a partnership that is with somebody public which has happened up, it's I just try to make sure we stay as sacred as possible with us, and like I try to build, make sure we build together and have our own like foundation, because once people start talking, it can it can distract you, it can get you off, it could discourage you. But if you got the foundation and know what y'all purpose to do, you know, And that's I guess any relationship. But for me, that's what's been like dealing with the publicity of the stuff. And you know, you feel something if somebody attacking somebody you care about, you love, you want to you're gonna defend them.
You want to defend them.
But you know, I try not to get caught up too much into what people talking about the relationship, especially if it ain't true, and if it is true that it wasn't.
Supposed to be out there like that. So we got to result at within the house.
Like if somebody criticizes her show, for instance, right and then you got to do an interview, it's like it.
Got her colm and got a great roster.
I would never talk about it, like, you know, so how do you deal with that because you might just want to say, you know what, I ain't like what he said. I'm gonna talk to him later on so how do you deal with that? But then you also know, like this is the entertainment industry and I gotta let it go. But people, you know, I always say people sometimes people think common is sweet, right, and I know common and sweet.
On stage and then walked in the crowd smack somebody and did not stop freestyle.
That was back there, like we said, light skinning, just go back down.
How do you deal with that part of it now?
But for me, man, like when people criticize your work, man, you can't really take that too personal.
Like I get criticized all the time.
You know, I got called out for wearing crochet, you know, like I just you got to know who you are, and like if you put out like I put out music, people like, man, this what is this?
Like I can't take that personal. So I apply that with her.
Like if somebody's talking about her show, they don't like the show, I understand, you know, that's what they that's what they feel. But if somebody get in disrespect her space, that's a different thing. Like just like it's different than criticizing on you know, the work we do than it is like disrespecting the space of a person. So that's how I feel, but the show is doing excellent, bro, So I'm happy for her and I'm grateful she on the hood.
How do you feel when you look back at the Electric Circus Time come? Because I think about like, you know, people ask the lots about the shiny suit. What do you look when you look at Circus Time? What do you think?
I think?
I think Electric Circuits was like it was a big step from my career in a way that those people didn't receive it at that time. You know, as an artist, you gotta go places just out of courage and being truthful with where you are to have a career in a way, because if I kept doing the same thing after a certain period, people are like, Okay, that's just the same thing.
But because because I've had.
Like the ups and downs and it's not been always accepted or popular, I think people will understand that that's the.
Ebbs and flows of life.
And I look at you know, sometimes people come to me about that album and be like that's my favorite album you did or or they felt they'll be like, man, that album grew on me eventually. I remember Primo told me that, like we was on tour Gang Start. He was like you know, I ain't like that album, but when you started performing it, I was into it. And I feel like sometimes that's what art is. Everybody ain't gonna love it. At one point, I used to didn't like Jimmy Hendricks. My cousin used to play them and I'll be like, man, why you playing this? Don't be playing that? And then eventually like I'm working at Jimmy Hendrick studio, I'm listening to Jimmy Hendrick's music and I'm like, yo, this John is amazing. See he got some amazing music. So I feel like some people can grow into it. Some people will never like it. I was a mere quest. Love hit me about a few years ago when they put it as one of the best like albums that was underrated and blah blah blah. Like see, I told you so, you just gotta you just gotta put music, put the music out that you truly feel.
Well.
I was talking more about the clothes, because you brought it to Crochet. What did the Queen Eric Well? I heard that had you dressing like that? Because I love when the internet, this new era finds old stuff and that's what they.
Say, well, see this is this is the thing Erica is very influential, but not influential enough to say, dressed like this and I.
Would do it. I'm a man like, I'm I'm gonna put on what I like. Everybody may like as they want.
When your lady be like, oh you look good, feel good about that. But I am not going to my lady like is this one right?
Or that?
I mean, I might ask that, but nobody's gonna say, yo, where this wear this? And and she you know, that's a powerful woman. She's amazing, incredible human being too and just man, just one of the greatest. But as far as dressing me, no.
Not the record I love when the new album the Auditorium Shytown do it? Wow, are you talking about an actual woman or is that a love letter to the city, because because in a way, the whole album feels like a love letter to Chicago. But on that particular song, is that a real woman or the Chicago?
I mean, I'm actually going between a particular woman and just like just rhyming and and it is love to Chicago. I kind of felt like within the writing of it, I wanted to do all those things. And I'm glad you said that because it was the album for me does have the love letter to Chicago and a love letter to hip hop the way we love and with Pete being from New York me being from the shop, I'm like, man, I got.
To bring my Chicago to Brooklyn.
Oh yeah, he had yeah originally on that on that record he had he had simple being saying Brooklyn, do it Brooklyn.
I was like, Pete, I love Brooklyn. I love Brooklyn, New York York. You know I live in Brooklyn. But now bro I'm representing Chicago all day. So there that is a love letter to to Chicago. But also like I'm kind of referencing a woman like, you know, like she knew me from the city, knew I was witty, knew I had power and maybe some sense lie fitty.
Yeah, how do you how do you tap into that Chicago energy all these years later? You know you've been all over the world. How do you tap into that energy?
Man?
You know I used to go I used to like because when I first moved from Chicago moved to New York, then I would be New York l A and go home. I used to just go home, rent cards and just go around to be with my homies, like just let's sit down and watch the game, Let's go to this bar, let's do it like That's what I did in the in the early two thousands. Now in my life, I got so many things going on there. I got a school called Art in Motion in Chicago, which is an art school, and then I also had a Common Ground Foundation, and we got something called Free to Dream. All those things are happening. But to be I'm gonna be real real with you, Like having a lady that's from Chicago allow me to go home and just be home, and I hadn't did that in a while, where I was just like going home and just being around my loved ones and didn't have no work to do, and that, man, ain't gonna front. That helped me with this album because just going to your roots, you gotta always like recharge.
And replug and plug into them roots.
No matter how much you've elevated, you still gotta go to them roots. And just I mean, to me, growth is about starting and growing from the roots. So me going back to Chicago all these times just for regular shit, it just, man, just helped me stay rooted in what I do and who I am. I'm referencing certain Chicago things, And I'm like, that's what I used to do. That's what I did on Resurrection. That's what I did. I wasn't trying to like because I seen the world. I wasn't because I seen the world. I was referencing other things. But to be able to go back home and reference things. We used to do that a lot of hip hop. That's how I knew what Queens was about because what Nives was talking about. I knew what what Brooklyn was about, because what Jay and Biggie was talking about. Knew what Hollan was talking was about because of your dim set and all them guys. So yeah, so I feel like that's what I wanted to give to Chicago. Again.
That sounds like you might get married. Like that sound like you're building a real foundation.
I mean, listen, I mean this is definitely with all due respect to all the women I've dated, you know, because they all it's all love. But this is a really healthy and beautiful relationship, bro. And like I'm just doing my best key God first and communicating. Taking all the stuff I've learned as a as a human being, the failures I've had in relationships from on my responsibility. I'm taking that, learning from that, growing from it, using all the therapy, all the all the you know, understanding that man, let me enjoy moments. And also this life is about trying to not trying, but creating happiness and creating joy and creating love and and like embracing the grace that exists.
So this is somebody and it's something man.
You kind of when you're with somebody who's from where you're from, it's a different kind of connection to that's that's something else.
But I mean, she's from where I'm from.
Spiritually, she's from where I'm from from like from where we geographically come from the shot and you know, just from where I'm from as a person.
Like one of the.
Things that I felt was before we even started was together. We were doing this movie and this security guard said to me, he was I came to the set. He was like, man, you and Jennifer Husson two are the coolest celebrities I ever met.
Man.
I was like, for real, He's like, no, y'all real cool. And he was like, she just bought this ice cream for all these people here on the set. And I was like, man, I just like people to treat people good. That's probably home too for me. So yeah, I mean she is she she there.
You seem the happiest.
You want to get mad? Sounds like to me.
I mean, if I'm going to get married, it's to her. Wow, that's simple as that.
And I see Pete Rock smiling every time you talk about her.
You might know something we don't know.
I don't know. I don't like it. I like it to see them, you know what I'm saying together If it makes me feel good.
Talk to me about the three wise men that visited you visited you on the record?
Wise up?
Who do those three wise men represent?
Man?
I was really when I wrote that, I was thinking, three wise men came to visit where I've been. They brought gifts with the south Side blend. I wanted these wise men to have like all the the godly attributes that you hear about three wise men.
Yeah, exactly.
I wanted them like because I mean, I really was writing that because a lot of people that I've met that are some of the most enlightened and spiritual people are real niggas, you know, and they real people, real men, real black real women. And I was like, man, it's depth to these human beings. So I wanted the wise men to not be perfect. One of the things I feel like I'm a big I'm heavy into like New Testament scriptures, so like I don't read that and just be like, oh man, these people weren't human beings. And I wanted to bring the humanity to three wise men, like these are people. They be bringing me Hennessy and bringing the wisdom, you know, and bringing the scrolls and telling me yo, and that I said. The third gave a mirror and told me to remember me. He's just telling me, y'all, remember who you are. This mirror I'm giving you so you can remember who you are.
You know.
I felt that was important for that, So I just made that Hennessy. I reference Hendency. On another one, there's a guy with like, well, I can I enter the gates of heaven smelling like Hennessy, So Hennessy, Hennessy might as well respond to me, what's up that happen?
Listen, Pete, you know this is a very vintage, you know sounding album, even the length of the records, right, and it's the verses and joints verse. Did either one of you ever think you know, maybe we should shorten the records to be like this new era. I'm glad y'all didn't, but that of a cross your mind in the.
Studio, it's usually now we noticed that it's like people when they're making records, it's really only two verses, too many fifty second records, right, But when it's a group, you may here more than two versus.
But I think it was just two verses and we did. You did three on on this Man's Arms, a couple of couple of joints, choice Loansome. But it's now it's like, that's that's what we did. We have a choice now to me, two or three.
I think, man and making songs like you gotta just go with the feeling like James Brown.
And was just boom. Them records was long.
And then some of them super hits from the Motown was like two minute records. Like when I'm writing verses, I'm like this, this song don't need to be that long.
So I kind of we approached more than anything.
I believe when we was making this album, we was like, let's make something that we really feel like, man, god in this music, Let's create that's let's just create and receive.
That, and then I ain't on front.
I was like thinking about albums like only Built for Cuban Links, or or thinking about like Midnight Marauders and Maine and Greedy and the Balloon Mind stayed paid in full, like I want album Illmatic obviously albums that I was like, let's make an album where people can listen to the whole album and it got a sound and we hope that it could be classified as a new classes.
Well, hip hop all rules, absolutely yes, because James Brown said like they were rules to the music business right, or to music or how to make music, and he mentioned like Beethoven and all them type of dudes, and he said he defied all of that because they were following the rules. He wasn't. And so you know, in hip hop, I feel like we're just doing what we want, what feels good to us. You know what I'm saying, whether it's two verses, sometimes you hear one long verse and the record is over, you know what I'm saying with a little bit of a hook, and you know it's free. You know this, this hip hop shit is like free.
I got a hip hop head record SEEO Smooth and Pete rock. Whatever happened to the group.
To scrolling Pains? Man? You know, with two different.
People, y'are cool with each other.
Now, well, I can't say that.
I never seen y'all perform together. And I always said, damn, that would be for Fitty. The year Annivers read Everybody coming Back, I was like, it would be amazing to see Troy on stage.
Sule or I feel the same way. But you know, some things just can't happen. You know, it is what it is. It's not It's just life, bro, you know what I'm saying.
I just got a couple more questions. You only got one rap feature on this project, and that's that's a pause plug one from Daylight. Why why is that?
Man?
Initially I was like, man, Peter, I don't want to know features. I want to do like well rock Kim them did like they or you know, like I said, e Matic had one feature, but I was like, it didn't feel like we I feel like we had created a sound. Well, I didn't want any features. I was like, this is this is a sound. Let's do what we do it. Yeah, But but what happened is that the song that prostitutes from dey La Soul is O was featured and he blessed the verse man, and like, first of all, you know day from Dayla Soul, True Go Ahead passed recently, rest in peace, God bless it.
So so they they were kind of hovering, like you know.
Daylight was one of the first groups that embraced me and they put me on a record called The Business and that was like life changing for me. So that's my family. I was staying at Mace's crib. This this is my family. So I when they when Dave died, it kind of it hit me. And and I was also listening to a lot of Daylight and that was inspiring me too because they just always been free with their music. But so we we basically almost done with the album. But the song that posted news is on Pete. Pete had created the beat, but at one point it was day Lives Beat. It was Daylight. They were working on the album together that that Pete and Primo was producing for Daylight.
Wow yeah yeah yeah, And Dave passed. So Pete sent me to be and he was like, man, this is this is day Lives Beat. I'm not sure.
I just ended up writing to it and I had I got the hooked idea to it and I need And then so when we were about to master the album, I like, Pete, we gotta we got to talk to Pas and and Paz was like, man that' said I beat man.
We that's daylight beating.
Now.
I was like, damn, I'm gono have to get this song of people like I'm gonna make you another one. I was like, damn, it ain't gonna beat this beat. And then and then five minutes later, Pete hit me and said, pa said you could hide to beat. I said, nah, let me call Pas. I called him and he said, Yo, rosh, you could hide to beat, bro, And I was like nah. He was like, I want if it's anybody putting that music out there, we want you out there with it so you can hide to beat.
And I was like, no, I want you on this song. And then he was like yo, I'm down. Like he was. He was actually about to leave New York to go do something.
He went in the studio that wrote that night, went in the next morning and blessed it. So it was kind of like a divine order that he was that he was the MC that was gonna be on the album. Pase because they, like I said, they influenced me a lot and influenced the album.
How far on the road did y'all get with the Daylight?
What they had at least two beats that they were writing too positive tell you like you know? And Dave was the one that was like that one, yeah, and you know, and then picked another beat and then picked that one.
That we have. Yeah, yo, they I think.
To be honest, I think y'all got because Poss played me at least about four or five joints that y'all got this crazy.
I'm just remembering the ones that they really went crazy.
Yeah.
Yeah, I gave him like six seven beats.
That's like one of them hip hop?
What is? You know?
I'm a Marvel guy, so what if?
You know?
What if? What if you don't pass? And we get the Daylight? And produced by Premiere and Pete Rock.
Oh my god, I was doing half he's doing you know here here big Marvel dude, Like I got to put that up without the new cap coming and that I'm waiting for that.
Oh I can't wait for that. That got me my last question. You know, we saw Meth recently. He said that he realized that there's a generation gap is just too wide for him. He don't want to perform at Summer Gym no more. You just felt like the crowd was too young at certain concerts, young to certain concerts. Do y'all feel that way? And do you feel like there's not a home for OG's and hip hop as far as not even just performing a radio as well?
I don't feel that way.
I feel that, like man, music can prevail over any age. Like I was listening to Michael Jackson and Stevie Wonder as a kid.
I wasn't thinking about how old they were. I just loved the music.
And my first concert was the Jacksons and I was eight years old watching them Wow.
And my point is.
I think we if we deliver the music that can touch them, they will respond.
And I'm a believer. Man.
I love doing shows where people don't be really feeling me and I win them over. I didn't seen people frowning up at me and like like this dude, and then I'm like.
Yo, let me.
I'm you know, I like to work the crowd like and work them to so they do believe. So I mean, first of all, I met anybody need to respond to myth man them songs he got.
That's my god, shout out to me.
Yeah, wedding, So I dance with my wedding. Come on, bro, that's what I'm so so. I mean, I think the one good thing is that I feel like a lot of that music is coming around again to the to the youngest. I remember doing the thing at Prairie State in Texas and it's your shorty had on low End Theory so hoodie.
Yeah.
I was like, yo, I said, what you know about that? He's like, man, it's my favorite album, low End Theory. Trying and call question. I said, how did you? He said nineteen. I was like, yo, he taught this stuff? Yeah he I mean, whoever introduced him? That's that's his music though. Now, so, I feel like if we deliver music that has that soul at that time listeners, young people will respond, old people respond, people will respond if you're.
Looking for that the auditorium, vonn one is out right. Now let's go. I'm in a pete rock.
Let's play a joint off there which I want to hear.
Which first, Let's let's hear Fortunate Man the Sunshine again. Let's get it.
We appreciate you brother, all right, no problem, but thank y'all for joining us. Pick up the album right now, The Auditory and Volume one is out right now. Com and Pete Rock. It's The Breakfast Club. Good morning, wake that ass up in the morning.
The Breakfast Club.
