Naked Mermaids

The Second Mixtape is out, you can download it by clicking the link to the right ---->

I’ve got a few tattoos, and I’ve been getting them since I was 17. I can remember being in high school thinking I was the hottest kid under the sun with one sleeve up showing off my corny ass lion with the word SINGH written underneath (first one had to be Mama-Poet-approved, since I was underage). Now I’m 28, trying strategically to avoid the label ‘tattooed freak as I recently got the word TRUTH on the side of my hand (Mama-Poet didn’t approve). One thing's for sure the permanent ink I got in my teens barely reflects the thoughts and ideas I wish to be represented by today. When I was younger, folks told me not to do it, because they said I would regret them in future; they were wrong, I don’t regret any of them, even the ones that bare no relevance to my life and current mind state. The reason I can bare to live with them is that they represent moments in my life, like time stamps. I remember where I was, what I was feeling, and what I was going through during the moment in time I went under the needle for that specific piece. They serve as little flags along the road incase I want to look back in this journey of life. If anything, I only wish I could make them bigger, brighter and bolder, because I love the way they look. And that long story is the intro to my thoughts today on Substance Vs. Art

Over time the relevance of an idea may wither, but the art can stand the test of time. With this hip hop, I’m trying very hard to craft my lyrics in such a way, that even if I wake up tomorrow morning and decide the Police are my friends, I can still bump ‘Cry Now’ in the car because it’s still a hot joint musically. When Public Enemy came out with Fight The Power, the music was on par, which only amplified the message. Since then, there haven’t been many artists who can put a message in the music without sounding corny. Dead Prez did an amazing job, but even they were typecast as ‘nerds’ of hip hop. Revolutionary concepts in hip hop has probably best been delivered by immortal technique, a dude that comes off so gangster, delivers lyrics so flawlessly, with a voice so powerful, people are forced to listen. Though folks may think his thoughts and politics are the magic, it’s really his delivery of those ideas and concepts.

Take for example, his track Beef & Broccoli, a spoken word track tearing a whole in the idea of the righteousness of being a vegetarian. That track got me checking myself, and laughing at the insult he hurled at veggies. It didn’t make me get into meat, but he worded it in such a sense that I wasn’t able to dismiss his points and ideas. If anything it made me respect him more for taking a shot at the self-righteous.

My favourite rapper Andre 3000 of Outkast said over a year ago, that he doesn’t even believe in 90% of the things he used to rap about anymore. The songs are still classic because the arts on point. So let’s focus on the art, and anyone who feels they want to spread a message, realize the message should take a back seat to the art, otherwise you’ll be left with a bored audience who won’t pay you any attention in the future. Outkast perfected the art of music with substance, because the music came first, it’s just that when you took the time to read the lyrics, they had an impact as well.

So never settle for the corniness. If I come corny, I expect and beseech (that’s a big word for BEG) y’all to let me know so I can come correct. 20 years from now a beautifully drawn naked mermaid will still look better than a quick doodle of Mother Teresa… add substance to your art… don’t depend on substance to be the art.

Sometimes the club-scene feels like a documentary straight out of the Discovery Channel... one of my personal favourites.