Mos Def
Both Sides Of The Coin
»
 |
As the frontman of Jack Johnson, Mos Def is backed by an all-star contingent featuring Living Colour drummer Will Calhoun and bassist Doug Winbush, Bad Brains guitarist Dr. Know, and Parliament/Funkadelic keyboardist Bernie Worrell. The group’s sound is still developing, as evidenced by an unusual New York concert this past winter, which found Jack Johnson recasting older Mos Def tracks with rock backing, and even riffing through songs by Band Of Gypsys and The Police.
While in the studio tracking Jack Johnson’s Rawkus debut album, Mos Def took time out to chat with NATN Associate Editor Jonathan Cohen about the art of reinvention and the myriad of upcoming projects that look set to keep him busy for years to come.
NATN: So, you’re in the studio now with Jack Johnson. I’ve heard that the album will be titled Black Bastard. Is that true?
Mos Def: Right now I've been thinking about that. Do you like that?
NATN: Yeah. It's a little provocative.
MD: Yeah, I just think that's the way America feels about young black people trying to be free, you know? Whether that's creatively.. just trying to be independent and belong to themselves. And that includes some black people too, who feel that way. It's certainly the way America felt about Jack Johnson. It's funny because originally I was going to call the band Black Bastard [laughs]. But they were like, no.. I think Jack Johnson is a little more historical. But to call the album Black Bastard would be good.
NATN: Another title I’ve seen floating around is Hated By Them, Loved By Those, Respected By All.
MD: That was one of the titles I was thinking about for Jack Johnson. I've got so many titles for albums. Don't listen to me when I say a title, because I have hundreds of them. The Freakdaddy Mojo Finger.. Motornerve. All types of shit. But yeah, that's definitely one of the titles I was thinking about.
NATN: When do you envision the album being ready?
MD: We're trying to get wrapped up pretty soon and put the finishing touches on stuff. There will probably be no more than 10 songs. It's going to be a real tight endeavor. We're shooting to at least get a single out by this summer and the album by early fall.
NATN: What is the single going to be?
MD: It's hard to say, man. I've got something called “Fight Song No. 1” that Easy Mo Bee did the track for. It's.. wow. It's pretty serious. But it's hard to say at this point. I've got another song called “Dummo.” I've got some pretty good joints, man. Joints that could definitely cross that line where the Papa Roach fan and the No Limit fan can get in the moshpit [laughs].
NATN: I was at the Jack Johnson show in New York this winter. It seemed like a lot of people in the audience were totally confused.
MD: Oh yeah, it's like Dylan going electric. Some people were not happy with me at all. I mean, what am I going to do about that? Some people aren't going to be happy with me. People weren't happy when Miles started doing fusion. What can you do? I just think it's time to do something like that.
NATN: Are you planning a proper follow-up to Black On Both Sides?
MD: Well, I don't know if there's such a thing as a.. this is the follow-up to Black On Both Sides. I'm not interested in doing.. Black On Both Sides is done. I'm just in a different place. I love that record. But I don't want what I do as an artist to be the property of people's expectations. I'm trying to speak as sincerely as I possibly can, and doing what I really feel. I don't want to try to manipulate anybody. I was really moved to do the rock project. Part of the reason was that it's a very delicate negotiation. I was nervous about doing it. Not because I didn't think I could pull it off, but I know it invites all type of scrutiny, you know, “are you really going to do some rock'n'roll?” So, you know, it's definitely not the “go quietly in the night”-type project. It raises a lot of social issues that music is a metaphor for.. a lot of racial issues. Without even saying it, just the act of doing the project. Then there's our band. So this is, you know, the one where people get nervous. When I get that feeling in music, it's got to be something worth doing. I'm not just challenging the audience, I'm challenging myself as well. And I want to do that as an artist. And as a person. I want to put myself in places where I grow, as opposed to just repeating myself for the sake of security. I don't want to be a jukebox.
NATN: What about another Black Star album with Talib?
MD: Oh yeah, for sure. I definitely want to do another Black Star album. You know what, I've been listening to Shuggie Otis for the past two or three weeks. I think I've got a great ballad album in me. Yeah, like, I don't want to call it R&B. It is, but not like anything that anybody has heard. I guess it's the same thing with the rock band. People want to know if it's going to sound like P.O.D., Papa Roach, or Incubus. But this doesn't sound like anybody. It doesn't sound like Rage. I would like to do an album that's a lot more quiet but funky. I just want to explore, you know. I don't want to be locked up. I'm into a lot of different types of music. I think I'm effective as an MC, but I think I'm an effective songwriter too. After Jack Johnson people may expect another album like that right away, and that may or may not happen.
NATN: So it seems like just a matter of finding free time for all these projects.
MD: Yeah, man. You gotta try. The worst thing is to be sitting somewhere feeling like, “I really want to do this album, but I can't.” What do you mean, you can't? You should just go do it. I just want to establish that you don't know what to expect from Mos Def. I'm in control of that, and not the critics. I'm really charting my own course.
NATN: Jack Johnson sure indicates that.
MD: I'm hoping so. I'm really, really excited. We're going to do a full tour. We're trying to put together with hip-hop acts and rock acts, but like, really. I think MOP is hip-hop and rock, and they never really got the credit they deserve. I would love to do something with like At The Drive-In or Jane's Addiction. I think Missy Elliott is rock'n'roll. I want to do something where you really are expanding the borders and are really introducing people to some new shit on both sides. And that's exciting. I'm ready for shit to get exciting. There's a couple of things I'm excited about, but I want to see some shit really start moving!
NATN: You played the Hip-Hop For Conciousness benefit in California recently. Why was that an appealing cause?
MD: H. Rap Brown is, I mean, he's a legend. He's a hero. The evidence against him is flimsy at best. They have a description of a man that doesn't match his description. There's all kinds of holes in their case. There's another gentleman in Michigan named Maurice Carter, who wasn't like a Mumia or a Jamil El-Amin. He's just a blue collar guy who has been in prison for 25 years for a crime he didn't commit. I think all Americans should be concerned about that type of thing, when on the basis of anything, your social status, your political beliefs, that you could just be thrown in jail. I think that's a pretty dangerous thing. If we're silent about it, it makes it like it's O.K. And it's not.
NATN: How many live shows has Jack Johnson played so far?
MD: We've played quite a few. We did the Lyricist Lounge tour, and that went well. We recently played the New Jersey Performing Arts Center, which I think was our best gig. Being in a band is like a marriage, or a relationship or a love affair. In all of the good ones, things get better with time, and I think that's what's happening with us.
NATN: There have been some rumblings about Living Colour getting back together. What can you tell us?
MD: We've been hearing some rumblings about that too. I have no idea. I know they're doing a gig in L.A. come May, but all I can say is that you're going to see a lot of interesting things arise. Jack Johnson is definitely stirring up a lot of things. It's good. It's good.
JONATHAN COHEN | Jonathan Cohen co-created Nude As The News with his Indiana University mates Troy Carpenter and Ben French. When not traversing the globe for business and pleasure, he holds down the fort as a senior editor for Billboard in New York. Stop him and he just may ask, "what for lunch?"