Talib Kweli Working on Autobiographical Book, Talks New Album and No New Black Star

RuffDraft
RuffDraft Members, Writer Posts: 4,753 ✭✭✭✭
edited June 2011 in The Essence
From allhiphop news:
(AllHipHop News) Brooklyn based MC Talib Kweli took some time to sit down with AllHipHop.com in an exclusive interview about his recent endeavors and his upcoming projects, including his new book, Black Star and his new album, Prisoner of Conscious.

While Talib currently maintains a rigorous tour schedule of over 200 shows a year, he still is taking the time to record new music and is steady at work on his new book.

“This is how I make my money. On the road, having Blacksmith music, making music, working on my book, and other things that I am working on. I enjoy being on the road and writing this book and other things I am involved in,” Talib Kweli explained of his lengthy tour schedule and work.

“I enjoy being on the road and the essence of MCing is the Master of Ceremony. In order to master the ceremony, you have to be at the ceremony,” Talib said.

According to Talib, his untitled book is based on his life experiences, mixed in with his philosophies about life.

"I am still a relatively young person in the scheme of the world, so I don’t feel like I feel like I will stop learning by any strength of the imagination,” Talib said of his untitled book. “I’ve learned some things that I can impart that can be worth some thing to some people.

Touring in support of his project Gutter Rainbows hasn’t stopped his recording schedule either.

Although he was tight lipped on the details of his new project, he did mention that he has acquired the talent of Seu Jorge, the Brazilian guitar player who is well known for his roles in "City of ? " and "The Life Aquatic" with Steve Zissou.


“When I was in Brazil, I tweeted that I would love to do a song with him,” Talib told AllHipHop.com of the collaborative project. “5 minutes later his manager responded and we put the song together.”

In addition to questions about his solo work and book, Talib answered the question every hip-hop fan wants to know about any sort of Black Star reunion.

While he and Mos Def made an appearance headlining this year’s Rock the Bells concert series, the show left many fans across the internet eagerly anticipating a new Black Star project.

“There’s no update, there’s no album that we are working on, we have done a lot of music together and a few songs that people haven’t heard, but Mos operates very differently than your average artist in terms of how he wants to get his music out there,” Talib told AllHipHop.com about his counterpart.

“I think what it is with him is really trying to explore ownership and really trying to explore the best way for us to put out an album that is based on the creative love for the music, rather than based on the demand from the fans," Talib said. "As much as this is a business, music is not made because of supply and demand. Music is made from your heart, and we just got to do it because its right and not just because there is a demand for it. But I want to hear it too.”

Talib Kweli expects to release his Prisoner of Conscious project digitally in the U.S. later this summer, while he will re-release Gutter Rainbows physically in the U.S. shortly after.

What I want to know is, what's wrong with Mos Def's label situation?

He's not been happy with it for a long time, True Magic had a clear case in protest of Geffen music and then his latest album, The Ecstatic, was released on Downtown. One would think that the shift would have sorted out all issues for Mos Def to have more control over his product.

Otherwise, I'm looking forward to that book and new disc, Prisoner of Conscious :tu

Thoughts?

Comments

  • MC The Rapper
    MC The Rapper Members Posts: 8,140 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited June 2011
    Mos Def just don't wanna work with Kweli on a whole album
  • RuffDraft
    RuffDraft Members, Writer Posts: 4,753 ✭✭✭✭
    edited June 2011
    Mos Def just don't wanna work with Kweli on a whole album

    I disagree to be honest, saw them live in concert and they seemed in their element performing the old Black Star tracks and their collab's through the years...

    Arguably, the Black Star album is probably their 2nd best projects they've ever completed alongside Kweli's Train of Thought and Mos' BOBS.

    Why do you think he doesn't want to work with him?
  • waterproof
    waterproof Members Posts: 9,412 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited June 2011
    Blackstar is one of those groups that define a moment in time, when they dropped Big and Pac just died. Bad-boy, Jay-Z all blinged out and hip-hop as a culture was in a dark time with death and selling the soul for riches. Blackstar was that light for hip-hop that brought everything back to the essence but was leading foward to the future. That album is a BEAUTIFUL ? ALBUM.
  • VulcanRaven
    VulcanRaven Members Posts: 18,859 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited June 2011
    waterproof wrote: »
    Blackstar is one of those groups that define a moment in time, when they dropped Big and Pac just died. Bad-boy, Jay-Z all blinged out and hip-hop as a culture was in a dark time with death and selling the soul for riches. Blackstar was that light for hip-hop that brought everything back to the essence but was leading foward to the future. That album is a BEAUTIFUL ? ALBUM.

    Blackstar is a great album,but Hip Hop was far from the dark ages in 98 and Diddy and Jay were not the only flashy rappers.Nas was on that ? too and so was Ja.You ? blame Jay and Diddy for every thing.You talk like Hip Hop was about being pro black and political when in fact it was about having the latest whips,the freshest clothes and jewelry.Word to Run DMC and LL.
  • RuffDraft
    RuffDraft Members, Writer Posts: 4,753 ✭✭✭✭
    edited June 2011
    waterproof wrote: »
    Blackstar is one of those groups that define a moment in time, when they dropped Big and Pac just died. Bad-boy, Jay-Z all blinged out and hip-hop as a culture was in a dark time with death and selling the soul for riches. Blackstar was that light for hip-hop that brought everything back to the essence but was leading foward to the future. That album is a BEAUTIFUL ? ALBUM.

    Yeah, agreed. Definitely a timeless album as well as their other two solo projects at that time.
    Mad Jack wrote: »
    Blackstar is a great album,but Hip Hop was far from the dark ages in 98 and Diddy and Jay were not the only flashy rappers.Nas was on that ? too and so was Ja.You ? blame Jay and Diddy for every thing.You talk like Hip Hop was about being pro black and political when in fact it was about having the latest whips,the freshest clothes and jewelry.Word to Run DMC and LL.

    Agreed, but there was also a focus on rhymes and originality, what Run DMC and LL were doing was fresh and new, you only have to look at how LL's formula on 'I Need Love' is still prescribed to most albums with the odd track 'for the ladies'. It's commercial and pathetic that rappers still choose to release such weak material of a 14 year old's mentality as grown men. As well as how they aren't being themselves in the booth in general. I'd rather hear raps about coca cola than raps about coke unless you're actually being real with it... that's why I have a lot of respect for underground artists as they stay true to themselves and the essence of hip hop. Only have to look to Pigeon John for a perfect example of this.

    Post 00's generally followed the same formulaic hits and albums of throwaway material (my hip hop collection at this time showed this as I became more and more disappointed with each purchase). I'm a fan of commercial hip hop still, but the releases are few and far between. I am a fan of Jay-Z as well, not so much Diddy, my posts aren't anti-commercial hip hop or pro-underground, but they're a response/reflection to the amount of money that I spent from 01-05 on albums that I felt were made up of one or two good tracks.

    Either way, to get it back on track, Kweli's new album should be nice... looking forward to it droppin'
  • The 3mcee
    The 3mcee Members Posts: 588
    edited June 2011
    Mos Def just don't wanna work with Kweli on a whole album

    LOL. Cold blooded
  • The 3mcee
    The 3mcee Members Posts: 588
    edited June 2011
    Mad Jack wrote: »
    Blackstar is a great album,but Hip Hop was far from the dark ages in 98 and Diddy and Jay were not the only flashy rappers.Nas was on that ? too and so was Ja.You ? blame Jay and Diddy for every thing.You talk like Hip Hop was about being pro black and political when in fact it was about having the latest whips,the freshest clothes and jewelry.Word to Run DMC and LL.

    LOL. Around 97-04 or so Hip Hop was hella diverse in the mainstream. You had all different types of movements getting shine on MTV, BET and even the radio. I will agree it wasn't just Diddy and Jay that were stuntin it was a lot of other folks also but at least hip hop was more multifaceted for everybody to see. Now you have pretty much the same type of artist and music getting airplay in public. You have to really search for different types of hip hop