Phonte of Little Brother giving u the truth

[Frenetic]

Little Brother has been the underground’s darlings ever since the seminal classic “The Listening” dropped. Phonte has always been the most outspoken member of Little Brother. Rather its conversing with fans after shows, debating on various websites, he’s always the one that doesn’t have a problem speaking his mind. With their superb sophomore album, “The Minstrel Show” in stores, and LB on a small touring hiatus, the most outspoken member of Little Brother sits down to talk with me about parenthood responsibility, the ‘just entertainment fallacy’ and a host of other things. Check out the Part I of the Phonte interview.

B-Moore: What would you say is the difference between “The Listening” and “The Minstrel Show”?

Phonte: Maturity. “The Minstrel Show”, shows a lot more maturity than “The Listening”. For me, “The Minstrel Show” has more of a sense of urgency than “The Listening” does. When we did “The Listening” we were just happy to make music. With this one, we knew that we had a lot more to prove. Instead of coming out and making the standard album, we really wanted to have something say. I was just really concerned about making an album with some substance.

B-Moore: What’s the difference in the way ABB handled your album and the way Atlantic is handling it?

Phonte: It ain’t a whole lot [laughter]. I mean ABB didn’t have the power to do a lot of sh*t, you know what I mean. There really wasn’t a lot that them niggaz could do. The only beef I had with ABB was the distribution on [The Listening]. They really fu*ked up the distribution with the album. With ABB a lot of the short comings they had, I excuse them because they are an Indie label. With Atlantic, niggaz gonna really have to show me a whole lot this next year of really carrying out our plan with this slow grind. That’s pretty much where I’m at right now. Just looking at the Soundscan numbers there really isn’t a whole lot of difference.

B-Moore: Were you worried that Atlantic might try to change your sound, to make you more commercially viable?

Phonte: Naw, I wasn’t worried about that. I always felt we were a commercially viable group. I just think niggaz are real close minded. They think commercial music is about the club or stripping or some stupid sh*t. Just because we don’t rap about that doesn’t mean it’s not commercial. I mean Little Brother isn’t rapping about quadratic equations. We just a group that makes music, we just never had good exposure. As far as them putting that pressure on us, it was never like that. If we felt it would be that kind of pressure we would have never signed with them. We made it known up front, this is what we do, love it or hate it. I got a lot of respect them for because they accepted us. They let us do us. Every note on the album is us and not their suggestion.

B-Moore: Naming your album “The Minstrel Show” was a bold move, do you worry about the general buying public not ‘getting it’?

Phonte: Not really. I mean, I talked to Atlantic about it. I just didn’t want them to over think it. At the end of the day, it’s a rap album. It like if the beats are dope and the rhymes are dope, then you should worry about focusing on that. The whole thing of ‘are they gonna get it’ or this or that. They not gonna know what that sh*t is. The niggaz that bought “Like Water For Chocolate” they didn’t know that it was named after a book. I just think the album works on two levels. It’s got to work on two levels. The whole Minstrel Show thing that good for the college niggaz and niggaz to debate about online, that’s for like the people that are into it to that degree. It’s for the journalist to discuss. For the general listening public, its ‘is it dope or not, if it is I’m riding with it’. I think it works for on both levels.

B-Moore: So where do you think the line between entertainment and “minstrelism” is?

Phonte: Man listen bruh, I got a lot bones to pick with you about that. The “line” is all subjective. There is no such thing as its just ‘entertainment’. That’s the biggest thing I try to come across in my interviews. Its like, 30 years ago, when niggaz were rocking in the park and just putting out 12” on Sugar Hill Records then maybe you can argue that it was just entertainment. Now this sh*t is a multi-million dollar business. It goes everywhere. Its like, dog, all this just entertainment sh*t is a moot point. This sh*t is raising kids. That’s not to say that the parents aren’t at fault. Its like, my nigga, how much can a parent really be expected to do. If I’m sitting in the car with my daughter and it goes from ‘shake my laffy taffy’ to ‘wait till you see my d*ck’ to ‘its getting hot in here so take off all your clothes’. Its like, unless I lock my daughter in a closet somewhere, how much power as a parent do I really have, to prevent this sh*t from going into the head of my child. The whole music is just entertainment, in 2005, ***** no. Anyone who believes that is fooling themselves. Music has always been a force. Just as you eat physical food, [music] is mental food. If you just feed your mind garbage it affects the social climate and the mind state of the people. If you look at the song titles from the 70’s and the Civil Rights Movement they were representative of the times. There were songs that spoke for the people on some ‘We in a bad situation, we gotta work together, let’s do it’.

B-Moore: But back during those times, the community was stronger, parents were being parents, the school system was exponentially better.

Phonte: Again, it’s really 50/50. Back in the day, I would say its 100% on the parents. Before had a whole bunch of cable channels, the internet and XM radio yeah I would say that. Stakes are higher now. I have 4 year old son, I can’t explain to him what sh*t means. If we listen to a song that has curses in them, then he knows not to say those words. I tell him those are bad words and not to say them. But if we’re listening to say, T.I.’s “Rubberband Man” where the hook is, “Rubberband Man/wild as the Taliban/9 on my right/45 on my other hand”, those aren’t bad words, they aren’t curse words, but it’s not content a 4 year old should be repeating. He might ask why, and in my best 4 year old teaching I would explain to him that a “9” is a gun and tell him that he shouldn’t do those things. Parents should be parents. I totally agree wit that point. But, niggaz who rap should be responsible for their sh*t. I don’t see what’s so hard for niggaz to understand about that sh*t.

You got these record company niggaz this music is for the kids. I’m lookin at them like “OK”. Half the rap niggaz is from their late 20’s to damn near 40. They are making music for the clubs that half these kids can’t get into. So how is this sh*t for the kids? Granted. Everybody has their own line and standards. There has to be some sh*t that niggaz should agree with. There should be blanket statements. Can we all agree that crack is bad? Can we just agree on that? At least that’s a start. God damn, some sh*t should be understood.

B-Moore: Isn’t it’s an artist responsibility to be honest and truthful to himself and his art?

Phonte: You’re right it’s an artist’s responsibility to tell the truth. But its moreso the artists responsibility to tell the WHOLE TRUTH. That’s what a lot of these niggaz ain't doing. If you sold crack, you were up in the hood the other day. Ok, that’s your story. I would never ask a nigga to tell nothing other than your story. That’s good. If you sold crack, that’s not what you did 24/7. You didn’t love doing it all the time. You telling me you never had some remorse about it? Or a time when you took time off from selling crack to see your relatives or the people that love you? Or if you sold to a pregnant woman and felt bad about it. Its two sides to everything. When niggaz say ‘I’m giving the truth’ niggaz ain’t giving the whole truth. The best comparison I can give is NWA’s “Straight Outta Compton” and NWA’s “Niggaz 4 Life”. As a hip hop fan, both of those are classic albums. The first album they were like “We’re NWA, we’re from the streets, telling you how it is in Compton, police niggaz beaten our ass” so me being an east coast nigga I’ve never been out there so I thought that was what’s up. It represented a truth, the angry black man from LA that we never heard before.

On the 2nd album, these muthafu*kas, they became caricatures of themselves. Instead of being street reporters, you are telling me now, you killing hookers? It’s like what part of street reporting is that? That’s where the line between street reporting and glamorizing violence get drawn. Not only that, but reveling in it. Like on the Jeezy sh*t, (editors note: An elusion prior conversation that was had on the Justus League’s site about Young Jeezy) I think there is a line between talking about selling drugs and glamorizing it.

Like when Jay came out, he was like I did this and did that, I’ve been in the streets, the whole "Carlito’s Way" dialogue. And even on his first album he did a song called “Regrets”. He was like ‘Yeah I did it but sometimes this sh*t doesn’t sit right with me’. But when you put on a Jeezy record, and the closet thing to an amendment is not getting caught, “What the ***** is that?” As a parent and a grown as s man, don’t support that sh*t. Niggaz need to grow the ***** up. The whole snowman thing, did niggaz really need a crack mascot?

…Stay tuned for Part II…where Phonte addresses: the fact that the streets might not be feeling them, Touring global and still being considered local, The Commerical Tour finale, the shafting from XXL and The Source, and much more…

Props to my man over on BXD for this interview.

[fan 4ever]

All I can say is : AMEN!

He gives the truth...I agree with him on almost everything!

Thanx 4 posting! Can't wait for the second part! :2thumbs:

[Jin]

Wow finally someone who has to courage to speak the truth!

[mfuqua23]

I dare anybody to say that what he said in any part of that interview was wrong.

It's like music and movies are like the same thing. Have you ever seen a movie where selling crack was a good thing? Nope. Even Nino Brown (New Jack City) got his. (and there are plenty more various examples) I look at this interview as a discussion piece. Not as an fighting argument.

[bigted]

:word: Real talk!

[Vipa]

I pretty much agree with it all, cept for the club comment.

Party starter is a club joint, as is switch, both of which get played at over 18 clubs, but it's still suitable for kids.... But I can feel where he's coming from with that comment. I know what he means.

real talk.

[bigted]

Well most club songs ain't really appropriate for all ages to listen to unless it's done by people like JJFP, MC Hammer, and Run-Dmc 'cause most of them club songs by today's mcs are only about blunts, violence, and hoes which isn't suitable for young audiences even though it's all over TV and radio where mostly kids watch and that needs to be straightened out. There's quite a difference in content between 50 Cent's "In Da Club" and Will's "Gettin' Jiggy Wit It" since 50's talkin' about how Dre's "rollin' that weed up" and Will ain't ever talkin' about that when he says he only bites cigars but don't light 'em.

Edited November 10, 2005 by bigted

[WesSyde]

all i can say is WOW! this is something i can read to my parents (minus the cuss words) and say "see, there's way worse music out there, but i listen to this guy's music and he speaks the truth and he cares and has morals"

real talk, props 2 Phonte

[Silver Tiger]

Great read. Real talk. I look forward to part two.

God Blessa!

[bigted]

Looks like Atlantic is giving Little Brother no promotion 'cause it sold less than 50,000 albums, it's unfortunate that they're trying to get some exposure but they just ain't getting it, I think that their album is probably the best album that came out since "Lost and Found", everyone here should pick that up.