Mos Def

Mos Def (b. December 11th, 1973)
a.k.a. Dante Smith, Dante Smith

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BLACK STAR STILL SHINING
Rap's Most Engaging New Activist Mos Def Discusses His Luminous Solo Debut, 'Black on Both Sides'
In 1998 the socially conscious lyrics of Black Star's self-titled album brought a glimmer of hope to the underground rap scene. Powered by ambitiously poetic jousts of Mos Def and Talib Kweli, the disc evoked the boho spirit of Native Tongue neo-nationalism, mixing old school back and forth raps with bouyant '90s rhythms. Now, Mos Def (né Dante Smith) has delivered on the promise of that debut with a searing solo project. Layering soul-jazz vibes, spoken word chants, and a smidgen of hard rock atop pulsing bass kicks, BLACK ON BOTH SIDES, blends his Afrocentric perspective with elemental b-boy boasts. Mos is a raptivist for all seasons. Together with Kweli he has bought Brooklyn's Nkiru Books, started a foundation to save the institution of black activism and learning, and recently assembled EPMD's Parrish Smith, De La Soul's Posdnuos, Kool G. Rap, Brand Nubian, Doug E. Fresh, et al. to cut "Hip-Hop For Respect," a three-song benefit single in response to the police shooting of West African immigrant Amadou Diallo. Finally, Mos, who has graced TV screens with a supporting role on NYPD Blue, will appear in a forthcoming Spike Lee joint. bn.com editor Brett Johnson talks with Mos about how he balances his raptivist leanings with his pursuit of the perfect rhyme.

barnesandnoble.com: In several publications you and Kweli have been heralded as everything from the "Sons of Garvey" to the "Future of Hip-Hop." Do you feel pressure to live up to those labels?

Mos Def: I'm sort of like anal ambivalent about the whole press relationship, you know? Because the media, has to paint things in broad strokes. I'm an independent thinker. And I'm not the poster child for any movement. I'm trying to support whatever's right no matter where it is.

bn.com: With all the community activism you've been involved in recently, it seems that you're not the average musician though.

MD: Historically, black musicians have done those things. Bob Marley performed the "One Love Peace" concert in Jamaica with the two different warring political sides [Prime Minister Michael Manley and opposition leader Edward Seaga.] There's always been that in black music and culture in general. It's no surprise because black music is such a reflection of what's going on in black life. It's not unusual for hip-hop. We were pre-dated by [New York rapper posse cut], "Self-Destruction" by 15 years. There was H.E.A.L. project by KRS-One and "All in the Same Game" from the West Coast rappers.

bn.com: So part of motivation to make conscious raps like the "Hip-Hop For Respect" project and other things you've done comes from your cultural ancestors?

MD: Conscious is a term a lot of people are throwing around. Conscious as opposed to "asleep" rap? I would hope that everyone would want to be conscious. Consciousness is being awake. [Besides] black people keep getting shot by police all over the country for nothing. It was an international embarrassment that a working class immigrant with no criminal record was murdered on these shores. [There's others like] Tyisha Miller in Los Angeles, the brother in Jasper, Texas, just violence against blacks. There was a brother who got shot here in Brooklyn recently. That's something that all black people need to be concerned about.

bn.com: In one of the lyrics on your debut, BLACK ON BOTH SIDES, you call the music industry "a better built cellblock." Why?

MD: Record companies are not necessarily interested in you realizing your artistic dream. The bottom line is that they got to sell records. Sometimes they seem to be really insensitive to people who make records -- which is sort of backwards. Because if you start frustrating the people who make records, then you're not going to be as successful selling records.

bn.com: Considering the obstacles, what are some of the ideas you're trying to express on your first solo album? What is the title's significance?

MD: There are a lot of different dimensions to a lot of the music I like and the type of music I'm doing. Everything I'm doing in music is not just straight up hip-hop. It doesn't mean it's any less black or any less real. I just wanted to communicate that so many of the origins of music are black anyway. You could be doing straight up rock and roll and that's black. I just like to widen the definition of what black is [and] to shake off that alternative label that people tend to throw on artists that are just doing whatever comes naturally. To me, playing an instrument and singing, all of these different things are just as natural to me as rhyming. I'm very resistant to any type of label -- the super b-boy label, the conscious label -- people are always trying to figure out what to call you. But I'm just an MC, man.