Fatlip Interview with Mint Magazine!

The first time that I fell in love – fully, head over heels in love – was with The Pharcyde’s album ‘LabCabinCalifornia’. Listening to it on repeat, over and over again, I would always have those songs stuck in my head as I sat in class, took the bus, waited tables or tried to get to sleep at night. Infatuated by those hypnotic beats and poetic images – perfectly capturing moments of longing and confusion so real, so heartfelt and so easy to relate to. Entirely absorbed by the heady production of ‘She Said’ and it’s haunting samples, the song hooked me with Fatlip’s honeyed rhymes and unforgettable lines like: ‘we was chillin’ on the bed bumpin some Isley/ thought I was bout to spread the thighs, but she surprised me! (when she said; ‘oh like that?? You know I don’t get down…’)’

Gifted and candid, Fatlip is a true artist – his music’s lyrical honesty allows fans to connect with him on a deep level and can, at times, open him up to being pretty vulnerable. Whether sharing jaw-droppingly funny stories as in ‘Oh Shit’ or relating feelings of self-loathing in ‘What’s Up Fatlip?’, as an emcee he has always gone that extra mile for the sake of his craft. Laying yourself bare on a record, sharing the less flattering moments as well as the hilarious is an incredibly admirable thing to do – especially when the results are as profound and affecting as Fatlip’s offerings solo and with The Pharcyde are.

So, it was a great privilege to sit down with Fatlip at the Delicious Vinyl offices recently and get into some deep chat about Hip Hop, The Pharcyde, his solo work, touring, dancing and what’s in store for the future…

Could you start by describing your relationship with rap and hip hop – how you see that relationship and how it’s developed since you started out musically?

My relationship with hip hop? I just always feel blessed because it’s something that I really loved to do, and I was fortunate enough to be welcomed into the hip hop community when everything first came out. On our first record we were working with people that we were personally fans of – A Tribe Called Quest, De La Soul- all of them. I just remember how it was being a fan of hip hop and then having fans of my own as a hip hop artist –it was an amazing feeling of accomplishment.

A progression of going from being a fan yourself to having your own fans?

Yeah, well I know the look – I’ll have someone recite my lyrics or know every song on the album – and I definitely remember approaching someone who I admired like that. So, to be the person that has fans who listen to their shit like I used to listen to KRS-One or something…

So you can relate to your fans on a really personal level?

Oh yeah. Oh definitely – personal. We always had this natural approach to making records, so I think the fans, our true fans, they know us pretty much. We put a lot of ourselves into the music, so they know a lot about us and they get a sense of who we are.

Your rhymes do always feel quite personal and I was wondering whether generally you always write from experience or if you imagine scenarios and write from the position of having created a story?

I think for me I’ve always written from experience. It’s just easier because it’s something that’s on your mind; your experiences are what affect you the most – you walk around thinking about what happened and certain situations all the time. And when you write you get a chance to talk about it. Aside from like ‘Ya Mama’ – pretty much all of our songs were based on, we got our material from, real life.

Your solo album ‘The Loneliest Punk’ always seems like such an introspective and reflective work – when you were working on that, to what extent do you feel like you were consciously looking into yourself?

Well, during that time period there were a few things going on; I was working on the record, then I was also coming out of being in this whole other lifestyle being a part of a group and touring. When I was working on my first solo record I had lived this whole other experience that finally had come to an end – my Pharcyde days touring and my whole showbiz experience – and I was able to calm down from that. So, I was definitely reflecting on the past five or six years of my life. I was actually doing a lot of meditating too – not necessarily so much for the record, but I was having a kid at the time and a lot of things were going on where it was a turning point in my life. I was thirty so there were a lot of changes in my life at that time. It wasn’t fun having to think about all the shit that’s going on in your life, but it definitely made for a lot of material to write about.

So do you think it’s natural that your art would reflect what you’re going through at the time? That your music tends to reflect the life-stage that you’re at?

I would say the next record that I make probably won’t because I don’t think of my situations in life the same way – I’m able to separate my personal life from music. It’s good to make records like that and there’s a lot of people who like those types of records, but most people like to party and have fun, or just escape and think about something else aside from problems – whether it is theirs or mine. So probably the next record will have a broader range of subjects, not so much about what’s going on with me and things like that.

What stage are you at with your next record?

Well, I’m ready to start making it. It took me a long time to want to make another record, and then it took some time to figure out which direction I wanted to go in and felt comfortable doing; what kind of record I want to make and how I want to make it. So I’m starting off slow going to the studio – falling back into it gradually, mostly by doing features on friends work. I’m just trying to work as much as possible; it’s not so much about me coming out with a solo album.

How does working solo differ to being in a band?

There are advantages and disadvantages of being solo – I would say there are more advantages, but it’s also more responsibility and more work. With a band – everyone has to decide, and everyone has ideas that need to be heard – but everyone’s ideas can’t get used. So, sometimes problems arise from that; from one person wanting things to go this way and another wanting things to go that way. When you’re by yourself, it’s not so hard to figure out where you want to go – you just have to have the courage to go there and get on, and then the work ethic to get it done.

Do you find it more satisfying not having to compromise on your ideas when you’re solo?

Oh yeah, it’s very satisfying. Not to say that your ideas are always going to be good, but at least you get a chance to know whether or not they were good, you know?

Yeah. It’s like in life it’s always better to go for something and then look back and see that it didn’t work than to always be wondering if you’d tried or done that thing…

And then sometimes you know something’s going to work and it does – and it’s just great, because you knew it all along.

It’s coming up to twenty years after Bizarre Ride came out – how does it feel looking back at that now?

That is a good question, because I had no idea I would even be looking back on it – because at that age, that time, it was very much about living in the moment, and that’s how a lot of the stuff was getting created. We had no concept of the future, we didn’t really ever think about it – so looking back on it now it’s amazing to see how hip hop has influenced the youth of today. The nineties was an incredible era, so much so that most of the things that went on in the nineties are still influencing what’s going on now. I had no idea what type of fan-base, who was gonna be into us – and to meet those people and see or hear what they loved about what we did is amazing because we never really thought or had any kind of concept about time. We knew we wanted to get a record deal, be like Tribe Called Quest, go on the road and make money – but, that was the extent of what we knew about what we were doing. So much stuff has happened past that – the name Pharcyde means something now. Anytime that there’s a top five hip hop chart of all time, Pharcyde is in there every time. We’re either in the top ten or top five and that is very, very satisfying. And it kinda sucks because I wish The Pharcyde…that we were all still cool. We could still be touring right now and making money with Pharcyde, cos people love The Pharcyde.

So even though it’s this really amazing thing there’s a sad tinge to it?

Yeah, there is a little bit because…damn – we really accomplished something. I just remember being young and seeing some old rockers like The Rolling Stones – they were still cool…

The music that The Pharcyde produced – not only is it cited as classic, but it can really mean so much to fans on an intimate level – is it ever hard to get your head around thinking of all the different people being touched by something you created?

Well, I can fathom it because I know how much, you know, I love James Brown – or how much I love Wu Tang and Tribe. To have fans that love your shit is just… I mean, because it could have not happened – maybe if one element of the process didn’t happen, none of it would have happened, you know? So, that part of it I trip out about; how I met all the other guys and how easily it just could not have happened.

How would you compare Bizarre Ride to LabCabinCalifornia – how do you see the two albums differently?

There was more of a theme on Bizarre Ride – the approach was different because it was a little bit more organic; we were new, we didn’t know anything about the industry and it was a more fun record I guess because we were more innocent. LabCabin – we had been touring for four years and we got to know the business, and travelled a lot. The production is a lot different too – Bizarre Ride was a lot of jazz samples and seventies soul influences, and LabCabin – it was all J Dilla. I like Bizarre Ride the best actually.

There’s just always been something about LabCabin that’s always been my favourite.

That’s funny – I noticed that there’s a generation of people that are ten years or younger than we are that all say the same thing that LabCabin.


I wonder why that is – how tastes change, I don’t know. When you listen back to the older music can you listen to it just as music? Or does it always bring back memories and associations?

Well, we never listened to it as music.

You didn’t?

No, never did.

That’s a really strange thought actually.

Well, as time passes I’m able to listen to it as music more – I guess because I’m further away from it, I’m less connected to it.

There’s a distance?

Yeah, there’s a distance. During the making of it? No, we never listened to it. I didn’t really enjoy the process of making it – that’s why I was a little surprised that we did so well. It was a fun record to listen to, at least that’s what a lot of people have said, but it wasn’t necessarily fun making it – not really, it was a lot of work. Say for instance when we were on tour, we never rolled around and listened to our music. I did mushrooms one time – this is a long time ago, ten or twelve years ago, and I listened to Bizarre Ride and that was the first time where I realised what all the hoopla was about. I was like ‘wow-this is really, really amazing’.

That’s hilarious!

It’s one of those things that when you work on something, you’re not able to enjoy it like everyone else.

So if the recording process wasn’t fun – what would you say the fun part was?

Of the whole experience? The shows, touring; the more fans, the bigger the shows and the more fans that we got, the more fun it got. I would definitely say the shows were when the work was not so much work, just a performance that you didn’t really have to think too much about.

You’ve got a background in dancing so I was wondering how you see dance and music? Whether you see them as separate ways of expressing yourself or whether they link up?

Oh they totally link up – because dancing lets you get into the song; you can get into the song and the beat beyond just listening to it – you’re interacting with the music. I think especially when you start sweating it becomes a whole other experience… It’s just another way to get into the music and feel it.

Could you pick out a proudest moment or accomplishment from your musical path so far?

I would have to choose our first trip to New York – which was my first trip anywhere – we were doing a showcase and it was our first time in New York. It was my first time travelling and doing a show outside of LA. I would say it was the proudest moment because New York was a major influence in Hip Hop, because it came from The Bronx, and they showed us a lot of love, a lot of respect – so, that really meant a lot.

To go in those circumstances, with The Pharcyde, must have been so exciting if you’d not travelled much before?

At all. I hadn’t been on a plane until then.

How did that feel?

Surreal. Like I said, everything was day-by-day – everything was in the moment and that was how we recorded a lot of the record too. A lot of it was freestyle and improvising and when we were high – we created a lot of stuff that way.

When did you first come to Europe? You mentioned you came to London one time…

Oh I’ve been to London plenty – but the first time? I would say probably somewhere in like 94. I just remember when I was over there I didn’t realise that the pound was worth twice as much as the dollar – and I was on the phone for probably like three hours at a hotel being charged for overseas.

That would have been pricey…do you remember how much??

Like $2000, no it was like £2000 – no, maybe $2000…

That’s not a good memory of London. Are there any places you’ve toured before that you want to go back to?

All over – definitely want to go back to London. I just want to get back out there – I want to hit the world again. I’m definitely excited about doing some more work and getting it out into the world. I hope all my old fans support me and that I can gain some new fans.

Of course. Well, thank you.

Next month Fatlip is coming to European shores on tour – so be sure to head down to Scala in Kings Cross on the 6th February to see Fatlip spin it on the deejay tip!

Words:

Alice Price-Styles.