Bizz Brown’s Tour Life Pt 3- Pharoahe Monch

July 15, 2010 by Dark Arkansa
Filed under Dope Ish, WHAT'S GOING ON ?

Tour Life – Pharoahe Monch

If you’re going to talk to Pharoahe Monch, you better be ready to just slow down, take a breath and listen. Anything but your typical hot shot, fast talkin New York rapper, Pharoahe speaks on his own time. If you jump in, he doesn’t talk over you. When he tells stories, he does it in slow, thought out phrases reflecting intense focus. Yet answering a question provokes an almost distracted look as he sifts through the ideas in his head before deciding what to say next. It’s an interesting demeanor for a man legendary for brash, in your face songs like “Simon Says” and “Fuck You.”

“He always got jewels though,” explains Joell Ortiz. “If you sit down and kick it with Pharoahe, he always got something to tell us. He always got a little insight. He’s very unselfish with that too. He’s always willing to give himself and his words of wisdom to a younger class of MCs in his eyes. You know sometimes we’ll be sitting there cracking jokes and Pharoahe will say something and everybody will turn and listen because he usually got some good shit to say.”

So I asked Pharoahe if he’d ever dissed another rapper and not released the song. After nearly a five second pause, he told me he was never into dissing people for the entertainment and “so if I dissed someone I would have to really have hate for them. And (pausing again and putting his forehead in his palm) I try not to let myself go there, because I have a dark side.” He delivers it with authentic uncertainty, as if he’s fully aware of the conflicting parts of his personality.

“That’s the type of dude he is,” explains DJ Dames Nellas. “You can tell he’s on a next level of thinking. He doesn’t see shit the way you and I would see shit. He’s on some next spiritual involvement where it’ll take him away.”

Yet even as his words are spoken softly, Pharoahe’s stage show is explosive and passionate. You can count on “Simon Says” every night to blow the top off the party. With his left t-shirt sleeve rolled up, he anchors the center of the stage as his hype man and singer Showtime dances around, behind and beside him. He claims the stage like a true veteran and by the middle of his set has total control over every crowd. It’s evident; he’s transformed by his element.

On tour, he’s quiet, but you always know he’s there.

“P was cool though,” explains DJ Dames Nellas. “He was more or less just there the entire time. P reminds me of that dude that rolls in your click that’s just always there. Always down for anything. Anything going down, P going to be there. You might not necessarily know he’s there but he’s there.”

I witnessed that first hand in Whistler when Pharoahe suddenly appeared next to me outside the 7/11. No security, no entourage, just a humble man looking for breakfast.

“We call him the wizard,” says Royce Da 5’9. “He’s like a wizard, man. He knows everything!”

“He always speaks like it’s his last breath (imitates Godfather croaking voice) ‘One time….in Aspen,’” jokes Joell Ortiz. “And he always gotta make you do something, ‘Yo reach over there and pass me that (imitating Pharoahe).’”

It seemed the more I heard about Pharoahe, the more I realized the pieces we get through his music are really just the tip of the iceberg. There’s an entirely different beast below the surface.

That’s Tour Life with Pharoahe Monch.

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Tags: Bizz Brown, Hip Hop Ain't Dead It Lives In The North, Peter Jackson, pharoahe monch

Tour Life Pt 2 Peter Jackson

July 7, 2010 by Dark Arkansa
Filed under Dope Ish, WHAT'S GOING ON ?

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Tour Life Part Two
Peter Jackson

“I just want this so bad,” says Peter Jackson. It’s almost 4 a.m. in Whistler, British Columbia as he sits on the hotel balcony, trying to wind down. It’s been a turbulent tour for the young rapper. Riding on the tour bus with Slaughterhouse and Pharoahe Monch means he’s been isolated from the rest of the crew. He found out mid-way through the tour that one of his close friends was arrested for a violent crime. And earlier that night he was shaken by a heated argument with Concrete Guerilla Clothing owner Duxx. His will has definitely been tested. And interestingly enough, that is exactly what he prides himself on.

“I might not be the best lyricist, but I swear I want it more than anyone doing it,” he says with vulnerable passion in his voice. He looks out towards the mountains and then down at the floor, deep in thought with his hands on his head. He’s struggling to make sense of things. And with so much going on – an album on the way, several videos in production, a distribution deal with Fontana, a new boutique label (Richmond Street Records) and his first tour since a near fatal car crash ended his time on with Tech N9ne in March – who can blame him for showing his emotions.

Peter Jackson started his run back in Durham, Ontario years ago. I met him during my days at Crack House Radio when he’d drop in to promote his latest show at The Big Sexy in Oshawa. Joe Budden, Wu Tang, KRS One and the list goes on – Peter Jackson is the face of hip hop events east of Toronto.

He’d often purchase the Durham date of any given tour, sell tickets and make himself and his crew 90Nickel the opening acts. With so much invested into each show, it was a risky method of getting attention, but it worked. Since then, he’s toured the country five times with Naughty By Nature, Tech N9ne, D12, Busta Rhymes and Akon. It’s been in large part due to his growing relationship with booking agent Chris McKee, who met Jackson after he won a contest that promised a contract with the McKee Agency.

“I get a phone call from this artist in Oshawa saying ‘Ya I won this contest. When are we going on tour?” says Mckee. “I just liked how they were hungry. I was like ‘well I’m not going to put you on tour, but send me your music and lets keep in contact and I’ll see where we can do some stuff together.”

Jackson started buying the aforementioned shows on McKee Agency tours. By November 2008, Mckee placed Jackson on the Never Say Never Tour with Royce Da 5’9, Joe Budden, D12 & Classified.

“I got nothing but good reviews from club owners that they were good people, the [club owners] loved the show, they didn’t give them a hard time,” says Mckee.

As the relationship grew, Jackson would later invite McKee to be his manager as well.

Fast forward to 2010, a make or break year for Jackson. His debut album “In My Life” is slated for summer and his new single “Ma Ma” featuring Die Mannequin is weeks away from release at the time of tour.

“This is such a personal song and I’m so happy it can be my first single,” says Jackson back at his Durham studio prior to tour. Referring to Die Mannequin lead singer Care Failure, Jackson jokes “This girl is like Cher with death written across her forehead.”

On tour, the single is consistently the most potent part of his set. Along with DJ Dames Nellas, Jackson invites the crowds to put their lighters in the air before the intense, soulful hook blares “My mama told me when I was young…Just take your time child, life has just begun.”

And just as the intensity builds, the crowd can finally reach out and touch the Peter Jackson he seems more ready to show them. The lyrics bear family references and somber, reflective tones which often energize the crowd to share in the lighter-illuminated atmosphere. And forging this connection with his audience is key for an artists banking on his intense tour grind to fuel interest in his debut album. Because while his hustle is becoming notorious, the connection between him and his fans is still building. And ultimately, Peter Jackson admits this is one of the most important songs he’s ever written.

And with a radio run in the preliminary stages and a gripping new video now released online, its crunch time for Peter Jackson.

That’s Tour Life with Peter Jackson

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Tags: Bizz Brown, KOTD, Peter Jackson, tour life