A lot of people haven’t been that exposed to Fela. Having the involvement on the production side of Beyonce and Jay-Z and Will and Jada Pinkett-Smith helped.
What can hip-hop artists learn from Fela!?
Hip-hop is not a monolith, there are ways to stand up for what you believe in and you can use music as that tool. Hip hop has gotten away from it a lot. It’s about bling, chicks and kicks which have their place. There is a whole other world and whole other aspect that going on in the world that are affecting people.
Hip-hop artists have that potential to be changers, tastemakers and trendsetters. We see it in liquor, jewelry. The same can be said about social issues, humanitarian issues that affect their communities. It doesn’t have to be worldly it can start out on in your own ‘hood like the violence in Chicago, Trayvon Martin. The difference is Fela would write about that. He would sing about that. There’s a level of taking responsibility for what’s going on in your world in your area.
What did you learn about Fela! In preparing for this role?
Learned about his mother’s power and commitment. She had as a woman created a really complex man that created such intersting provocative music. His people were very, very powerful intelligent people as well. He was a lot more than met the eye.”
What was the biggest challenge in playing this role?
It was an incredibly physical role. It was the most demanding role in theatrical history. This was another level of endurance of vocal preparations, meditation and being grounded to play the role.
What Hip-Hop Can Learn From Fela! was originally published on oldschool1053.com
