DJ Shadow- back in 94/95 after he done a radio show interview, i got to hang out and listen to a 3 hour conversation aboyut music, funk, hip hop, records (all that good shit)bewteen Shadow and the radio host 9a big funk dj) with my young comments/questions thrown in (I was like 15yrs old). Frickin' awesome knowledge dropped which took me years to fully understand. Also Shadow dropped a whole rant on 'edits' and hiphop/jungle (which he summarised on the linear notes of Endtroducing). A definite eye opener.
Kurupt- Interviewed him for a magazine. I was expecting all this hardcore gangster swagger, instead he was playing with his 5 year old daughter, stopping twice in the interview to take care of her...you could here him over the phone being a big softie and dad like. He was also really chilled and wanted me to organise weed for him when he came to Australia 9even though we had just met...hehehe).
Aceyalone- I've spoken with him twice. Difficult to judge. First time he was very arrogant/up himself, lookiing over our shoulders while we praised his music, he was more interested in checking out groupies and shit. Second time was for a internet show, so he was 'working' i guess, and came off as insightful, deep yet funny cat (during the Magnificent City LP launch). He opened up when i spoke Project blowed stuff, a bit freaked I had the first tape and shit.
Sole (Anticon)- I was mad drunk at an after party for them but he was mad cool... i was asking him specific questions on rimes of his...like 'when you say that line 'treat your girl like you treat your TV', what do you mean' and he was actually responding in an enganging manner, very freindly dude, even after i did a massive drunk stumble in front of him, he helped me up. Dose was with hi9m, but he walks with his head up his arse. I didnt speak with Ant, but he took time out to talk beats with one of my freinds and even showed him some tricks on the MPC and shit.
Ohh and I saw George Benson at the airport once..... I said "i love your CTI shit..." he stopped, turned around and gave me a big smile. Dude is Frickin' big man....
some PM me when there's a thread about film directors so I can contribute...
I say we make an exception. Tell it!!!
Actually I do have a couple of musicians...
Madlib -- very chill despite the fact that a late-30-something, hirsute white couple were approaching him about ritually marrying them both, and when he backed away laughing and saying "nah, nah" the man in the couple said, crestfallen "But you're the modern-day Miles Davis."
Jonathan Richman -- as nice as you would expect him to be
MOP -- as nice you would expect Jonathan Richman to be
as for film directors...
Richard Linklater -- very affable but also surprisingly business-minded... and a bit defensive/prickly when it comes to some of his lesser-liked films
Todd Solondz -- predictably nasal but surprisingly chipper and optimistic
Melvin van Peebles -- a class act. full of contagious good humor.
John Waters -- also smooth and couteous, although you get the sense that 95% of his witticisms are pre-rehearsed
Michael Moore -- generous with his time if a little world-weary
Lodge Kerrigan -- nice guy, very earnest, surprisingly normal
David Simon -- nice guy, very driven
Werner Herzog -- amazing storyteller, could read the phone book and entertain
Vincent Gallo -- I could write pages. I strongly suspect that his life is an Andy Kaufman-esque piece of performance art... but that doesn't mean his damaged, pervy persona isn't real. And yet capable of great charm.
Isaac Julien (anyone know or care who he is?) -- arrogant shit-head. worst prick I've ever interacted with.
not first-hand, but I was relieved to hear from a friend recently that David Fincher is the nicest guy in Hollywood.
DJ Swamp - Incredibly nice dude. Just showed up at one of our ASU shows....very humble.
Chuck D - Another nice dude. Didn't get to talk to him much, but he stayed with our friends to take pics. He knew most of the cats were there to see Flav, but he was mad appreciative of those who knew his music and the words.
*side note - When Flav got off the tour bus, he picked up our homegirls son. Kid FREAKED out...I never saw a child cry THAT much in public.
DJ Fat Jack - Very humble cat. Surprised we knew who he was.
Zulu from ATU / X-Clan - Sat and talked with my roommate and I for darn near an hour. Very approachable and very talkative.
Aceyalone - kinda standoffish...asked me for a Newport so I gave him one.
Ab Rude - Hung out with everyone outside after the show and talked with everyone.
Busdriver and 2mex - showed up at random at a show handing flyers for their show across town that was starting later. Actually stayed for some performances and chopped it up with us.
Of course J-Zone and Sheep....
I've got numerous other cats I've run into that nobody here would know unless they were in that region.
Ghostface - Standoffish and not approachable, but came over and thanked everyone individually for working hard on a photo shoot for him. That was classy.
hmmm maybe its just the time you saw him. i thought out of the whole wu he was the coolest one. odb was cool too but that might just of been cause he was Frickin' my homegirl.
cool emcees ive met:
ras kass, xzibit, chino xl (we sat and read the dictionary), masta ace, biggie (met him the day before he was killed), 2pac (hate the music but take him away from the fans and he was a cool mufugga), eminem (take him away from the fans and he was a cool mufugga), red hot lover tone, tragedy, de la (though pos was kinda stuck up), talib, serch, monch, etc
ive met and interviewed so many emcees/producers/djs in the 90s but some not so easy to deal with ones:
pete rock, until we started talking about sampling
the beatnuts, until we started talking about sampling (actually they just didnt give a fuck to be interviewed)
dj skribble can catch a Frickin' beatdown for the fuck i give a shit
busta rhymes was all about himself. super dick to everyone. i didnt mind so much but it did make interviewing him tough.
diamond d was a dick.
these are the ones that stick out in my mind the most.
some nice soul cats:
eddie bo is one of the coolest cats out there. super nice.
the lead singer (whose name escapes) of the electrostats out of new orleans was happy and excited to talk about his music. hadnt heard it in thirty years.
ive met and interviewed so many emcees/producers/djs in the 90s but some not so easy to deal with ones:
pete rock, until we started talking about sampling
busta rhymes was all about himself. super dick to everyone. i didnt mind so much but it did make interviewing him tough.
diamond d was a dick.
these are the ones that stick out in my mind the most.
It's funny you never hear much good about these guys. Especially Pete. I have yet to meet anyone who thought he was a nice guy. I've met dozens who basicly said he's a dick.
I met Mickey Jones, the drummer for The First Edition, last Saturday at a convention. He's a famous character actor, too. Real nice guy. We were talking about psych bands and snare rudiments for a while. He said Mike Post was a real dick.
Phil Ranelin is soft spoken, but really friendly.
Dick Dale is an odd, pervy kind of guy, like what someone else said, but that's probably just probably the image he wants to project. He seems like a solid dude.
I shook hands with Lonnie Jordan a couple of years ago after a show at the Hollywood Bowl. Eccentric, but he appeared to be appreciative of fans.
dollar_binI heartily endorse this product and/or event 2,326 Posts
Dr. Lonnie Smith radiates calm good will, I've never met a more apparently relaxed individual.
DJ Premier: Mad cool, we talked about changing our kids diapers
George Clinton: W.A.S.T.E.D
Beastie boys 9sans Ad-Rock): Jetlagged, not into it at all, but professionally accomodating
Noel and Liam Gallagher: sarcastic, funny, cool
That chump lead singer rom Sugar Ray: too busy basking in the sunshine radiating from his asshole to be human.
Al Jorgenson (ministry): funny, kinda geeky
Michael Franti: one of the nicest guys i have ever met.
Ben Harper: real mellow, jetlagged
Sheryl Crow: B.I.T.C.H
Afrika Bambaataa: nice guy, was impressed that a kid from New Zealand knew of him, i was impressed he knew of New Zealand
sharleen Spiteri (texas): tall, sarcastic
Shirley Manson and Butch Vig: cool as hell, funny and real cool
Bloodhound Gang: weedheads, geeky and cool
Kylie: tiny. really really tiny. sweet, professional
Bobby Gillespie: drunk, stoned, pathetic.
Janes Addiction: detached, polite, overwhelmed
Chuck D: super humble, very cool
Anthony Kiedis: stoned.
Flea: A.S.S.H.O.L.E
David Bowie: came into my record store and brought a Frank Sinatra CD, very very very cool.
Mick Jagger: showpony. social butterfly, very hectic
Garth Brooks: ive said it before and ill say it again: one of the nicest dudes i have EVER met.
ill post more when i remember them.
DocMcCoy"Go and laugh in your own country!" 5,917 Posts
My brother works for a concert promotions agency in the UK, and so works with musicians all the time. He also does artist liaison at a number of the big summer festivals over here, including the Download metal/hard rock event that's superseded the Monsters Of Rock festival at Castle Donington. One year the Jackass guys did an appearance there, and he said that they were the biggest bunch of pricks he's ever worked with. They trashed the backstage area, and a couple of them were even taking dumps in the shared catering area at one point. They got so out of control that he ended up throwing them and their crew off the site. He assures me that Good Charlotte are arseholes as well. He's toured with them a couple of times, and they refuse to talk directly to the in-house crews at the venues, or even the catering staff (bad move, that), and generally display a snotty attitude all round, as if a simple "thank you" every once in a while is a real effort.
When my brother was doing artist liaison for the V festival one year, James Brown was the Sunday night headliner. For reasons he's never been able to figure out, he got roped into acting as the Godfather's impromptu warm-up DJ at extremely short notice, which in this case meant playing music for about a half hour beforehand to get the crowd hyped. Now, my brother doesn't DJ at all, so he had to rush back to his car and grab a dozen or so CDs, several of which were, fortuitously enough, funk and soul compilations. He keeps a stream of crowd-pleasing classics steady bumpin' for twenty minutes of so, and just before JB is due to take the stage, he brings in Aretha's "Respect", and James rushes on just as it's beginning to fade out. By this time, the crowd is going nuts, and James Brown turns to my brother, points straight at him, grabs the mic and says to the crowd, "GIVE IT UP FOR THE DJ!" He told me it was one of the biggest thrills of his life.
Probably the most famous people I've ever met are U2. This was quite some time before they became superstars, but Edge and Bono particularly were friendly and extremely generous with their time. Larry and Adam were cool too, but not to the same extent. Adam was mainly interested in getting his mack on, and Larry seemed somewhat aloof, although I was assured that this was shyness rather than arrogance. I did once see him snap at somebody who was demanding to know why he hadn't had a personal response to a letter he'd sent Larry - a bit of a Stan moment. I spent a good while talking to Bono about Al Green, who he was only just getting into, and I promised to make him a compilation tape from the Al stuff I had at home. Dude even gave me his home address in Dublin (he was still living with his dad at the time) and asked me to mail the tape to him, but I somehow managed to lose the scrap of paper it was written on.
DocMcCoy"Go and laugh in your own country!" 5,917 Posts
On the topic of musicians with a chippy attitude, both Steve Vai and Yngwie "Unleash The Fury" Malmsteen have demanded that Youtube remove the St Sanders fake "shred" videos. The official reason is "copyright infringement", but I suspect it's more to do with them being humourless gits. Another, unnamed, artist has also made the same demand to Youtube, and apparently the smart money is on it being Mr. Happy-Go-Lucky himself, Lars Ulrich.
Interviewed Bluey of Incognito fame once in his studio. All was good, nice coffee, his child rollerskating around the band as they broke for a rest. Bluey was a sweet guy, very personable until the subject of Herbie Hancock's 'This is the Drum' album came up, at which point he started to resemble Satan and blew his cool, ranting and railing against the crapness of said album. And then went back to sweet again. A bit unnerving.
Here's another, almost related. Me: Hello Gilles, hope you don't mind me bothering you, just wondering if I could do a short interview with you, at your convenience of course... Gilles Peterson : No. (turns and walks off).
Some great stories here. Met PUTS on a train briefly after they played a show in Brighton UK.Seemed like cool guys. Also met Paul McCartney on the London to Brighton train.Didn't ever expect to see him on a train.Shook his hand and told him something embarrassing like 'oh man I've loved your music all my life,even Wings.'He was very polite and charming.
some PM me when there's a thread about film directors so I can contribute...
Isaac Julien (anyone know or care who he is?) -- arrogant shit-head. worst prick I've ever interacted with.
Can definitely believe that. Do you happen to have his more recent stuff on DVD? I know it's really meant for projection, but there's probably no other way I'll ever see it up here.
DJ Premier: Mad cool, we talked about changing our kids diapers
one of the nicest dudes for real. ive hung out with him quite a few times. though the first time i met him i was walking around all the ny record labels in 94 with jgrand and we saw him at the payday offices. sat and talked to him and i was like oh shit premo! j was like okay you can talk to him but dont let it drag on too long... i was like what the fuck you talkin bout its premo! 45min later we saw chris lighty and he saved us. i dont mind talking about recording equipment you use for an album but it went on a little longer than i had thought it would. when i brought that story up to him the following year at a dinner we had with some industry folk he just laughed and said yeah i can go on a little bit about that stuff. seriously one of the nicest cats i met.
DJ Premier: Mad cool, we talked about changing our kids diapers
one of the nicest dudes for real. ive hung out with him quite a few times. though the first time i met him i was walking around all the ny record labels in 94 with jgrand and we saw him at the payday offices. sat and talked to him and i was like oh shit premo! j was like okay you can talk to him but dont let it drag on too long... i was like what the fuck you talkin bout its premo! 45min later we saw chris lighty and he saved us. i dont mind talking about recording equipment you use for an album but it went on a little longer than i had thought it would. when i brought that story up to him the following year at a dinner we had with some industry folk he just laughed and said yeah i can go on a little bit about that stuff. seriously one of the nicest cats i met.
I worked as a cashier at Amoeba for awhile, so I ended up ringing up some celebutantes.
I didn't ring him up, but Ghostface did an instore. He was apprently sick that night (i believe he has the Di-uh-beet-us and had a hard time eating a balanced meal that day), but he walked in and was ready to do whatever was asked of him. You could tll he felt out of it, but he was really humbl and appreciative. Very appreciative. He seemed so sincere when he thanked people for coming out and being fans. When he was leaving a cashier yelled out "thanks for coming to the store" and he looked over and seemed embarassed and smiled and thanked her.
I rang up Fred Schneider of the B-52s and immediately had to wash my hands afterwards. Hot water and lots of soap. I think he had pink eye. He creeped me out and grossed me out. He was buying a copy of his solo album on vinyl. I tried to make nice conversation with him and asked him why he was buying it and he said that he buys stuff like that and donates them to charities and they auction them off. That's kind of cool. The typical famous dude shit was being thrown at him, like he was getting free shirts and amoeba bags and everything. He seemed like he could care less. Those pink eyes though! He looked like he had been rubbing his eyes for about 5 minutes straight and then came up to talk to me.
I rang up PB Wolf and he was buying about 20 cds of early 90s bay rap. I think he had a gift certificate too. I talked to him and said something like "are you up here doing a show?" and he sort of perked up a little (he was rather somber and non-smily at first) and seemed happy that I knew who he was.
I rang up Devandra Banhart one time and had no idea who he was. As I rang him up he was rolling a cigarette and spilling tobacco all over my counter. I was thinking "get the fuck out of here you Frickin' hippie" the whole time. After he left, someone was like "do you know who that was?" I decided that I hated Devandra Banhart from that point on. Totally spacey, clueless, and unaware that that eas not the place to make his mess. The icing on my Banhart Hate Cake was reading a quote from him in the Guardian that said Joanna Newsome was "the most important artist alive." I even like Newsome a little, but come on.
- Shandy from season two or 3 of America's Next Top Model. She was cool. We all laughed and I told her she should have won. Ha ha. I really wanted Mercedes to win, but you know.
-Egyptian Lover. He's cool. He's like the coolest dude of his age group. Him and his friend doing dance routines while he juggled doubles and played beats off of an actual 808. There weren't that many people there, but he didn't care. He'll rock it even if there are only 10 people there.
DocMcCoy"Go and laugh in your own country!" 5,917 Posts
- Shandy from season two or 3 of America's Next Top Model. She was cool. We all laughed and I told her she should have won. Ha ha. I really wanted Mercedes to win, but you know.
Shandi is one of my girl's all-time fave ANTM contestants. Hers was a real "Ugly Duckling to Beautiful Swan" transformation, IIRC - you really saw her come out of herself after Makeover Week (I'm revealing a little too much about my TV viewing habits here, aren't I?). Lucky she didn't completely blow it in Milan, although I guess she might have done.
I rang up Fred Schneider of the B-52s and immediately had to wash my hands afterwards. Hot water and lots of soap. I think he had pink eye. He creeped me out and grossed me out. He was buying a copy of his solo album on vinyl. I tried to make nice conversation with him and asked him why he was buying it and he said that he buys stuff like that and donates them to charities and they auction them off. That's kind of cool. The typical famous dude shit was being thrown at him, like he was getting free shirts and amoeba bags and everything. He seemed like he could care less. Those pink eyes though! He looked like he had been rubbing his eyes for about 5 minutes straight and then came up to talk to me.
those pink eyes might be from reefer...I was told he came into the shop here smelling like 80 pounds of weed. This was before i worked here, but it was the day I woke up and said "fuck it, Im gonna drop the 75 bucks on the Bardot LP they have there" I rolled into the shop and said I was gonna buy the Bardot LP, I was told "Fred schnieder just bought it" Fucker.
Lee Gagnon (Canadian jazz great of 'Jeremie' fame): very nice, happy to talk about his music; really excited that people like his breaks; gave me his CV in case I could help find work, which I think was a more a result of ling long hustling than desperation
Henri-Pierre Noel (2 semi-rare Canadian LPs, one cut on the newest Kon and Amir comp): really friendly guy with fantastic stories about playing music in Haiti
Paul Baillargeon (Quebec funky OST arranger): just a little circumspect about bringing his softcore soundtracks when he's made a good fortune scoring Star Trek TNG; owns a salmon fishing lodge in Quebec; generally a nice fellow
Soul Fire DJs: Phillippe Lehman and the other guy whose name I can't remember came to my radio show back in its early very late night days, maybe eight years ago. They were crazy blunted and tried to one up each other with the raer and it was pure comedy--they were all "man, do you know this one" followed by "of course I have that shit, but do you know this one?". I only remember that they introduced me to Brazilian Octopus.
I've been very fortunate. I've only had a small handful of negative interactions with artists (all indie rappers, as it were) but none of them were in an interview context. A few face-to-face convos that stand-out:
Fatlip: This was when his solo CD was originally supposed to drop - I actually don't remember a ton from it except that, towards the end, Fatlip admitted he had been depressed for most his life and hence, why his music reflected those qualities. He was fine as an interview, but there was just something a little "off" under the surface, like people who stare off into the distance at nothing in particular.
Weldon Irvine: Actually, I got a similar feeling talking to Irvine. It wasn't that he lacked focus, but I could sense he was somewhere else during the interview too, like his mind was working some shit out even while we were talking. In hindsight, that still makes me sad to think about.
Gang Starr: Primo was cool, no doubt but I actually had a better interview with Guru who seemed really thoughtful, laid-back and engaged.
De La Soul: I was probably too star struck at the time to pay close attention but I thought all three of them were easy to interview and I remember them talking about what their kids listened to and of course, little of it was hip-hop.
Common: I've interviewed him three times and he's never been anything less than affable. Dude radiates "nice guy" though I still have a hard time forgetting his ridiculously homophobic ranting at the Maritime back in the '90s.
Master P: Consummate professional. Whatever you think about his music, he is a smart MFer, knows how to craft a soundbite, is accessible but you can tell he's carefully crafted how he presents himself. I found Romeo interesting - this was around 2001 so he was probably only 11 - but you could tell he's been groomed for public interaction and responded in like. Not dislikable but mature beyond his years in a way I found a bit disconcerting.
Snoop: A different kind of consummate professional - like P, he knows how to handle himself in a press situation, drops golden soundbites and carries a general air of hyperawareness to all that's going on around him. He's probably the most intimidating artist I've interviewed (though this isn't saying much) and I don't mean in a, "he scares me" way; he's just hyper-focused.
Daz: One of my favorites interviews: it was at one of his pads in South L.A., he was a total joker and Uncle June Bug was also around and they spent most of the time cracking jokes when Daz wasn't feeding his pacu (piranha-related) hot dogs just for show.
Muggs: One cool ass MFer. I spent an inordinate amount of time following him around for this Source piece, including a trip out to the middle-of-nowhere desert, an Alexandria Hotel photo shoot, and at the Fillmore before Cypress Hill performed there. Dude was sharp, thoughtful and a total professional who was considerate to the people around him.
A few phoners:
Diamond D: I found him to be a good interview. Not buddy-buddy friendly but we had a good convo about his work and he kindly pointed out some errors I made in writing about the samples on "Stunts, Blunts." OOF.
James Brown: This was in August, before he passed. You don't talk with James Brown, he talks at you. And you listen. And feel fortunate.
Battlecat: Real nice, a total studio gear freak who liked to break down what he does musically in ways that I rarely found other producers able to articulate.
Cameron Paul: The interview wasn't much to write home about but I learned at the end, that he had moved from the Bay to Nebraska and was a vetenarian technician and realized that the sounds I had been hearing in the background were animals. It was just a trip to consider that arguably the most storied Bay Area DJ of his generation was now working in some animal hospital in Omaha or some shit.
HarveyCanal"a distraction from my main thesis." 13,234 Posts
A few years back, my wife and I stayed in the same hotel in Negril as Anthony B and his enormous entourage. After talking to some of his dudes downstairs, they told me they'd arrange a meeting for me with Anthony...but first I'd have to have a meeting with his manager. After bringing me to their Hummer for a smoke-out session and a preview of Anthony's then-forthcoming cd, an hour or so passed before someone came and found me to inform me that it was time for my meeting with the manager. They brought me over to the next building and never have I had to walk such a gauntlet of imposing posse-members all giving me the scrutinizing eye. There must have been 60 of them lining the hallway all the way from the front door up to the manager's room. Upon meeting the manager, or shall I say don, pleasantries were exchanged and apparently I passed the test...for a meeting with Anthony would be arranged for later that afternoon. And here I must say that I wasn't even requesting an interview or anything...I just wanted to shake the hand of one of my favorite contemporary reggae artists. So again when the time came, someone came and found me and brought me to Anthony who wound up being as friendly as could be.
HarveyCanal"a distraction from my main thesis." 13,234 Posts
All very cool: Cyril Neville, Toots Hibbert, Stephen Marley, Chamillionaire, Big Mike, Devin the Dude, MF Doom, Anthony Hamilton, Sharon Jones, Dizzee Rascal, and M.I.A.
Need to get their shit together: Wiliie Tee, Scarface, and more than anyone else...Ghostface.
Oh yeah, one time I was interviewing Clarence Fountain of the Blind Boys of Alabama over the phone shortly after Ray Charles had passed. Towards the end of our conversation, I asked Mr. Fountain if he had anything to say about Mr. Charles...and to my naive surprise, Mr. Fountain started foaming at the mouth indicting Ray on all sorts of grizzly negatives. Looking back, I should have known better...but damn,
This is really a great thread, guys. I've enjoyed reading it all.
I only have a couple of run-ins to share.
Back in college I helped do sound for a live radio performance for the Greyboy All-Stars. This was in like, '96 before they really really got the hardcore college hippie/phish-head audience. They were all really cool, especially keyboardist Robert Walter, whose work I love. He chatted with me for a minute about the band, working with Greyboy and shit like that. Karl Denson and all them are all bad-ass musicians. I haven't fucked with a show in a minute because of the crowd, but back then they were not to be missed.
I actually DJ'ed a party that Greyboy himself was headlining. It was a weird one. We were the only hip-hop heads in the place, all the dancers were into the spacy afro-tribal-house stuff the host was playing between our sets. We talked about breaks and shit. He was cool enough with me, but I've heard he can be a real dick.
When I worked at Gramaphone, I had my share of rappers come through. Lot of indie west coast dudes like AWOL One and them. Talib Kweli came through when he was in town. He was cool. I rang him up for a copy of his own CD, strangely enough. He's really tall. It was funny to swipe a credit card with the name "TALIB KWELI" on it.
(I had to include it)
HarveyCanal"a distraction from my main thesis." 13,234 Posts
Oh yeah, one time I was supposed to interview the Pharcyde on their tour bus. Instead, they just rolled a few blunts for my wife and me and we all just sat there smoking, laughing, and bullshitting until our time was up. I remember Imani at the end asking...didn't you need to ask some interview questions? My response was...nah, fuck it.
Really? How so? I've never met or spoken with the man, but the folks I know who have say he's cool, if a bit sullen/morose.
One unexpectedly good interaction I should highlight was DJ Rap. My friend was DJing a show with her, and I had been hearing all sorts of stories about diva-ish behavior from the promoters and club folks and whatnot. Now I'm at the show to hang with my friend. I don't know d&b...I don't even like it, really, I'm just some dude hanging in the wings. Rap had little reason to even have interactions with me, much less be nice, but she was mad cool to me, very open and accommodating. I was expecting some bitchy little priss but instead met a really cool, engaging person.
HarveyCanal"a distraction from my main thesis." 13,234 Posts
Need to get their shit together: Scarface
Really? How so? I've never met or spoken with the man, but the folks I know who have say he's cool, if a bit sullen/morose.
Just doesn't know how to agree to do something and then actually do that something he agreed to. A much bigger problem for promoters than for journalists, but still.
I was expecting some bitchy little priss but instead met a really cool, engaging person.
and not to mention the fact that most of us here would say:
James Brown: You don't talk with James Brown, he talks at you. And you listen. And feel fortunate.
This is Chuck Norris website type fact material that has killer potential. I'm serious.
Chuck Norris? You mean like, "You don't listen to James Brown, he decides it's time to you jump in your earhole, turn that sucka out, and leave you a bill on your earlobe when he leaves" type shit? I'm down. We come up with a book of that shit real quick.
Comments
DJ Shadow- back in 94/95 after he done a radio show interview, i got to hang out and listen to a 3 hour conversation aboyut music, funk, hip hop, records (all that good shit)bewteen Shadow and the radio host 9a big funk dj) with my young comments/questions thrown in (I was like 15yrs old). Frickin' awesome knowledge dropped which took me years to fully understand. Also Shadow dropped a whole rant on 'edits' and hiphop/jungle (which he summarised on the linear notes of Endtroducing). A definite eye opener.
Kurupt- Interviewed him for a magazine. I was expecting all this hardcore gangster swagger, instead he was playing with his 5 year old daughter, stopping twice in the interview to take care of her...you could here him over the phone being a big softie and dad like. He was also really chilled and wanted me to organise weed for him when he came to Australia 9even though we had just met...hehehe).
Aceyalone- I've spoken with him twice. Difficult to judge. First time he was very arrogant/up himself, lookiing over our shoulders while we praised his music, he was more interested in checking out groupies and shit. Second time was for a internet show, so he was 'working' i guess, and came off as insightful, deep yet funny cat (during the Magnificent City LP launch). He opened up when i spoke Project blowed stuff, a bit freaked I had the first tape and shit.
Sole (Anticon)- I was mad drunk at an after party for them but he was mad cool... i was asking him specific questions on rimes of his...like 'when you say that line 'treat your girl like you treat your TV', what do you mean' and he was actually responding in an enganging manner, very freindly dude, even after i did a massive drunk stumble in front of him, he helped me up. Dose was with hi9m, but he walks with his head up his arse. I didnt speak with Ant, but he took time out to talk beats with one of my freinds and even showed him some tricks on the MPC and shit.
Ohh and I saw George Benson at the airport once..... I said "i love your CTI shit..." he stopped, turned around and gave me a big smile. Dude is Frickin' big man....
I spent hours talking baseball with Doug....he was a Detroit Tigers fan....great guy who's career is overlooked by many.
Actually I do have a couple of musicians...
Madlib -- very chill despite the fact that a late-30-something, hirsute white couple were approaching him about ritually marrying them both, and when he backed away laughing and saying "nah, nah" the man in the couple said, crestfallen "But you're the modern-day Miles Davis."
Jonathan Richman -- as nice as you would expect him to be
MOP -- as nice you would expect Jonathan Richman to be
as for film directors...
Richard Linklater -- very affable but also surprisingly business-minded... and a bit defensive/prickly when it comes to some of his lesser-liked films
Todd Solondz -- predictably nasal but surprisingly chipper and optimistic
Melvin van Peebles -- a class act. full of contagious good humor.
John Waters -- also smooth and couteous, although you get the sense that 95% of his witticisms are pre-rehearsed
Michael Moore -- generous with his time if a little world-weary
Lodge Kerrigan -- nice guy, very earnest, surprisingly normal
David Simon -- nice guy, very driven
Werner Herzog -- amazing storyteller, could read the phone book and entertain
Vincent Gallo -- I could write pages. I strongly suspect that his life is an Andy Kaufman-esque piece of performance art... but that doesn't mean his damaged, pervy persona isn't real. And yet capable of great charm.
Isaac Julien (anyone know or care who he is?) -- arrogant shit-head. worst prick I've ever interacted with.
not first-hand, but I was relieved to hear from a friend recently that David Fincher is the nicest guy in Hollywood.
DJ Swamp - Incredibly nice dude. Just showed up at one of our ASU shows....very humble.
Chuck D - Another nice dude. Didn't get to talk to him much, but he stayed with our friends to take pics. He knew most of the cats were there to see Flav, but he was mad appreciative of those who knew his music and the words.
*side note - When Flav got off the tour bus, he picked up our homegirls son. Kid FREAKED out...I never saw a child cry THAT much in public.
DJ Fat Jack - Very humble cat. Surprised we knew who he was.
Zulu from ATU / X-Clan - Sat and talked with my roommate and I for darn near an hour. Very approachable and very talkative.
Aceyalone - kinda standoffish...asked me for a Newport so I gave him one.
Ab Rude - Hung out with everyone outside after the show and talked with everyone.
Busdriver and 2mex - showed up at random at a show handing flyers for their show across town that was starting later. Actually stayed for some performances and chopped it up with us.
Of course J-Zone and Sheep....
I've got numerous other cats I've run into that nobody here would know unless they were in that region.
hmmm maybe its just the time you saw him. i thought out of the whole wu he was the coolest one. odb was cool too but that might just of been cause he was Frickin' my homegirl.
cool emcees ive met:
ras kass, xzibit, chino xl (we sat and read the dictionary), masta ace, biggie (met him the day before he was killed), 2pac (hate the music but take him away from the fans and he was a cool mufugga), eminem (take him away from the fans and he was a cool mufugga), red hot lover tone, tragedy, de la (though pos was kinda stuck up), talib, serch, monch, etc
ive met and interviewed so many emcees/producers/djs in the 90s but some not so easy to deal with ones:
pete rock, until we started talking about sampling
the beatnuts, until we started talking about sampling (actually they just didnt give a fuck to be interviewed)
dj skribble can catch a Frickin' beatdown for the fuck i give a shit
busta rhymes was all about himself. super dick to everyone. i didnt mind so much but it did make interviewing him tough.
diamond d was a dick.
these are the ones that stick out in my mind the most.
some nice soul cats:
eddie bo is one of the coolest cats out there. super nice.
the lead singer (whose name escapes) of the electrostats out of new orleans was happy and excited to talk about his music. hadnt heard it in thirty years.
darondo is super nice.
marvin holmes is cool and has some great stories.
Phil Ranelin is soft spoken, but really friendly.
Dick Dale is an odd, pervy kind of guy, like what someone else said, but that's probably just probably the image he wants to project. He seems like a solid dude.
I shook hands with Lonnie Jordan a couple of years ago after a show at the Hollywood Bowl. Eccentric, but he appeared to be appreciative of fans.
Thom Yorke: Cool as hell, shy, we ate lunch
DJ Premier: Mad cool, we talked about changing our kids diapers
George Clinton: W.A.S.T.E.D
Beastie boys 9sans Ad-Rock): Jetlagged, not into it at all, but professionally accomodating
Noel and Liam Gallagher: sarcastic, funny, cool
That chump lead singer rom Sugar Ray: too busy basking in the sunshine radiating from his asshole to be human.
Al Jorgenson (ministry): funny, kinda geeky
Michael Franti: one of the nicest guys i have ever met.
Ben Harper: real mellow, jetlagged
Sheryl Crow: B.I.T.C.H
Afrika Bambaataa: nice guy, was impressed that a kid from New Zealand knew of him, i was impressed he knew of New Zealand
sharleen Spiteri (texas): tall, sarcastic
Shirley Manson and Butch Vig: cool as hell, funny and real cool
Bloodhound Gang: weedheads, geeky and cool
Kylie: tiny. really really tiny. sweet, professional
Bobby Gillespie: drunk, stoned, pathetic.
Janes Addiction: detached, polite, overwhelmed
Chuck D: super humble, very cool
Anthony Kiedis: stoned.
Flea: A.S.S.H.O.L.E
David Bowie: came into my record store and brought a Frank Sinatra CD, very very very cool.
Mick Jagger: showpony. social butterfly, very hectic
Garth Brooks: ive said it before and ill say it again: one of the nicest dudes i have EVER met.
ill post more when i remember them.
When my brother was doing artist liaison for the V festival one year, James Brown was the Sunday night headliner. For reasons he's never been able to figure out, he got roped into acting as the Godfather's impromptu warm-up DJ at extremely short notice, which in this case meant playing music for about a half hour beforehand to get the crowd hyped. Now, my brother doesn't DJ at all, so he had to rush back to his car and grab a dozen or so CDs, several of which were, fortuitously enough, funk and soul compilations. He keeps a stream of crowd-pleasing classics steady bumpin' for twenty minutes of so, and just before JB is due to take the stage, he brings in Aretha's "Respect", and James rushes on just as it's beginning to fade out. By this time, the crowd is going nuts, and James Brown turns to my brother, points straight at him, grabs the mic and says to the crowd, "GIVE IT UP FOR THE DJ!" He told me it was one of the biggest thrills of his life.
Probably the most famous people I've ever met are U2. This was quite some time before they became superstars, but Edge and Bono particularly were friendly and extremely generous with their time. Larry and Adam were cool too, but not to the same extent. Adam was mainly interested in getting his mack on, and Larry seemed somewhat aloof, although I was assured that this was shyness rather than arrogance. I did once see him snap at somebody who was demanding to know why he hadn't had a personal response to a letter he'd sent Larry - a bit of a Stan moment. I spent a good while talking to Bono about Al Green, who he was only just getting into, and I promised to make him a compilation tape from the Al stuff I had at home. Dude even gave me his home address in Dublin (he was still living with his dad at the time) and asked me to mail the tape to him, but I somehow managed to lose the scrap of paper it was written on.
Bluey was a sweet guy, very personable until the subject of Herbie Hancock's 'This is the Drum' album came up, at which point he started to resemble Satan and blew his cool, ranting and railing against the crapness of said album.
And then went back to sweet again.
A bit unnerving.
Here's another, almost related.
Me: Hello Gilles, hope you don't mind me bothering you, just wondering if I could do a short interview with you, at your convenience of course...
Gilles Peterson : No. (turns and walks off).
T**t
Met PUTS on a train briefly after they played a show in Brighton UK.Seemed like cool guys.
Also met Paul McCartney on the London to Brighton train.Didn't ever expect to see him on a train.Shook his hand and told him something embarrassing like 'oh man I've loved your music all my life,even Wings.'He was very polite and charming.
Can definitely believe that. Do you happen to have his more recent stuff on DVD? I know it's really meant for projection, but there's probably no other way I'll ever see it up here.
one of the nicest dudes for real. ive hung out with him quite a few times. though the first time i met him i was walking around all the ny record labels in 94 with jgrand and we saw him at the payday offices. sat and talked to him and i was like oh shit premo! j was like okay you can talk to him but dont let it drag on too long... i was like what the fuck you talkin bout its premo! 45min later we saw chris lighty and he saved us. i dont mind talking about recording equipment you use for an album but it went on a little longer than i had thought it would. when i brought that story up to him the following year at a dinner we had with some industry folk he just laughed and said yeah i can go on a little bit about that stuff. seriously one of the nicest cats i met.
...but xzibit is the nicest.
cosign on preemo. one of the nicest dudes around.
I just wanted to say this quote is hilarious. Like Paul should be aware that Wings was subpar. Awesome.
I didn't ring him up, but Ghostface did an instore. He was apprently sick that night (i believe he has the Di-uh-beet-us and had a hard time eating a balanced meal that day), but he walked in and was ready to do whatever was asked of him. You could tll he felt out of it, but he was really humbl and appreciative. Very appreciative. He seemed so sincere when he thanked people for coming out and being fans. When he was leaving a cashier yelled out "thanks for coming to the store" and he looked over and seemed embarassed and smiled and thanked her.
I rang up Fred Schneider of the B-52s and immediately had to wash my hands afterwards. Hot water and lots of soap. I think he had pink eye. He creeped me out and grossed me out. He was buying a copy of his solo album on vinyl. I tried to make nice conversation with him and asked him why he was buying it and he said that he buys stuff like that and donates them to charities and they auction them off. That's kind of cool. The typical famous dude shit was being thrown at him, like he was getting free shirts and amoeba bags and everything. He seemed like he could care less. Those pink eyes though! He looked like he had been rubbing his eyes for about 5 minutes straight and then came up to talk to me.
I rang up PB Wolf and he was buying about 20 cds of early 90s bay rap. I think he had a gift certificate too. I talked to him and said something like "are you up here doing a show?" and he sort of perked up a little (he was rather somber and non-smily at first) and seemed happy that I knew who he was.
I rang up Devandra Banhart one time and had no idea who he was. As I rang him up he was rolling a cigarette and spilling tobacco all over my counter. I was thinking "get the fuck out of here you Frickin' hippie" the whole time. After he left, someone was like "do you know who that was?" I decided that I hated Devandra Banhart from that point on. Totally spacey, clueless, and unaware that that eas not the place to make his mess. The icing on my Banhart Hate Cake was reading a quote from him in the Guardian that said Joanna Newsome was "the most important artist alive." I even like Newsome a little, but come on.
- Shandy from season two or 3 of America's Next Top Model. She was cool. We all laughed and I told her she should have won. Ha ha. I really wanted Mercedes to win, but you know.
-Egyptian Lover. He's cool. He's like the coolest dude of his age group. Him and his friend doing dance routines while he juggled doubles and played beats off of an actual 808. There weren't that many people there, but he didn't care. He'll rock it even if there are only 10 people there.
Shandi is one of my girl's all-time fave ANTM contestants. Hers was a real "Ugly Duckling to Beautiful Swan" transformation, IIRC - you really saw her come out of herself after Makeover Week (I'm revealing a little too much about my TV viewing habits here, aren't I?). Lucky she didn't completely blow it in Milan, although I guess she might have done.
those pink eyes might be from reefer...I was told he came into the shop here smelling like 80 pounds of weed. This was before i worked here, but it was the day I woke up and said "fuck it, Im gonna drop the 75 bucks on the Bardot LP they have there" I rolled into the shop and said I was gonna buy the Bardot LP, I was told "Fred schnieder just bought it" Fucker.
Henri-Pierre Noel (2 semi-rare Canadian LPs, one cut on the newest Kon and Amir comp): really friendly guy with fantastic stories about playing music in Haiti
Paul Baillargeon (Quebec funky OST arranger): just a little circumspect about bringing his softcore soundtracks when he's made a good fortune scoring Star Trek TNG; owns a salmon fishing lodge in Quebec; generally a nice fellow
Soul Fire DJs: Phillippe Lehman and the other guy whose name I can't remember came to my radio show back in its early very late night days, maybe eight years ago. They were crazy blunted and tried to one up each other with the raer and it was pure comedy--they were all "man, do you know this one" followed by "of course I have that shit, but do you know this one?". I only remember that they introduced me to Brazilian Octopus.
Fatlip: This was when his solo CD was originally supposed to drop - I actually don't remember a ton from it except that, towards the end, Fatlip admitted he had been depressed for most his life and hence, why his music reflected those qualities. He was fine as an interview, but there was just something a little "off" under the surface, like people who stare off into the distance at nothing in particular.
Weldon Irvine: Actually, I got a similar feeling talking to Irvine. It wasn't that he lacked focus, but I could sense he was somewhere else during the interview too, like his mind was working some shit out even while we were talking. In hindsight, that still makes me sad to think about.
Gang Starr: Primo was cool, no doubt but I actually had a better interview with Guru who seemed really thoughtful, laid-back and engaged.
De La Soul: I was probably too star struck at the time to pay close attention but I thought all three of them were easy to interview and I remember them talking about what their kids listened to and of course, little of it was hip-hop.
Common: I've interviewed him three times and he's never been anything less than affable. Dude radiates "nice guy" though I still have a hard time forgetting his ridiculously homophobic ranting at the Maritime back in the '90s.
Master P: Consummate professional. Whatever you think about his music, he is a smart MFer, knows how to craft a soundbite, is accessible but you can tell he's carefully crafted how he presents himself. I found Romeo interesting - this was around 2001 so he was probably only 11 - but you could tell he's been groomed for public interaction and responded in like. Not dislikable but mature beyond his years in a way I found a bit disconcerting.
Snoop: A different kind of consummate professional - like P, he knows how to handle himself in a press situation, drops golden soundbites and carries a general air of hyperawareness to all that's going on around him. He's probably the most intimidating artist I've interviewed (though this isn't saying much) and I don't mean in a, "he scares me" way; he's just hyper-focused.
Daz: One of my favorites interviews: it was at one of his pads in South L.A., he was a total joker and Uncle June Bug was also around and they spent most of the time cracking jokes when Daz wasn't feeding his pacu (piranha-related) hot dogs just for show.
Muggs: One cool ass MFer. I spent an inordinate amount of time following him around for this Source piece, including a trip out to the middle-of-nowhere desert, an Alexandria Hotel photo shoot, and at the Fillmore before Cypress Hill performed there. Dude was sharp, thoughtful and a total professional who was considerate to the people around him.
A few phoners:
Diamond D: I found him to be a good interview. Not buddy-buddy friendly but we had a good convo about his work and he kindly pointed out some errors I made in writing about the samples on "Stunts, Blunts." OOF.
James Brown: This was in August, before he passed. You don't talk with James Brown, he talks at you. And you listen. And feel fortunate.
Battlecat: Real nice, a total studio gear freak who liked to break down what he does musically in ways that I rarely found other producers able to articulate.
Cameron Paul: The interview wasn't much to write home about but I learned at the end, that he had moved from the Bay to Nebraska and was a vetenarian technician and realized that the sounds I had been hearing in the background were animals. It was just a trip to consider that arguably the most storied Bay Area DJ of his generation was now working in some animal hospital in Omaha or some shit.
Need to get their shit together: Wiliie Tee, Scarface, and more than anyone else...Ghostface.
Oh yeah, one time I was interviewing Clarence Fountain of the Blind Boys of Alabama over the phone shortly after Ray Charles had passed. Towards the end of our conversation, I asked Mr. Fountain if he had anything to say about Mr. Charles...and to my naive surprise, Mr. Fountain started foaming at the mouth indicting Ray on all sorts of grizzly negatives. Looking back, I should have known better...but damn,
I only have a couple of run-ins to share.
Back in college I helped do sound for a live radio performance for the Greyboy All-Stars. This was in like, '96 before they really really got the hardcore college hippie/phish-head audience. They were all really cool, especially keyboardist Robert Walter, whose work I love. He chatted with me for a minute about the band, working with Greyboy and shit like that. Karl Denson and all them are all bad-ass musicians. I haven't fucked with a show in a minute because of the crowd, but back then they were not to be missed.
I actually DJ'ed a party that Greyboy himself was headlining. It was a weird one. We were the only hip-hop heads in the place, all the dancers were into the spacy afro-tribal-house stuff the host was playing between our sets. We talked about breaks and shit. He was cool enough with me, but I've heard he can be a real dick.
When I worked at Gramaphone, I had my share of rappers come through. Lot of indie west coast dudes like AWOL One and them. Talib Kweli came through when he was in town. He was cool. I rang him up for a copy of his own CD, strangely enough. He's really tall. It was funny to swipe a credit card with the name "TALIB KWELI" on it.
This is Chuck Norris website type fact material that has killer potential.
I'm serious.
Really? How so? I've never met or spoken with the man, but the folks I know who have say he's cool, if a bit sullen/morose.
One unexpectedly good interaction I should highlight was DJ Rap. My friend was DJing a show with her, and I had been hearing all sorts of stories about diva-ish behavior from the promoters and club folks and whatnot. Now I'm at the show to hang with my friend. I don't know d&b...I don't even like it, really, I'm just some dude hanging in the wings. Rap had little reason to even have interactions with me, much less be nice, but she was mad cool to me, very open and accommodating. I was expecting some bitchy little priss but instead met a really cool, engaging person.
Just doesn't know how to agree to do something and then actually do that something he agreed to. A much bigger problem for promoters than for journalists, but still.
and not to mention the fact that most of us here would say:
Chuck Norris? You mean like, "You don't listen to James Brown, he decides it's time to you jump in your earhole, turn that sucka out, and leave you a bill on your earlobe when he leaves" type shit? I'm down. We come up with a book of that shit real quick.