Hezekiah3rd
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
Music
Press
Hezekiah, Philly's Finest
Posted on 10/02/2007
Hezekiah is ill- literally. The multi-talented emcee/ producer/ musician with a sound deeply steeped in Philly's soulful underground hip hop scene is feeling pretty under the weather when he answers the phone on the evening of our interview, and I begin to worry that this may not be a very fruitful exchange. My doubts are put to rest, though; as soon as we begin discussing the topic of music, he audibly perks up and exudes an excitement and passion for doing what he loves that should already be evident to anyone who has heard the man's music.
With a musical upbringing that was equal parts funk, blues, soul, and gospel, Hezekiah really honed his hop hop chops in '93, as he became immersed in the burgeoning Philadelphia underground scene. Hezekiah found himself in the presence of the Legendary Roots Crew, an experience that he definitely credits in shaping his skills behind the boards. "I was traveling from Delaware to Philly all the time," he recalls. "I learned a lot musically and production-wise, being in that circle, especially in trying to make beats sound like a live band."
It was time well spent. Hezekiah's production has been the highlight on his own albums, as well as the work he's done for the likes of Musiq Soulchild, Bilal, Bahamadia, and the Jazzyfatnastees. His 2005 debut album Hurry Up and Wait garnered plenty of positive press, particularly for a deep sound that combined live instrumentation with samples, a practice that still is hard for some to grasp, much to Hez's chagrin.
"I get mad because a lot of times people will be like, ‘Oh man, he just does loops.' The first album is about 65 percent live," he stresses. "It's all about making shit sound like a sample. Most people don't know how to mix live instruments. They forget it's about how the bass sits with the drums- the foundation of the beat. A lot of cats don't study that and so they're just doing live band shit and rhyming over it. You have got to study the foundation."
"And then a lot of people got on me like, ‘Oh, he's not hip hop because he uses live instruments!' And I don't know what these fools think, but I'm like, ‘The records you're sampling is live instruments!'" he laughs. It's evident that this is a topic that has been a long-standing source of frustration, but it hasn't stopped his methodical approach. His latest album I Predict A Riot continues his history of well crafted beat-making and effortless rhyming.
On the emceeing tip, Hezekiah refuses to be confined to one style or subject matter, providing a complex and diverse voice that can go from positively conscious to abrasively raunchy from track to track. Don't think that he's not aware of the contrast- he rejects any type of title that people may try to slap artists with. "We don't set out to be conscious, we just try to do music," he explains. "People confuse the message with how the music sounds. Like Slum Village was far from conscious, they were saying get money, fuck these hoes. Common gets called conscious but that's not always the case, I think he just runs with it. Kurt Cobain ran with the grunge hat- they [Nirvana] considered themselves a punk act. But they ran with it all the way to the bank."
"I think that's where Philly fucked up with the neo-soul thing. When everybody was calling it neo-soul, they should have took it and ran with it. But everybody ran away from it. That's how they fucked up. The whole conscious thing is a label and it's personal. It might be a moment in time that you are going through that mindstate, but the next moment you might want to get on some porn shit. That's why I did the song ‘Conscious Porn' (off Hurry Up and Wait), to label myself before people label me. If people ever tell you they're just one thing, they're lying to you," he laughs. "Don't trust them people."
It's that realistic, complex ideal that drives the idea behind the new album, particularly in its title. "Growing up a troubled teen, I never handled a lot of issues. I'm a conscious cat but I'm also a violent cat. When the Columbine shootings happened, I was sitting there with my girl and as soon as the news came on, I called it: ‘They was picked on.' I could relate to that because I went through a lot of the same things in middle school. Not justifying what they did, but if shit would have been addressed beforehand, the outcome would have been way different. If you don't address or take care of certain issues, shit is bound to pop off. Those type of situations influenced the title of the album."
With the album done, Hezekiah is looking forward to really getting it out there. Recent shows with Mos Def brought the Philly native greater exposure, but now he's looking to branch out on his own. "I'm trying to hop on certain tours, but I'm mostly doing it by myself- which is another thing Rawkus should have taken care of," he mumbles. His relationship with the label hasn't been all that he had hoped. "I don't want to shoot myself in the foot, but I can't hold my tongue on this one. They've got some really dope product. I just don't know why they went on their second venture if they're not gonna put their money behind it. But I'm doing what I gotta do."
With a live show that features a horn section, percussion, and DJ Static, it's an experience that is a different beast from the album. "I was raised watching Run DMC, Public Enemy, Leaders of the New School...I studied that energy, it's definitely not a lazy show or a jazzy show."
Beyond touring, Hezekiah's got more on his plate. A remix album for I Predict A Riot is completed, and he's worked with Oddisee, Illmind, and Nottz to crank out what's sure to be dope material that should see the light of day soon. As a member of Beat Society, he's also working to bring the producer showcase back in January in a bigger and better way. The man truly eats, breathes, and sleeps music- and the end result is a steadily growing catalog that speaks volumes about a true craftsman in his field.
"To all the backpackers and okayplayers, stop complaining about there not being any good music out there! If you're downloading and burning CDs and talking for two hours about how there's no good artists for you, you gotta shut the fuck up, because you have no right to talk," he laughs. "It's like not voting and then complaining about who's in office. So vote- buy music that you want more of. Put your money where your mouth is." Wise words from a wise man who's about to share his predictions with the world.
- Sean Kantrowit - Okay Player
Discography
The Zip / Insecure (12") Unique Entertainment 1997
Gypsy Slang (12") Soulspazm Record 2003
You (12")
Track Team Records 2004
Hurry Up & Wait... (Album) (2 versions) Soulspazm Records 2005
Soul Music (12")
Soulspazm Records 2005
I Predict A Riot (2xLP) Rawkus 2007
Is It Just Music? (12") Soulspazm Records
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Bio
Hurry Up and Wait (Soulspazm Records), the critically acclaimed debut album from Hezekiah, Delaware’s hip hop producer/MC extraordinaire, was supposed to be an album title not a prophecy. Yet, in the five years since its landmark release, Hezekiah’s first full-length project has proven to be a rather frustrating prediction for an artist whose Philly pedigree with The Roots crew had him marked for greatness from day one.
From OkayPlayer to Pitchfork, a month into the release of Hurry Up and Wait, Hezekiah’s debut was just getting the kind of positive critical buzz every artist aspires to when suddenly, without warning the releasing label for Hurry Up… lost distribution. Without further distribution and promotion, a fruitful project, juicy with such luminaries as Santigold, Bahamadia, Grand Agent, and Scratch from The Roots crew, died on the vine. Now a cult classic, Hurry Up and Wait proved only the beginning of the Hezekiah chronicles, not the end.
Undaunted by the dream deferred, the former choirboy stayed true to his purpose and did exactly what his blue-collar upbringing taught him to do: roll up his sleeves and deliver something even meatier to feed those starving for the honest and the real. Released in 2007, I Predict A Riot (Rawkus Records) is a progressive hip hop classic. A-list producers like James Poyser and Scott Storch were hailing Hezekiah’s colossal talent and gritty social consciousness as a welcome antidote to the senselessly violent mediocrity permeating the game, while hard-nosed critics like The Guardian was giving I Predict A Riot four out of five stars and AllMusic.com was naming it one of their favorite “Hip Hop Albums of 2007.” With Hezekiah’s agile keywork, melodic compositions, soulful guests, and conscious lyricism, comparisons to iconic producers like J Dilla, 9th Wonder, and Dr. Dre were credibly being made by some of the toughest sells in the industry.
Just on the heels of becoming a household name, particularly in European markets, Hezekiah again became undone by a faltering label. Rawkus went bankrupt just as the project was hitting store shelves and I Predict A Riot again became Hezekiah’s second casualty to the biz. While the eerily prescient Hurry Up and Wait was seemingly a horoscope for Hezekiah’s MC aspirations, it certainly failed to reflect the man’s scorching production career.
Upon hearing how adroitly Hezekiah framed such Philly royalty as Bilal, Jaguar Wright, and Freeway as the leading producer on I Predict A Riot, Hezekiah was catapulted to the top of every roster’s producer wish list. The self-admitted “musician first” appropriately has credits on the liner notes of East Coast staples like Musiq, Aaries, J-Live, Bahamadia, Pharaoh Monch, Zap Mama, Eric Roberson, The Jazzyfatnastees and Aaron Livingston, with even more major production creds to come throughout the year. The sought-after producer’s streetscapes can also be heard as the musical co-producer on the Showtime original series, Street Time. The self-declared “music nerd” who grew up admiring artist producers like Quincy Jones, Barry White, and J-Dilla is well on his way to joining their ranks. Sometimes being a nerd pays off.
Being a superstar producer may pay the bills, but it doesn’t satiate the griot beast burning a hole inside of Hezekiah’s artistic soul. To feed the need, Hezekiah is roaring back to the mic this summer with his third release, the forthcoming Conscious Porn (from a renewed SoulSpazm Records). Determined that the third time is the charm, Hezekiah is leaving little to chance by again working his newly refined warlock mojo both in front of and behind the boards, with a little help from producers Steve McKie (Estelle, Jill Scott) and Street Orchestra (Baby Blak, Eshon Burgundy). Hipster faves Bilal, Mos Def, Phonte, Cody Chestnutt, and Bahamadia each deliver star-turning performances under Hezekiah’s revealing Conscious Porn lens. Conjuring the spirits of soul and funk influences like Otis Redding and Rick James while infusing the phrasing of such disparate rappers as Kool G Rap and Petie Crack into his distinctive flow, with Conscious Porn Hezekiah is out to prove he’s the kind of artist that has ecstatic crowds shouting “You gotta hear this!” and throwing their cells up to his electric skies.
From the man’s whose scrappy come up began in ‘93 with the legendary Roots crew, Hezekiah is the evolution of conscious rap, if with hood sensibilities. The urban sounds of Conscious Porn are in the vein of Beanie Segal and Native Tongues, even a dash of NWA can be found salting Hezekiah’s musical cauldron. This mystical hip hop revolutionary is coming hard with Conscious Porn to claim the hearts and souls of all hip hop heads for a noble cause: the liberation of self, family, culture, and community.
A movement maker, Hezekiah’s also the director and founder of the Beat Society, a producer collective and interactive experience (www.beatsociety.com) that gives a much
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