Tru Connection

Interview With Tru Connection
by: PromoFM
Tru Connection Interview

WHEN DID YOU FIRST GET INTERESTED IN LISTENING TO HIP-HOP?

Phil Cook: Growing up in the Southside of Columbus, the only music listened to within my community was hip-hop, so I was interested as soon as I was old enough to process it, maybe at age 6 or 7.

Kai: Uh…. About 6th grade I’d say… That’s when I really started to immerse myself in the world of Hip Hop. However, I do remember listening to 2Pac way back when I was only 5 or 6 years old because my mom liked some of his songs (not all…). In 6th grade I started listening to Jay-z, Nas, Eminem, and other big artists. I didn’t really have a developed taste within the genre itself at that point so I kind of just listened to what sounded good. I wasn’t really thinking about the message behind the lyrics at that point in time.

WHO WERE SOME FAVORITE ARTISTS EARLY IN YOUR LIFE AS A RAP FAN?

PC: Growing up, I was always a huge fan of Jay-Z and OutKast. I also was a big fan of Notorious BIG, Will Smith, DMX, Pac, etc. But when I was 14, Kanye West's debut album influenced me and he became my favorite artist in Hip Hop.

K: Jay-Z and Eminem without question. I was, and still am to a certain extent, a big fan of “The Eminem Show”. That was my first Eminem album and I was blown away by his delivery and his skills on the mic. I knew just by listening to his lyrics that he had some serious issues in his personal life but I only focused on his lyrical ability which is phenomenal. Jay-Z was so appealing to me because his lyrics were very clever and the fact that he never actually wrote his rhymes was mind boggling to me. I would sit there and listen like: “How does he do it?” “How does he make a great album like “The Blueprint 1 and 2” without writing the lyrics beforehand?” I just found that ability to be remarkable and I hope to be able to do the same one day.


WHAT ABOUT HIP-HOP DRAWS YOU TO THE GENRE?

PC: I love the power and influence that hip-hop has over everyone. Hip-hop is what turned Jay-Z from a hustler into a president. Kanye West is up for 8 Grammys and had a hand in making September 11, 2007, the most anticipated album release date in all of music. Possibilities are endless for hip-hop and we would love to have a hand in that influence.

K: To me Hip Hop is so much more than a “genre”. It’s a culture. Hip hop is a lifestyle. It’s the way you talk, the way you dress, the way you express yourself, and so many other things and the beauty of it is that it isn’t uniform. The southern division of Hip hop is totally different from its northern counterpart and that is a good thing. I believe that you have to feel the music in order to truly appreciate hip hop. Hearing it isn’t enough. When I listen to a hip hop artist; I want to be able to sense their passion/love for the music and for the culture that produces it. It’s not a white or black thing either; it’s a matter of recognizing hip hop as an art form and always being true to yourself in your music. When you do that, then that is when you can truly define yourself as part of the Hip Hop community.


WHEN DID YOU FIRST START TRYING TO RAP YOURSELF?

PC: I started rapping when I was 10 and made my first full length song at 13 called "Welcome to Columbus".

K: I was about 14… The first rap I wrote was to Jay-Z’s song “You Don’t Know” off of his album “The Blueprint” but the first actual song I recorded was to a 50 cent beat at age 15. Both songs were written soon after the formation of my group “Tru Connection” back when there were only two members but we didn’t actually record in a professional studio until about a year later.


DID IT COME NATURALLY?

PC: I was decent for my age, however I was immature. I rapped about subject that didn’t apply to me or my lifestyle. It took growth and maturity to really feel comfortable in my own skin.

K: Actually yes… yes it did. But back then I didn’t have the vision that I have now, so I was just rapping about anything at first. Then I realized that I didn’t want to be one of those fake rappers who always talks about guns they’ve never even touched in their whole life or just be a rapper who talks about sex and money all the time. I wanted to speak my mind and say what I felt through rap while conveying positive or neutral messages in my rhymes. Rap has enough so called “gangsta” rappers already.

DID OTHERS APPRECIATE YOUR PASSION FOR IT?

PC: Many of us growing up had the same passion for rap and we stuck together because of that.

K: A lot of people liked us because of the way we rapped but not many people cared for the messages we were sending through our music because they were not messages of violence, sex, or the acquisition of cash through illegal means… (laugh)… but that didn’t discourage us from making the music we love so much. The rise of Kanye West and Lupe Fiasco really helped us because people finally had major rap figures to compare us to and they could finally see where we were coming from.


DID YOU GET A LOT OF FAMILY AND FRIEND SUPPORT FOR PURSUING HIP-HOP AS A CAREER?

PC: My family feels as well as myself that I can do all things through Christ and if that means becoming a hip hop artist, so be it.

K: Not… at… all… My father was in and out of the picture so he didn’t really influence me in a positive or negative way in that aspect, but my grandmother and mother were 100% against it. My grandmother hates rap and my mother doesn’t really care for it either. They see the raunchy music videos and interpret that to be all hip hop is about when I feel that is far from the case. I agree with them that some of those music videos, and the lyrics that accompany them, are very degrading towards women and I would never release a video of that nature. However, I feel that Hip Hop is transforming and that some positive changes are starting to be made within the world of Hip Hop… so hopefully they can recognize that as well and maybe they’ll even grow to like Hip hop a little bit… I don’t know, we’ll see.


WHAT DO YOU BRING TO THE WORLD OF HIP-HOP?

PC: I feel Tru Connection is a fresh perspective to the rap game. Not only do I feel that we're artists that the people can relate to, but we are committed to exceptional lyricism and innovative style.

K: We bring change. We present the public with our thoughts, ideas, and perceptions on a wide variety of subjects that are 100% us. We would NEVER and I mean NEVER conform to a certain image or switch up our style to please someone else. I feel like a lot of rappers just do it for the money and will change up there whole persona just to please a label or to sell records… that isn’t us. We are “Tru Connection” for a reason. We keep our lyrics/image separate from everything else and we don’t allow people or material things to influence our work. If you offered us a million dollar contract to release an album that contains violent, sexist, and degrading material we will turn you down without hesitation… and that will never change.



WOULD YOU SAY THAT YOUR SAMPLING IS ECLECTIC AND SOMETIMES UNUSUAL?

K: Oh definitely!!! That’s what we pride ourselves on!! We love to experiment with new and “unusual” sounds when it comes to our tracks! One of our main producers, Band GEEX, is so creative and makes some of the best instrumentals that I have ever heard. I have to send a special shout out to him and his set for coming through and placing such innovative material in our hands… the music is simply mind blowing.


HOW DO YOU GO ABOUT CHOOSING WHAT SAMPLING TO USE?

K: Well, the producers we tend to work with love to make beats that are totally off the wall and unique, and those are the only type of instrumentals we work with. Their vision closely correlates with ours, so that makes it easy. They seem to never fail when it comes to making soulful/attention-grabbing instrumentals, so we definitely have trust in their abilities and we don’t question their sample choices.



HOW DO YOU MANAGE TO BALANCE COMMERCIAL APPEAL AND INTROSPECTIVE STYLES OF RAP?

K: That’s probably the most challenging part of our career (laugh). Take for instance our single “Super Ultra Mega Cool”…that beat and hook is enough to make everyone at least listen to the track once. Those two components of the song allow people to just dance/vibe to it, and then the verses are delivered with a continuous/rapid kind of delivery. Thus, the whole track has a sick/unique sound that people will fall in love with, but the actual lyrics are discussing our resistance to conforming to the “commercial” standards of the industry. However, we give fans a choice… if they want to just dance to our music then they can, but if they want to take it a step further, then they can delve into the lyrics and extract something positive and special. So basically we combine intricate and introspective verses with catchy instrumentals/hooks to compile the perfect song that can be appreciated by both casual listeners of rap and those individuals who look for deeper messages in hip hop songs.



WHEN YOU START WRITING A SONG, DO YOU START WITH THE BEAT OR WITH THE LYRICS?

PC: It varies every time. Songs begin with inspiration. Sometimes you may hear a beat, then you get a vision of idea of how you want the song to be. Other times, you might think up a song or have an idea of a song you want to make, then find a beat to compliment that. Vision and inspiration are the beginnings to every song.

K: Well, the instrumental sets the tone for what type of track we want to do. We have, in the past, tailor made beats in order to fit a particular concept but we always like to hear the beat first before we compose the lyrics.


IF THERE'S ONE CENTRAL THING YOUR GROUP STANDS FOR, WHAT WOULD THAT BE?

PC: Bringing glory back to hip hop by getting rid of "Typical Talk." [laughs]

K: Our faith in Jesus Christ. He is the one who guides us and he is the one who we turn to for support. We’re all Christians and our faith has pulled us through some tough times. Christ will always be #1 in all of our lives, and it is through the strength and wisdom that he has provided that we are able to keep going. It is our faith that has molded and shaped our whole persona as a rap group and without Him in our lives I seriously believe that we would be out there spittin’ about the same degrading and pointless topics that some of our fellow rappers are exuding in their tracks.



WHAT'S WRONG IN TODAY'S HIP-HOP GENRE?

K: There’s no content within the music anymore. There are a few artists who still spit from the heart and soul like Common, Lupe Fiasco, Talib Kweli, Jay-Z and a few others but for the most part it’s all about who can release the next club banger or who has the most beautiful women in their videos. What happened to making music just because that is what you love to do? What happened to the creativity/artistry? Why are so many artists lowering their moral standards in order to appease the major labels? I had a line in one of my earlier songs that went: “Keep a mill or Keep it real? Man I’d hate to choose it…/ Since when you have to sell ya soul to make some music?” and I think that sentiment sums up it all up really. The Industry has really changed, and not in a good way... but I really think Lupe Fiasco, Common, and the return of Jay-Z is starting to shift the world of hip hop to a realer/truer state but they can’t do it on their own… and that’s where Tru Connection can offer some assistance.




WHAT'S RIGHT IN TODAY'S HIP-HOP GENRE?

PC: In "Hip hop" I love how artists such as Kanye West, Lupe Fiasco, and Jay-Z are respected for who they are and are demanding respect and record sales because of it.

K: I feel that one positive aspect within Hip Hop is the diversity. I feel that Hip Hop is representative of everyone regardless of their social status. For instance, people in the hood don’t usually identify with country music… I mean what country artist from the hood do you know of? People from poor communities identify more with rap music because a lot of rap artists are from identical impoverished areas and have a similar story to tell. Rich kids identify with it because of the flashy/materialistic nature of a lot of modern rap. So I think rap/Hip hop can be related to by individuals of various societal positions and that’s what makes it such an astounding art form.




DO YOU THINK THAT INDIE RAPPERS ARE MAKING A REAL DIFFERENCE IN THE HIP-HOP SCENE AS A WHOLE?

K: Indie rappers? (laugh) I’m not even really sure what an “Indie rapper” swith that particular term but I’ll investigate it and let you know (laugh). Nah, but seriously, look at Drake. Look at Wale. Look at Micke Factz. These are all artists who were big before the record deal. These are artists who were touring without the help of a major. Their movement on the underground scene was/is one to be reckoned with, and that's the success at this level that we're lookind to duplicate.



WHAT WOULD YOUR ADVICE BE TO INDEPENDENT HIP-HOP ARTISTS JUST GETTING STARTED?

K: Be true to yourself and try to make a positive difference in this world of chaos. Ask yourself: Is the music I am making the kind of music that I would want my kids to listen to? Are my musical efforts going to benefit my community at all in the future? Or if you don’t care about any of that, then I really have no advice for you… just do you… and as you mature and grow up, never forget where you came from. Never forget the sacrifices that you and the ones closest to you made, so that you could make it in this business… that’s about it.



WHAT DID YOU LEARN THE HARD WAY?

K: That you don’t have to shell out hundreds or thousands of dollars to a studio in order to make quality music. If you simply buy a computer program and the necessary tools to maximize its potential then you can save yourself a lot of time and money. We wasted so much money on a studio that wasn’t even that good simply because we didn’t have any other option. DO IT YOURSELF!!! You will save money and the finished product will always sound the way YOU want it to… and that is the best part. But if you DO have the funds, then by all means. There is some pride in being able to say that you recorded in the same studio as Michael Jackson, or some other high-profile artist.




IS THE HIP-HOP SCENE FIERCELY COMPETITIVE?

K: I don’t feel the hip hop scene is fiercely competitive in the case of “Tru Connection”. Mainly, because we’re so different from everyone else. Since we do not really focus on the commercial aspect of the game, we tend to stand out and people take notice of that. There are a lot of rappers who are out there trying to be the next “Soulja Boy” but there aren’t many rappers our age trying to be the next Common or Lupe Fiasco, although that number is slowly increasing. For us, I believe it’s merely an issue of the right people in the right places hearing our music and saying "hey... this could work.".


WHAT DO YOU THINK HIP-HOP OFFERS THAT NO OTHER MUSICAL GENRE OFFERS?

K: Hip Hop offers people the opportunity to become a part of a rapidly growing community. Hip hop is made for everyone! If you’re an individual who lives on a farm or something and does not wear “Hip Hop” style clothing; that does not mean that you cannot be a part of the culture. If you have love for the music and it inspires you, then you officially represent true Hip Hop. It kills me when people stereotype other individuals and label them as “fake” or as “Imitators” simply because they look different and don’t possess a style that is “typical” of Hip Hop. No, everyone who has a love and passion for the music is true Hip Hop and like I said, it’s more than a genre, it’s a culture/community and that’s what sets Hip Hop apart from all other genres of music.




FINAL THOUGHTS?

K: BUY OUR ALBUM!!!! (laugh) Nah, but on a serious note, I would just like to thank everyone bringing about long-term & positive change within the industry itself and to the community in general. We've both been on this beautiful planet for 21 years and we know where we want to go in life. We love ALL of the listeners!!!! Every single one!!! And I call them “listeners”, not fans, because I feel if you took time to hear our music then that alone is enough to earn our thanks. It doesn’t matter if you liked us or if agree with our perspectives. If you took precious time out of your day to check us out, then you have earned our undying appreciation and I say that from the heart. - PROMO FM