sarah tillman

Brother Ali funded his first cassette with settlement money from a Minneapolis police brutality suit. His newest album The Undisputed Truth (produced by Ant) is out now on Rhymesayers.

What’s the oldest music in your record collection?
Son House. He’s incredible. “Death Letter” and “John The Revelator”—“John The Revelator,” where he’s just clapping and singing. And his style of guitar playing—he was crazy. He’d beat the shit out of the guitar. That’s where all of this came from. All the things people say about rap they said about the blues. That it all sounds the same, or it’s negative, or the messages are bad—but it’s real people working through real shit. That’s beautiful to me.
What did you mean when you said you try to make sure you would never rap a word you wouldn’t actually say?
That’s something Ant said to me. I always kind of felt it—you want your persona on the record to basically be you. But Ant said, ‘You wouldn’t say that word—change it.’
Are you disappointed if an artist is different from the way they seem in their lyrics?
If it’s someone I respect, I just take it in—see what I can learn from them. And if they are what I thought they would be, that’s really cool.
What was it like touring with Rakim?
I already had a lot of respect and going on tour heightened it—seeing how he’d interact with people and seeing how he handled people deifying him. He was extremely classy and humble and really good at recognizing when someone thinks he’s special—then he makes them feel good. He does that with a lot of people—he doesn’t want you to sit and praise him. And the way he is on the albums—that is who he is. I think of a lot of songs he’s doing now that he’s about forty years old—songs from when he was 15 or 16 or 17—still apply. There’s nothing weird or awkward about it. And he was very supportive of me. He was always thanking me, like, ‘We couldn’t have done this without you!’ The tradition of hip-hop consciousness and trying to show people what they’ve never thought about—he said that’s rare now. ‘But you’re keeping that alive for your generation.’
Who is the biggest influence on your life that isn’t a musician?
Malcolm X has always been a really big person to me. I read his autobiography and it led me from a very angry place to understanding that people are who they are because of what they’re taught. A lot of people don’t understand any experience other than their own. And then how much he was willing to say that maybe he didn’t have it right—that he went on to learn more and he expanded his philosophy. And he made the ultimate sacrifice to do what he felt was right. He was one of the biggest heroes in my house. It wasn’t until later that I was able to appreciate King—they were always pitted against each other. But they were both right—different sides of the same reality. And I have a weird kind of thing for Bernie Mac. A lot of respect. I still feel the way Hollywood is, he never got his chance—his show was amazing, but we all know he’s not completely on unless he’s allowed to curse. He has two books—one talking shit, called I Ain’t Scared Of You, and one called Maybe You Never Cry Again. That’s the shit to me. My life and his life are a lot alike in a lot of ways. His mom died of cancer and he got married young like I did—he knew he was gifted, but he had to provide for his family. He did comedy on the side and his wife would always tell him, ‘You’re good, but what’s up with the bills?’ He tried to do the right thing—he didn’t make comedy his full-time thing until it could pay the bills, and he didn’t get involved in all the cliques. He built his career by playing the small markets, and he did his own tour. He’s a very classy individual. The way he speaks his mind is the way I speak my mind. I look up to him a lot.
What personal qualities are most vital in life?
More and more and I don’t think it’s one particular thing. For me personally, it’s the things I believe in. I believe in a higher power—a higher creator—and I believe that thing cares about human beings. That the feeling of spirituality is here to make us be the best people—what we were intended. I don’t think we’re evil by nature.
What’s the best lesson you’ve taught your son?
I put on his wall the things I want him to always remember—believe in God, tell the truth, be respectful, have good manners, and make good choices. At any point I can ask, ‘What is daddy teaching?’ And he knows. Everything goes back to one of those. I believe in manners!
What made you say the Zulu Nation should chase complainers out of music?
I have a very low tolerance for people who don’t appreciate the people who put them in the situation that they’re in. You have your art and music supported by listeners, who work hard at real jobs and pay money to see your show and buy an album and buy the magazines and the shit you endorse—these people are giving you this life so you don’t have to be part of the system. And a lot of people complain—they’re so bitter at the things they want that they don’t have. They hate tour and they hate the fact they don’t make as much money or that someone else gets more recognition—all those things are real, and it’s got to be difficult to make certain music and feel the people it’s for aren’t listening, and it’s difficult to be on tour, and all this stuff… a lot of interviews, people don’t even do the basic research. They’ll ask questions and the whole basis of the question is wrong: ‘You’re a black albino raised by a white family—how does that affect how you write songs about the government?’ It’s like… I only got twenty minutes on the phone with them—how can we make that even work? There’s a lot of frustrating shit. But you probably prayed—you probably asked God, like, ‘I just wanna make a living and put an album out—I just want people to know who I am.’ And when you get these opportunities, you do nothing but complain!
What’s the first thing you look for when you get out of the van?
A lot of times I ask, ‘Where’s the real food?’ I usually always get sushi—nine times out of ten, it’s gonna be good.

BROTHER ALI PLAYS WED., MAY 23, WITH PSALM ONE, BK ONE AND THE BOOM BAP PROJECT FEATURING DJ WICKED AT THE TROUBADOUR, 9081 SANTA MONICA BLVD., WEST HOLLYWOOD. 8 PM / $15 / ALL AGES. WWW.TROUBADOUR.COM.