Mistah FAB breaks past ties and forges a new route

On the heels of the hyphy movement of the mid-Aughts, Oakland rapper Mistah FAB struck gold with the single “Ghost Ride It” in 2006. With its lifted Ghostbusters theme synth line and instructions on how to “ghost ride the whip” (which is such a dangerous hobby that I’ll refrain from describing it for the kids’ sakes), “Ghost Ride It” earned Mistah FAB a contract on Atlantic Records.

He inked the major label deal in 2007, but his anticipated album Da Yellow Bus Rydah never saw a release date. When I asked FAB whether he still ghost rides the whip for nostalgia’s sake, he said, “Naw, man. It’s too dangerous now.

“I’m not trying to make it seem like I’m some old-ass critic,” he said. “I’m 28. My mind is just not there anymore. I don’t even like going out much. I’m an old-ass young man. Going out is boring to me now. I have a daughter, and my main thing is getting home to her.”

Last month, FAB dropped his I Found My Back Pack mixtape, which was rooted in the traditional boom-bap hip-hop vibes, instead of the Bay-centric sonics synonymous with his style. With a new album title for his next official release, FAB talked about the changes in his style, his attitude toward music and the changes in Bay Area music.

The I Found My Back Pack mixtape is neither a sound nor style typically associated with your music, but you’ve always had ties with the backpacker community. Why did you commit a mixtape-worth of material to that style?
Even when hyphy was in its glory days, the albums I put out during those times still had songs that showed ability and a plethora of styles. Unfortunately, what was popular at the time took away from my ability to be creative and speak to the artier hip-hop fans.

It’s been a while since I wanted to focus on that craft. Not only to display my ability, but to just prove to myself that I could still make music that doesn’t have to glorify diamonds, clothes, cars and materialistic items, nor do I have to be on the club scene.

Have you paid much attention to reactions to the mixtape and this new direction?
I’ve enjoyed it. I love the mixed emotions. I love that people are still shocked and say things like I didn’t expect you to do that, which is unfortunate. After all, what’s an artist if he’s not able to reinvent himself, be creative and give people something new to talk about? I love the fact that people are still able to have things to say about me.

From researching the projects you’re working on with Alchemist and DJ Drama and listening to your recent interviews, it feels as though you’re in the middle of a significant change in your career. Especially since your next album will no longer be titled Yellow Bus Rydah, but Liberty Forever.

Life is about growth. Life is about change. It’s about accepting some of the areas you indulged in and admitting faults… With the changes I’ve made musically, if I was to put the album out with the title Yellow Bus, before listening to it people would assume it would be on one of the previous styles I was on and wouldn’t give it its fair shot.

The name of the album is actually the name of my daughter, Liberty Forever. But as for the direction I’m going in, I don’t feel like I’m at fault for it, but I definitely influenced some people to do some negative things. As well as some things I’m pretty sure they wish they didn’t do. It was a wonderful moment. We had fun. We enjoyed it. Some weren’t able to bounce out of it and grow out of it, but it’s like when you’re in college and you’re a wild party animal. Then you see some friends years later and they’re like, “What’s up, bro. Let’s go party.” But you’re like, “Naw, I’m a businessman now.” I’m not trying to say that I’m better, but this ain’t college no more. You know?

That explains my growth; like a frat bother growing up. We had fun, the college days [the hyphy days] were great. Now we’re on the business route.

You’ve reached a point where it’s no longer enough for people to associate you with a Bay sound or hyphy, but as an artist known nationally and not pigeonholed as a regional act, is what you’re saying?
I’ve always had an ability to work with everyone. On my Son of a Pimp album I had a beat by Kanye West, but it stayed under the radar. I am known by the name. I might not be an in-house name to the fans and everyday people, but the landlords know me. It allows me to work with different artists.

On my new album, whenever it does come out, cats like Lupe Fiasco, Rick Ross, Bun B, Snoop Dogg and Jadakiss are on there. I’m working with people’s favorites. It’s very humbling to grow up listening to these guys, wanting to be like some of these guys and now they view me as a peer.

Are you still on Atlantic Records?
I’m not. I’m going through the final stages of this release. But I’m able to make more moves this way. It’s no hard feelings. They gave me an opportunity I didn’t capitalize off of due to surrounding things going on in my life. There’s no excuse for it. Atlantic is a great label. It’s a growing step. I’ve graduated in my maturity to realize that some things I missed because I was immature, not ready for certain challenges–challenges that I am ready for now.

You’ve always struck me as an artist that, despite your deal not working out with Atlantic, you could sustain purely on your live performances and self-released material. I’ve always thought that spoke volumes of your identity as a self-made man.
I appreciate that, man. That’s always been the most significant part of my career, my ability to do a live show as well as continue to create. Unfortunately a lot of artists get idle in their creative processes when they’re awaiting major albums or signed to labels. They just get lost in the sauce. Their relevance erodes. Fortunately for me, I’ve been able to stay relevant on pretty much all levels–the Internet, thank God for the Internet. Sites like Twitter and World Star Hip Hop allow artists free promotion. Shouts to all the blogs that post my new songs and continuously show me love.

It’s my work habit too. I’m addicted to the music. I’m in the studio constantly. I have libraries of music. So it’s nothing for me to put a project together just to sell at shows. For this tour I’m about to be on, I put together a freestyle mixtape. I’ve been able to financially survive. I love my art, but love doesn’t pay bills. What pays bills is hard work and dedication to creating a product and selling yourself–not literally–to keep yourself relevant.

How do you feel about the emergence of Lil’ B in the Bay Area and his elevation to the national spotlight?
I love Lil’ B. When he was 13 or 14 years old, I first recorded a song with [The Pack] and I will always support Lil’ B. I feel that he’s a marketing genius. People are so judgmental on artists that they critique him without even meeting him. He’s established a lane for himself that no one else was covering, no one else was worried about, no one else had even thought about. I don’t see anyone giving him credit for reinventing himself. He turned himself into an entity and made a brand out of himself. The people are ignoring that. We’re in a game where marketing and strategizing of commerce is something that should be saluted, and no one is giving him credit. It just shows you how selfish people are. It’s just disgusting to look at the way people view him.

My concern is it seems that every time an artist from the Bay gets the push into the national spotlight, there’s encouragement at first and then it gets cannibalized by backlash.
I want to shout all the Bay area fans who are haters. They’re like a selfish kid. You know how a kid will have a lot of toys, but then there’s the one toy they never play with that strikes big? They want to say, “That’s my toy! That’s my toy! I had that toy first.” Then it becomes, “That toy’s old. Fuck that toy now. I hate that toy.” It’s like goddamn, bro, are you serious right now? The world finally gets a chance to see what we have and all of a sudden you want to start hating?

Boy Meeting World, Making Great Music

At 21 years old, rapper Fashawn has the maturity and foresight of men many moons his elder. The Fresno native grew up fast and, using hip-hop as a tool, persevered as one of the genre’s youngest and most promising talents. With his debut album, the aptly titled Boy Meets World, Fashawn paints a candid picture of life as an adolescent coming into his own, making sense of relationships and the experiences that are transforming him into the artist we hear through our speakers. He writes from an autobiographical point of view, and it shows with his ability to evoke a broad range of human emotions through his stories. As the listener you see his vision, and feel his joy and pain.

Fresh off a tour with Ghostface Killah, Fashawn along with producer Exile is back on the road for the annual How the Grouch Stole Christmas showcase, which features the Living Legend and show founder The Grouch and Oakland’s shining star Mistah FAB. It’s an amazing lineup unmatched by any tour of note this year, so take advantage of everything each artist has to offer and enjoy a good hip-hop show.
 
It’s been a big year for you with your debut dropping, and then The Antidote mixtape with Alchemist. How much of it was planned? And were you surprised by how successful this year was for you?
I would say that most of it wasn’t planned. The stuff with Alchemist, that wasn’t planned at all. That came up from just me hanging with Evidence, and at the time he took me on the Rock the Bells tour. I had the chance to stay at Alchemist’s crib, and from that we started building in the studio and making records. That came out by accident you could say. Just me hanging with Evidence and going to Europe and all that, this time last year I wouldn’t have pictured this. As far as Boy Meets World, we’ve been planning that for a while now. We started recording this album in like early 2008, and we got the label situation around February and we’ve just been going hard ever since.

You mentioned that the album has been planned for a while. Has the Boy Meets World title and concept always been the vision?
Yeah, I said to myself a while ago that if I were to drop an official debut album, that’s how I want to start things off. I think it was a perfect time. I turned 21 the day before my album dropped, and it was just the right time for everything. I had the concept in my head before I even went across the world and saw all these places.

There are points on the album where you talk about how you’ve been rhyming since you were 9.
Yeah, just having fun. I didn’t really start writing rhymes until I was 12. I’ve been in the studio since I was 12 and dropped my first mixtape then.

How did everything you’ve done up to Boy Meets World differ from what you had been doing?
On the mixptapes, it was just me going hard and just spitting the craziest rhymes I could think of. Just trying to find my voice and the direction I want to go. On Boy Meets World, I found my voice. The records on the mixtapes were just me spazzing out, but on the album you hear the concepts and all that. The songs were really produced; you know, Exile really did his thing and made sure everything was precise.

In terms of the music that Exile brought forth, what did he bring out of you? How do you think the direction of the album would have differed if it were a bunch of producers contributing a few beats?
I think if I were to have gotten like Alchemist and 9th Wonder joints on there, the vibe would have been a lot different. With Exile, we have certain chemistry and through the whole record you can feel that. It’s one story, kind of like a score to a movie. I don’t think I could have got that if I worked with a bunch of producers.

This is a very personal album, is there one song that you feel represents you best and why?
I would say “Boy Meets World,” which is like the 10-minute opus at the very end of the album. It’s really just explaining my story from day one to now, from being a young kid with dreams of rhyming to actually growing up and being a man and realizing those dreams. All the experiences I’ve had”¦ “Boy Meets World,” that sums me up right there.

Does all this seem surreal to you at this point? Or in your eyes is this reward for all your hard work?
Nah, it’s very surreal. I’m very lucky to have a great team around me that works really hard. I have a strong work ethic, but it’s a blessing to have the feedback we’re having. You can’t plan that feedback; that’s just something that falls into your lap.

Can you talk about some of pressures that come with the acclaim?
I guess just people calling your album a classic and asking for a second—that’s the only pressure. I don’t know; I’m just enjoying what I’m doing. I love going out every night and doing shows, and promoting my ideas and my music. I heard Lil Wayne say, “What’s life without pressure? Pressure can either make a diamond or shatter things to sand.” I feel like a diamond right now.

When you’re writing for the next album, do the accolades and people calling your debut a classic affect you or motivate you?
I’m already going in different direction creatively. I don’t know, I don’t think it affects me. I think I established myself and who I am with Boy Meets World, just bringing the audience into my life. By doing that with my first album, I feel like I can take my audience wherever I like from the club to the library.

One of my favorite songs on the album is “When She Calls.” The storytelling on that one is crazy, I was wondering if it is rooted in someone you know or is any of it autobiographical?
It’s not autobiographical. When you listen to it, you hear the story through the guy’s eyes, and the second verse is watching the story unfold through someone else’s eyes. And the third verse is what if it never happened. The story was inspired by a friend of mine who killed himself over a girl who didn’t even”¦ I just wanted to show how intense love can be. It was one of the hardest songs to write for the album, actually it was the last song I wrote and recorded. It was a story that people could relate to. It’s a dark subject, but these things happen all the time so I felt the need to talk about it.

To wrap it up, what’s next for Fashawn?
I’m working with a new mixtape with Green Lantern, which should be out soon. I’m constantly in the studio, always working.

Fashawn played the Empire Events Center on Dec. 12 as part of the How the Grouch Stole Christmas tour with The Grouch, Mistan FAB and Exile.

The Grouch Set to Leave Paradise for West Coast Tour

Over the past decade, Oakland, Calif. native The Grouch has proven to be the embodiment of the independent musician. Alongside his crew the Living Legends, Grouch built an underground empire from the ground up, building a reputation by pounding the pavement with dope product, selling his music to fans hand-to-hand. He always made himself visible and bridged the often-murky area between supplier and consumer. Hustle aside, it was his music that resonated with fans. Instead of a fast food filling, Grouch based his lyrics in reality—honest and candid, intelligent and insightful. Through 10 solo albums, five group collaborations and more than a handful of Living Legends projects, Grouch has never led fans astray. An inspiration for anyone looking to make it happen by doing it their way, his career has shown that hard work and dedication go a long way.

In support of How the Grouch Stole Christmas, his aptly titled 11-city West Coast tour, the man whose fuzzy 4-track songs I once put on a Maxell mixtape spoke from his newly settled island paradise on topics ranging from modern-day subsistence living to Dr. Seuss—and of course, music.

I understand you’re out in Hawaii at the moment. Is that for work or pleasure?
Nah, I’m living out here doing the family life, growing vegetables and chillin’. Working of course, every day, all day, grinding over the Internet and over the telephone. It’s not a permanent thing, I don’t think, but we like it out here a lot so we wanted to give it a trial period. We were supposed to stay six months, but at the end of the six months we were like, we got to go for another six months. We’re taking it as it comes.

You said growing vegetables, are you really on some subsistence level shit out there or what?
Nah, we’re just living. We’re staying at a house that get its water from the rain and has solar power, and we have a good vegetable garden going. We’re just doing natural family life: kicking it, and jumping in the ocean and drinking coconuts.

That sounds amazing.
Yeah, it’s been a real good experience. It’s a good change, and we did it at a good time. It’s still the United States, but it feels a little bit detached out here. There is less advertising, less TVs around.

Your latest tour, How the Grouch Stole Christmas, is going to take you away from your paradise for a couple days. Off the top, it was nice to see fellow Living Legend Eligh’s name right there with yours.
Yeah, it worked out good because me and Eligh have an album coming out March or April of next year. People always ask when the next G&E album is coming out. Me and Eligh are good friends so when we do shows, it’s always fun, and people love to see the combination of us two. We’re both on the same page, as far as us both doing sober shows and all that, and we’re both at a time in our careers where we are taking everything very seriously and trying to step our games up.

I was going to say, it’s been a long time since I’ve heard mention of G&E as a group. What can you say about the album so far?
We’ve got a strong single with Gift of Gab, so you’ll hear that. But as far as everyone else, we have Mistah Fab on there, Sage Francis and Slug on a couple different songs. We’ve got a song produced by Flying Lotus, a joint produced by Amp Live of Zion I. It’s going to be a good release. I’m really proud of the music so far.

The Bayliens are also scheduled to play, but there is one name that I didn’t recognize: Paul Dateh.
Yeah, he’s dope. He’s from L.A. and played violin on my last album; he’s also a vocalist too. If you Google him, there are some pretty amazing videos of his violin skills, and how he combines them with hip-hop. He’s just coming up and making a name for himself. When you watch the set though, you’re like damn that was dope. Every time I have him open up for me, he gets a really good response. The Bayliens, they’ve been working real hard and I like the way they do their stuff, so it all works together.

Alright, last one to wrap it all up. Looking at Dr. Seuss as a writer, in terms of his story telling, his structure, his rhymes, how would you rate him in MC terms?
Dr. Seuss is a dope poet, and would make a dope MC. I think if he wanted to rap, he could probably have some tight raps. I don’t know how much of a coincidence it is that I’m using one of his themes, but I’ve had a lot of people tell me that my rhyme style reminds them of Dr. Seuss. I don’t know if that’s a diss or not [laughs]. It wasn’t like, “You have the most Simple Simon rhymes in rap,” but I have been told that they can see a resemblance, and I take that as a compliment. I like the dude’s style. He’s not the most complex, but he’s successful for a reason. The way he put his books out there, and the content in them with the pictures and the whole package, I really respect the dude.

Simple or not, at the end of the day he’s saying something of substance, which can always be said of your music.
Exactly.