Oneonone

Al Dionisio

Watch Oneonone - Al Dionisio on Dailymotion

Transcript

00:00I see. So let me ask you how did you get into hip-hop? My love for hip-hop really started in

00:07high school. I listened to guys like Nas and Eminem, Jay-Z, Exhibit, and even Tupac and B.I.G.

00:13And then when I went to college it was Kanye, Common, Rupe Fiasco, Outkast, Blackstar, and others.

00:23And that's when I started practicing my freestyling a lot. I had written rhymes back in

00:29high school but it wasn't until the end of college that I started to record myself.

00:34The Alex tape was largely off the top of my head freestyles so it was a

00:40progression. Yeah because later on after college everything I recorded before my

00:46hiatus was committedly written down on paper prior to recording so I had better

00:52song structure, more creative inventive rhymes, and more focused topics. And

00:59that's all on Clash and Satanically Minded. You mentioned your hiatus. How did that

01:06come about? A couple reasons. I was getting deep into the working life and I was

01:11living with my parents and living like an ordinary American and I had lost touch

01:16with my creative inspiration. I was also focused mainly on writing critical reviews

01:21of the mainstream rap albums of that time. So that period served its purpose but I'm

01:28much better off now than I was then. Do you still write critiques? No. Would you ever go back to it?

01:36Probably not. Maybe if I wasn't working a job and had a lot more time on my hands. But being a critic takes a toll on you.

01:45First, you're disproportionately focused on others I feel. Second, you're putting them

01:53and their creative works down unnecessarily or inappropriately a lot of the time.

01:57No one likes negativity. Do you think some of your lyrics are negative? Maybe the

02:04lyrics I wrote when I was a young kid but it's still good art. You just have to laugh

02:10with it. But a lot of it is just a reflection of what I see in the real world.

02:14So are the lyrics negative? Or is the source of inspiration negative? Plus a lot of my work,

02:21especially these days, is in fact positive. Some of your lyrics discuss women and homosexuals in a

02:28controversial manner. Do you think that's fair to say? I think women have an unfair advantage in

02:34some areas of life just like men perhaps have or once had. And the same goes for the queer community.

02:42Is it nature or nurture? I think it's almost entirely nurture. We live in a devastatingly unnatural

02:49world right now. Is it meant to be or for a greater purpose? Yes, I think this mess is all so humans can

02:56learn from their mistakes later on down the line. I imagine you feel the same with regards to food

03:01and diet and how people eat, right? Definitely. I don't think people are gonna eat like they do now

03:10forever. Because it's an abomination. You're a vegan, right? Yeah, but I'm also the kind of vegan who eats

03:18only whole foods. Meaning minimally processed or entirely unprocessed from their natural state in

03:25the plant kingdom. So for example, I don't eat like Impossible Burgers or Beyond Meat Burgers anymore.

03:31No offense to them. They're great for beginners or extreme athletes perhaps, or for once in a while

03:37maybe, but not for me. Going back to the music, your hip-hop has such an underground indie essence to it.

03:44Very much like the mainstream acts. I'm sorry, very much unlike the mainstream acts. Do you think one

03:50is better than the other? Mainstream or underground? Yeah. Underground is better. Not that this is the

03:57mainstream. But it's all about the reason for why you do it. The systems at play and the rules you

04:03follow. In the mainstream, you're making your art for someone else. Whereas in the underground,

04:08you're making it for you so it comes out better. More unique. But in a perfect world,

04:13all this underground business goes out the window. Because in that world, I'd be just as big as the

04:19hottest guys on the scene today. So you can't go by what's popular if you want the goods.

04:25How do you look at sampling and the like? It's fair game. Unless of course you're making a ton of

04:30money from it. Because then you should worry about them knocking on your door. But I see sampling and

04:37that sort of stuff as a show of respect and admiration as opposed to stealing.

04:42Last but not least, what advice would you give to other artists?

04:46Be original. Be different. Come from the heart. And follow your own rules.

04:52Forget about what other people may or may not think. Try different things. Push yourself out of your

04:58comfort zone. And work hard. Stay organized. Keep learning. And have a good time doing it. And set

05:06aside time for non-art stuff to live your life. That's where you get a lot of the inspiration.

05:12And then you'll be just fine. Thank you, sir.

Category

Transcript

Be the first to comment

Recommended