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  Devin The Dude Interview
interview 0260 added 22.11.04 words: Kobi
technical:
QED
Every once in a while you'll hear a line in a rap
song that will make you crack up. Not
just bust a wry smile, but actually fall about laughing. Not many MC's
can take you there. Maybe Biz Markie talking about 'Pickin' Boogers'? Or
Slick Rick's musings on Mona Lisa's "yea wide gap"? The next in line to
that throne has to be Devin Copeland aka Devin the Dude, a Houston,
Texas native who has collaborated with the likes of Raphael Saadiq,
Dilated Peoples, Dr. Dre, J-Zone and Too $hort. The list goes on. And
on. And on. After a month of dogged pursuit I finally managed to get
hold of Devin. Rather worryingly he appears to be behind the wheel of a
car while the interview is being conducted...
Kobi: So,
what's going on over in Houston?
 Devin The Dude: Aww man, it's raining. I'm out here on the
freeway, dodging raindrops...
Kobi: So first off,
what do you think it is about your music that has drawn the likes of De
La Soul, Jay-Z, Nas, Dre and Too $hort want to work with you?
DTD: Well I guess I bring a li'l something different to the table man,
and I have respect for all those artists too, and it's like a blessing
for them to even reach out to me and want me to be a part of their
projects...I'm still get overwhelmed most of the time...
Kobi: No doubt...If
you could form a band made up of musicians from throughout history who
would you choose?
DTD: [Pauses] I would have Melle Mel, T La Rock... I would get 2Pac in
there, I would have, erm... Doug E. Fresh [laughs]... who else would get
in there? I would say... MC Shan...
Kobi: So you're
definitely an old skool head...
DTD: Definitely...
Kobi: How would you
respond to the statement that your music is like "modern day blues" in
places?
DTD: Hmm... Well, I guess I take different mis-haps and misfortunes and
try to make you feel better about what's happening and what you've gotta
do to achieve a little more... coming from the bottom to get where you're
going - I can kinda relate to a lot of the blues, back in the day, it's
that Southern feel, I guess...
Kobi: OK... Are you
happy with the reception that 'To Tha X-Treme' has got from the media
and from your fans?
DTD: The feedback has been good - I've been getting good responses on it
and the tempo is a lot slower than my previous work... It gives you time
to just sit back and chill and think about a lot of the things...
"...Well, I guess I take different mis-haps and misfortunes and
try to make you feel better about what's happening and what
you've gotta do to achieve a little more..."
Kobi: And what would
you say is the best show that you've had on the 'To Tha X-Treme' Tour?
DTD: Actually I'm not touring - I'm doing spot dates and stuff over the
weekends, but a lot of cities have been showing me love, man... 'erm, I
get a surprising amount of love from places like Seattle... and DC, I get
a lot of support out there - that's one of my best markets....
Kobi: OK.... So what
is J Prince (The CEO of Rap-A-Lot Records, responsible for bringing the
world acts such as The Geto Boys) like as a boss?
DTD: He's almost like a mentor... Somebody you can talk to, y'know he's
easy to talk to... he's cool, y'know. His relationship with the artists
is pretty fair...
Kobi: Most of your
songs have a humorous element to them. Who are your three favourite
comedians and why?
DTD: Number one: Richard Pryor. That's because he broke a lot of
barriers down. He said a lot of things that a lot of people were scared
to say. It was political in a lot of people's eyes and it made them
laugh at the same time... Next I would say Eddie Murphy. He proved that
he could not only just be a comedian, but an actor and he's a singer,
also.... he left himself open to be any character you throw his way, y'know, he can do it, so he opened up a lot of doors for people that
way... I guess my third comedian would probably be Redd Foxxx... He was
just real gritty with his... He was saying words which now, wouldn't be
so offensive... or people would just frown on that, but back then, he kinda crossed the line a little bit, just by saying certain words...
Kobi: I've gotta
ask: Are we gonna see another Odd Squad album in the future?
 DTD: Aww man, [Laughs] we was just talking about that… [Jug Mug and Rob
Quest] like my homeboys, man... Every time we get together we just talk
about getting our schedules together so we can get in the studio-time
and get one outta the door, that would be real cool....
Kobi: …And is there
going to be another Facemob album?
DTD: I'm not too sure - I wouldn't mind doing it because that was an
experience right there... y'know, everybody's from different cities and
you've got a chance to learn about different parts of the country and
learn about different people while making a record at the same time,
which turned out pretty good...
Kobi: Do you play
any instruments yourself? I ask because a few of your tracks have a kinda live, acoustic feel to them...
DTD: Well... I play a little drums... I can hold a rhythm, but any
instruments, no, not really - I love instrumentation and I have a pretty
good ear for it... I know what I want at a certain time of the song, but
no I don't really play any instruments. I wouldn't mind learning how to
play the acoustic guitar though...
Kobi: OK.... Another
question taking you back a little - how did you hook up with DJ Premier
to do 'Doobie Ashtray'?
DTD: Well, he's friends with some of the people I work with as far as
music, y'know like Carlos and Robert McQueen... they was real close back
in the day. He has family down here and he comes to Houston quite often,
and just being in the music business I always admired his work and
likewise - he always thought I was pretty good myself at what I do, and
he got a chance to here the album, 'Just Tryin’ Ta Live' before it came
out and there was a sample used in that song 'Doobie Ashtray' - I put
that beat together and we kinda just threw the sample in, put the beat
behind it and just kinda played it and just had it loop throughout the
song.
"...There's a plan it's like a big script almost, man...with the
presidential stuff and what's going on and they're only going to
tell you half of what you need to hear and half of what they
tell you - I don't know what percentage of that is the truth..."
It was a good song, I guess 'cos he called me like "Man, I like
that 'Doobie Ashtray', that's my song", so when we got to the mixes, we
had a little trouble getting the song cleared, and I got in touch with
him again... well, he was talking to me about it, and I said "Aww man,
the song didn't get cleared"... [Premier] was like "What?" and we talked
about it not making the album. He said "Aww man, well just shoot it to
me, shoot me the acapella mix. I sent the acapella mix to him, man and
he freaked it. I was like "Oh, OK..." and we pollyed back and forth to
make sure everything was cool and he said "There's only one thing... I
put some cuts on it, man - I gotta have some cuts on it..." [Laughs then
switches his voice to Premier's rasp] "Yo, you want some cuts on that
joint?" and I was like "Yeah". Then it was a done deal - he hooked it
up, it was beautiful...
Kobi: That's some
history right there.... How important was it for you to write a song like
'Unity' in George W. Bush - era America?
DTD: Well, it's very important not only for these times right here, but
for the time before and the time in the future too.... [Hopefully there
will be a time] when everybody realises that they're not better than
anybody else and that they're here just to do a certain thing or to play
a specific part and everybody is equal...
Kobi: And speaking
of president's are you planning to vote?
 DTD: Well, yeah - I would want to but, it's who to vote for [that] is
the question...
Kobi: Do you think
The US would change if John Kerry is elected?
DTD: You know what, man? I don't see any difference... There's a plan
it's like a big script almost, man... with the presidential stuff and
what's going on and they're only going to tell you half of what you need
to hear and half of what they tell you - I don't know what percentage of
that is the truth... I dunno. They ask you to pick one man to rule the
country but odd enough [that duty] falls into the hands of
millions.... As individuals I think we all need to make a change for the
better and to start helping each other...
Kobi: Any
shout-outs?
DTD: I would like to shout-out my Odd Squad members, Rap-A-Lot, all the
people I've ever worked with and all the fans and just for the love of
hip-hop, all the hip-hop heads...Everybody who's trying to make it a
longevity thing...the hip-hop community has opened up a lot of doors and
a lot of jobs for people that I would like that to keep on going on and
I just appreciate the love....
Special thanks to Jasmine Vega for sorting out everything on the
Texas side.
'To Tha X-Treme', 'Just Tryin Ta Live', 'The Dude', 'Faddenufffaevebody'
by the Odd Squad and 'The Other Side Of The Law' by Facemob are all in
stores now.
-
Kobi |
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