From nightly appearances on “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” to acting in an upcoming Muslim-style “Cosby Show” spinoff — which features “Daily Show” correspondent Aasif Mandvi as himself and the rapper as Cousin Black Thought Tariq Trotter — Roots’ frontman Black Thought stays busy. And that’s all happening now, on top of being one of the most consistent and underrated emcees in hip-hop history.
Still, he gave us 10 minutes at an exclusive Artists Brunch at the A3C Hip-Hop Festival this weekend. What follows are excerpts from our conversation (and brief thoughts about the overall successful, comforting 10th annual festival that took place this past weekend).
Black Thought reveals that he didn’t know for sure that A3C stood for All 3 Coasts until earlier Sunday morning, but that “I understood it to be an outlet for hip-hop artists from the East Coast, West Coast and from the South … the kind of outlet that we used to have in hip-hop in the ‘80s and ‘90s.” He likens the festival weekend more to a music convention to “springboard new talent,” comparing it to how, as a young rapper, he had to hustle to put himself in front of people who were already established in the industry.
For his performance, Black Thought said he and his DJ J. Period went with a “live mixtape” approach, “going through a couple different musical chambers, trying to do something for the local people as well as stuff that’s representative of a block party as we know it.” He continued that his performance has an open-hearted feel and was oriented to touch on music from all three coasts.
Black Thought also revealed that he was excited to see his friend Talib Kweli’s performance. The two actually celebrated their birthdays together a week before and hadn’t seen each other since, said Thought, whose real name is Tariq Trotter.
On representing his coast, Thought reflected about how the mindset of hip-hop has changed in the past decade. “The emphasis we used to put on representing (where you’re from) isn’t as applicable in the current musical climate,” he said. Representing where you’re from is good and a good way to build a fanbase, but nowadays people can and want to be ambiguous about their origin in some cases. “I meet artists from Philly who sound like they’re from New Orleans,” he said. “You’re you,” and that’s OK. It wasn’t like that in hip-hop before, but it is now." (This is essentially the point of A3C, to bring artists and sounds from all over the place into one centralized location to network and appreciate.)
Black Thought has high praise for hip-hop in Atlanta, too. “I think right now, Atlanta is the mecca for American hip-hop,” he said. “I think Atlanta is what Houston was for Southern hip-hop in the ‘90s.” There is “such a wide range of artists that come from this same place but with drastically different styles. Atlanta is that business.”
As for what he likes to do in Atlanta, Thought said he’s been here a few times and has many friends in town. He mentioned that he likes R. Thomas Deluxe Grill smoked wings and noted it is a place he likes to visit after he gets off stage when in town since it’s open 24 hours.
A3C itself felt like an overall success. Many people attending the brunch with Black Thought noted the weekend’s communal vibe was laid-back but still productive. There was a networking opportunity at almost every turn throughout the four days, and it truly felt like more than just a music festival. The abundance of educational panels, documentaries and events (brunches, de-facto happy hours in the hotel lobby) made for a great convention-esque feeling without the corporate vibe.
Some notable negatives, because nothing is always executed perfectly: The Artist Center (where the brunch with Black Thought and other panels and screenings were held) was at a hotel (see the fabulous view above) off North Avenue, while the Block Party and majority of the performances were in Edgewood and East Atlanta Village. Getting to and from those places is not easy, especially on a weeknight, and attendees could miss a good chunk of one event trying to get from location A to location B. (Location C, the SAE Institute, also held some events for A3C, and no MARTA or shuttle bus went there, according to one person who had a VIP pass.)
Also worth noting is the only way to find a schedule was an app. Maybe it’s because I don’t have an iPhone (aren’t they supposed to be the greatest things ever?), but I personally feel an app is superfluous. With five days of events, just give me a straight list. Some corners of the app seemed unfinished, and unless you really want to take your time navigating the festival, you’re kind of lost on what to do and where to go. Although this criticism waned as the days went on (and the app proved its usefulness with push notifications and personalized calendar), it’s still an extra element that needs to be adopted by attendees. Depending on the personality of user, that’s either a well-received reception or not so much so.
Ultimately, however, whether you’re a major or minor fan of hip-hop — and especially if you are local — an A3C stop should be on your radar next time around. There is something for casual fans to benefit from, and those looking to break into the industry have a great chance of doing so at A3C.
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