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A New Theory on Hip-Hop: The Cornel West Theory
Loading ...Deft Magazine contributor, Mikal Amin Lee, sits down with the members of The Cornel West Theory, a “sonically innovative, socially aware” hip-hop group out of Washington, D.C.
Mention Washington, D.C. and politics comes to mind. D.C.’s rich cultural and musical legacy sometimes gets lost in the shuffle. Those who know a little more about D.C.’s music scene might think punk (Bad Brains), or jazz (Duke Ellington) or go-go (Chuck Brown). But Hip-Hop? Not really. Despite being home to noted artists such as Asheru, Oddisee, and now Wale, D.C. hasn’t been acknowledged for its rap music.
There is one group that could change all of that: The Cornel West Theory. The group – minus Yvonne Gilmore – was in town with Dr. West to promote their second release, The Shape of Hip Hop to Come and perform later that evening at the famed S.O.B’s.
Founded in 2004, the group consists of drummer Sam Levine, vocalist Rashad Dobbins, John Wesley Moon (vocals/production/percussion), Tim Hicks (vocals, composition), Katrina Lorraine Starr (vocals/percussion), vocalist Yvonne Gilmore, as well as their friend, mentor and muse, Dr. Cornel West.
Dr. West co-signed their name when Tim Hicks approached him at a book signing in D.C. and asked him if it was ok to use the name. “I said I’d be honored, humbled, delighted and full of joy for such a group, if in fact that group preserved the dignity of poor people, working people, oppressed people, and was sensitive to the struggle of black folk in America. Then he preceded to lay out a group that met every possible criteria I could have had,” said West.
The group’s sound can’t be labeled or named (a claim many artists make, but in this case, the truth) which made sense as they rattled off influences that ran the gamut of human existence – from the Wailers to Ornette Coleman to Eric Dolphy to physics.
“What if [Sam] Beckett rapped? What if Frederick [Douglass] rapped?” were questions Rashad Dobbins asked himself in his own personal journeys as a lyricist.
John Wesley Moon broke it down further. “It’s not just musically inspired. We’re inspired by literature, film, dance – it all just leaks in, it starts with us having great conversations about things, and then that unites us to say, let’s try that musically.”
The group has bonded not only through their eclectic tastes, but their tough-love relationship with their hometown of D.C. Having grown up inside the beltway has experienced all of its many phases, and perspectives. It is a place that is misinterpreted, misunderstood, and underestimated.
The seat of power for the country is what vocalist/percussionist Katrina Starr calls “The Eye of the Storm,” where multiple worlds and language codes exist – you develop a double consciousness not only to defend yourself, but also to thrive. Released in July, their second album The Shape of Hip Hop to Come reveals that consciousness to the world in their own way, and the group wants to make sure they get it right.
“Suffering is not a secret and it is not a celebration. I want to be very careful with the music I’m putting out, I don’t want to celebrate that I’m coming from a low place, because that’s not necessarily true,” said Starr. “Coming from a low place even if that is true doesn’t validate your perspective over someone else. It’s not something to be celebrated but its not something to be ignored,” she said.
Tim Hicks went on to explain the group’s feelings about their hometown.
“D.C. is a big illusion, it is a beautiful coffin,” said Hicks. “We’re trying to reflect that D.C. is not just the white buildings that you see with the Roman/Greek architecture its not just Capital Hill – its people waking up every morning figuring out how am I going to survive,” he said.
Moon agrees with his group mates that D.C. has a dark side, says they hold their hometown in high esteem.
“We Love D.C., its the city that made us,” said Moon. “Our families are there. It’s where we went to school. There’s a lot of love there. We want to be a part of the legacy that comes out of that city. We want to show that D.C. is not dead – it’s alive, it is vibrant, it has beautiful people in it and we’re a part of that,” he said.
It is within this crucible that the group whose first record was – as Dr. West puts it – “Hip hop’s first album in history about America as an empire” was formed.
If their first album, Second Rome, was a critique of the American Empire, their latest offering, The Shape of Hip Hop to Come could only be explained by Dr. West’s description, “You have an album that is a critique of the imperial state of mind.”
The group’s self awareness, the challenge of coming out of D.C. as a sonically innovative, socially aware hip-hop group while offering up sharp commentary on the most powerful city in the most powerful country in the world, isn’t putting them under pressure.
“For me, no one is taking chances, there is such a lack of courage. ‘This is how I want to say it, this is how I want to present it – regardless of the audience.’ Taking chances, being courageous, spreading out the spectrum of what things can sound like, what can songs be about, where can songs actually go,” said Moon.
None of this is lost on Dr. West, who sums up The Cornel West Theory profoundly. “As an older brother, for me it was what Marvin Gaye explained from the depths of his soul. ‘Save the Babies’ and ‘What’s Going On.’ We’re not going to save the babies unless we bridge the gap.”
Check out the group’s debut music video, “Patriotic Me”.
Photo and video courtesy of the Cornel West Theory.
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