00:00:00.800 - 00:00:23.040

KRS1: I have to use my man. Okay, let's get it popping. DR. ANTHONY PINN: First. Fam, thanks for coming out. DR. ANTHONY PINN: I want to thank. I want to thank legends DR. ANTHONY PINN: only for letting us get in on this.

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DR. ANTHONY PINN: This is quite a treat for us. DR. ANTHONY PINN: I'm Anthony Penn, I'm the Agnes Cullen Arnold Distinguished Professor of of Humanities DR. ANTHONY PINN: here. And I'm the proud director of the center for Engaged Research and Collaborative DR. ANTHONY PINN: Learning with our friends, our partners at Fondren.

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DR. ANTHONY PINN: We have a commitment to make certain that we do our part to preserve and to DR. ANTHONY PINN: celebrate the history, the legacy, the sure enough depth DR. ANTHONY PINN: of hip hop culture. And so we are honored to have The Teacher with us to have DR. ANTHONY PINN: this conversation. We're going to talk for a little bit.

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DR. ANTHONY PINN: And then I know you didn't come to hear me talk, DR. ANTHONY PINN: so we're going to talk for a little bit and then we'll let you ask your questions. KRS1: I came to hear you talk. KRS1: No you didn't. Yes. I got brain pickings today.

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KRS1: Ah. DR. ANTHONY PINN: I'm looking forward to this. DR. ANTHONY PINN: I need to start with some of the questions I know you hear over and over and over again. DR. ANTHONY PINN: So be patient with me, because we need to get this on the record.

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DR. ANTHONY PINN: Yes, we need folks 50 years from now, 100 years from now to know this. DR. ANTHONY PINN: So so let me start with this. DR. ANTHONY PINN: One of the things that has really impressed me is how you talk about your early DR. ANTHONY PINN: introduction to hip hop, right?

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DR. ANTHONY PINN: The idea that this eight year old couldn't pay that quarter, DR. ANTHONY PINN: right, to get to the jam. DR. ANTHONY PINN: But then when DJ Kool Herc pulled it outside, DR. ANTHONY PINN: you could get with it.

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DR. ANTHONY PINN: So my question is this what exactly about hip hop DR. ANTHONY PINN: pulled you in and kept you in? KRS1: Wow, that's a complicated question. KRS1: Let me let me put it this way.

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KRS1: You're speaking from an objective point of view. KRS1: The beginning of hip hop for me starts subjectively okay? KRS1: Meaning that we were never not hip hop. KRS1: I would the moment the the era you speak of is 1973.

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KRS1: I lived in 1600 Sedgwick Avenue in the Bronx. KRS1: Kool Herc. I recognized father of hip hop, lived at KRS1: 1520 Sedgwick Avenue, about two buildings down. KRS1: But the block, Sedgwick Avenue had a park in.

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KRS1: It had two projects and a lot going on. KRS1: And so we was always who we were. KRS1: What you should keep in mind is that original hip hop was a way KRS1: to be. Everybody wasn't hip hop.

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KRS1: We was a small group of people that that was whose voice KRS1: was ignored, like in the 70s. KRS1: Try to go back to 73. You got Nixon. KRS1: Watergate either just ended or was was getting ready to get wild or in the middle of

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KRS1: it you have the Vietnam War. KRS1: You have a heroin epidemic. KRS1: You have, uh, you know, poverty, obviously housing is KRS1: horrible. All of this is going on at the same time.

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KRS1: Most people ask us how to rap, not KRS1: why we rap. And this part about why we rap points KRS1: to identity. Okay, there's a group of kids in the Bronx that are just not being KRS1: heard. Now there's other African Americans, Latino people,

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KRS1: white people that are Asian as well that are not being heard as well. KRS1: But you have a way to be heard. KRS1: You can join sports. You could go to college, KRS1: join the Army. You could do this.

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KRS1: There's paths for you to be heard in the 70s. KRS1: But in the 70s, that path was the white mainstream. KRS1: There was nothing else. KRS1: What we call Black culture today, which is so is so prevalent and all over the

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KRS1: place was not like that in the 70s. KRS1: In the 70s, America was white Christian. KRS1: That was it. It wasn't all this Muslim and Buddhist and Hindu and KRS1: nah, it was this. So today it may be difficult for people to

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KRS1: understand, like, really understand what the 70s was like. KRS1: But if you understand that little piece of the 70s, KRS1: meaning we had an attitude about the environment we was KRS1: in, and that attitude is what made us rap, what made us

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KRS1: break. And in the in the history books and dictionaries, KRS1: encyclopedias and the books we read today, the credit is given to Lovebug KRS1: Starski, a DJ named Lovebug Starski. KRS1: His partner was chief rocker Busy Bee.

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KRS1: Okay, so these guys are the ones who popularized the term hip hop. KRS1: They had it in a rhyme. A hip hop hop, hop. KRS1: Take a look at your arm and check your watch. KRS1: That kind of thing. That hip hop.

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KRS1: So I asked, um, I well, I asked her, KRS1: I asked Busy Bee, and I asked Cass, where do we come up with this term? KRS1: Hip hop? Herc? Don't know. KRS1: Cass and Busy Bee said it was something about an army and

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KRS1: hip hop. Hip hop. And somebody was going to the army, KRS1: and that's where I got the turn from. KRS1: But Busy Bee couldn't remember. KRS1: So I saw Lovebug Starski about a year ago in Las

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KRS1: Vegas. I asked Starsky, Starsky, how did you come up with the KRS1: term hip hop? First he said, I don't know. KRS1: I just said it. I it's just something we used to say. KRS1: I don't remember. Then he said, I'm going to save my real answer for my

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KRS1: documentary. So I'm like, yo, dude. KRS1: I'm like, dude, I'm asking you a historical question. KRS1: I'm gonna save it for my documentary. KRS1: Now, he was teasing. Yeah, because he was in a club,

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KRS1: but he wouldn't give me the answer either. KRS1: So here's the here's the here's the here's the kicker. KRS1: Now, after the show, I invited him on stage. KRS1: We did a concert or whatever.

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KRS1: Invited him on the stage. Yo, he does his thing. KRS1: Hip hop, hip hop, hop, hop. KRS1: He does all the crowd up. KRS1: It's wonderful. After the show, he emails my wife.

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KRS1: He says, um, he texts, he says, um, uh, if I die KRS1: tonight, I die a happy man. KRS1: Because I performed with KRS-One. KRS1: This is Lovebug Starski.

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KRS1: Two weeks later, he's dead. KRS1: Mhm. Massive heart attack. KRS1: Dead in a hotel room somewhere. KRS1: He's gone. So now I'm like, damn, I never got the

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KRS1: story. Okay, I was just there. KRS1: I never got the story. KRS1: So I'm thinking about mediums. KRS1: Now I'm thinking about how can I talk to my dude

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KRS1: right now? How can I do? KRS1: Lo and behold, he must have heard us doing some KRS1: research. Another colleague of mine doing some research. KRS1: We come across this record by the last poets called

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KRS1: Black Soldier. And in this record, Black KRS1: soldier, 1972, December KRS1: 31st. Now, how do you drop a record on New Year's KRS1: Eve, anyway? Okay, but this is where the record in the record,

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KRS1: it's hip hop. Hip hop, hip hop like this. KRS1: So I go back to Busy Bee and I say, bee, where did you come up with this? KRS1: He said, I heard it from the gangs. KRS1: They were saying it reaching to the gangs.

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KRS1: The gangs are listening to the Last So the last KRS1: poets are influenced in the gangs and everybody and really what we KRS1: call organizations, because it was the Black Panthers, KRS1: it was others that were in the neighborhood.

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KRS1: So. So The Last Poets is speaking to this particular community. DR. ANTHONY PINN: So let me ask you to help me wrap my mind around something because you made an DR. ANTHONY PINN: important distinction. DR. ANTHONY PINN: Right. There's hip hop capital H, one word.

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DR. ANTHONY PINN: Yes, there's hip hop. Capital H is two words. DR. ANTHONY PINN: There's hip hop. Two words. DR. ANTHONY PINN: Small h now small h, you said is music. DR. ANTHONY PINN: Yes. Capital H is two words.

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DR. ANTHONY PINN: That is the four core elements. DR. ANTHONY PINN: Yes. And then there's hip hop. DR. ANTHONY PINN: One word. Just help me wrap my mind around that. DR. ANTHONY PINN: Help me understand the distinction.

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KRS1: First of all, your scholarship is brilliant. DR. ANTHONY PINN: I knew how I was coming to talk with you. DR. ANTHONY PINN: I had to be prepared. KRS1: No, this is this is amazing.

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KRS1: Because what you're what you're getting into now is the actual KRS1: scholarship of hip hop in and of itself, meaning that instead of KRS1: discussing, like when we say we're going to give a hip hop course or KRS1: give a hip hop class, or we're going to teach hip hop,

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KRS1: let's say most people start with rappers. KRS1: It's an easy subject. They're right in your face. KRS1: You can pull from a variety of pieces, but to discuss rappers and KRS1: DJs and other performers is not the discussion of hip hop.

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KRS1: Hip hop is hip hop. Before we get to anybody's performance, KRS1: before we get to any celebrity, before we get to what is hip hop in and of KRS1: itself? So this begins the scholarship. KRS1: Now, what you would lean into was one of the first ways in which we approach hip

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KRS1: hop people. The spelling of hip hop is very important because we're dealing with KRS1: culture, not just a music genre. KRS1: Now, I don't know why people spell music genres in KRS1: lowercase letters. I don't know why that is.

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KRS1: It's a it's a dramatic sort of cultural rule, KRS1: but I don't see anything in grammar that says you have to spell R&B with lowercase KRS1: or reg with lowercase. KRS1: But they get spelled in lowercase their music genres.

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KRS1: Hip hop is a culture, full fledged global KRS1: culture. Way to be lifestyle. KRS1: Even our own dialect. Everything. KRS1: But we're still being spelled in lowercase in dictionaries that even call

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KRS1: us culture, like the American Heritage Dictionary, KRS1: Oxford English Dictionary, Merriam Webster, these KRS1: dictionaries, they list us, but they list us in lowercase. KRS1: That's a disrespect to the culture.

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KRS1: Hip hop is a proper noun. KRS1: It's the name of our culture. KRS1: So you're supposed to start the spelling of hip hop with a capital H, KRS1: lowercase ip space capital H lowercase op.

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KRS1: That is the proper name of the culture. KRS1: Now you got to fight for that though, because we're talking about KRS1: muscling in on on the cultural terrain. KRS1: And it's difficult for cultures to be born because other cultures swallow them up

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KRS1: quick. They could destroy them. KRS1: They can ignore them. It's hard for culture to stay intact. KRS1: So little things like this. KRS1: Back to identity and existence.

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KRS1: These metaphysical terms being. KRS1: Yeah. DR. ANTHONY PINN: And I want to get in that. KRS1: Okay. But this this is the essence of it right here.

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KRS1: That when you spell it, when you spell hip hop correctly, KRS1: excuse me? You align yourself correctly with the subject in which you're speaking. KRS1: If you was going to talk about America and or write about America, KRS1: you wouldn't spell it in lowercase.

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KRS1: It's the name of a nation. KRS1: But if you don't recognize America as a nation, KRS1: you see it as a clothing line or something. KRS1: You could put it as a small a or something or some activity.

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KRS1: America is an activity. KRS1: So you put it as a small a as a verb, that kind of thing. KRS1: That's not what we're dealing with. KRS1: So hip hop as consciousness.

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KRS1: We look at hip hop as consciousness, culture and commerce. KRS1: These are the three C's consciousness, culture and KRS1: commerce. So consciousness hip hop is spelled with a capital h KRS1: I p h o p. One word. It looks like hiphop,

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KRS1: but it's hip hop. Second spelling as as as we pointed out, KRS1: capital H lowercase ip space capital h o p lowercase KRS1: op. That's the name of the culture. KRS1: That's the correct spelling of it.

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KRS1: Then you get lowercase hip space or dash. KRS1: Some people put a dash hop all lowercase. KRS1: That's rap music entertainment. KRS1: Okay. That's okay. That's.

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DR. ANTHONY PINN: Y'all get that? KRS1: Yeah. That's right. Music, entertainment. KRS1: That is the music genre of us. KRS1: And like I said, I don't I still don't know why people spell music genres in

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KRS1: lowercase, but we follow the trend. KRS1: In fact, the spelling of hip hop in lowercase is KRS1: usually how these other institutions are approaching our KRS1: culture. They're not approaching us as culture.

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KRS1: They're approaching us as a music genre. KRS1: So in our, um, how would I say lexicon KRS1: in our, uh, language? Uh, KRS1: in our coded dialect, it still matches because of the

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KRS1: way you're coming at us. KRS1: You're still looking at us as a music genre. KRS1: We got ways to wear our hair, ways to throw our clothes. KRS1: We got a we got a whole business to which we should get into as well.

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KRS1: Hip hop is a huge, huge business that our children KRS1: should have access to. KRS1: Please. DR. ANTHONY PINN: And I want to. When you come back.

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DR. ANTHONY PINN: Yeah. When you come back, we're going to dig deep. KRS1: Oh, yes. Indeed. DR. ANTHONY PINN: But I want to get into your urban inspirational metaphysics. DR. ANTHONY PINN: And what kind of blows my mind is when you talk metaphysics,

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DR. ANTHONY PINN: you don't simply mean the Western tradition, right? DR. ANTHONY PINN: That you're talking about words, about divine speech. DR. ANTHONY PINN: Yes. And that's significant. DR. ANTHONY PINN: And so I do want to deal with that. And I want to start with on on numerous occasions

00:14:03.410 - 00:14:14.250

DR. ANTHONY PINN: you have said that hip hop is life. DR. ANTHONY PINN: Yeah. But folks need to recognize what you mean by life. DR. ANTHONY PINN: It's not simply a biological function. DR. ANTHONY PINN: Right. And I wrote it down because I'm going to get this right.

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KRS1: Come on, come on. DR. ANTHONY PINN: Love information flowing eternally is life. DR. ANTHONY PINN: So you got to break that down for us. KRS1: Wow. Um. Hip.

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KRS1: Hip. The name. The word hip KRS1: means to be aware. And I'm saying this because people KRS1: put all types of meanings on hip hop. KRS1: But if you get down to the essence of it, the word hip

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KRS1: means aware. It means I'm hip. KRS1: I'm up on it, I understand. KRS1: It's a form of cognition. KRS1: You understand? It's a form of intelligence.

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KRS1: Hop is springing up, leaping forward. KRS1: This is all. Hip hop is an intelligence. KRS1: Leaping up. Hip hop hopping. KRS1: Do you know why you move?

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KRS1: That's what hip hop asks of us. KRS1: Hip. Are you aware of your hop? KRS1: Are you hip to your hopping? KRS1: Do you know why you move?

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KRS1: Who's moving you? This was the first lesson we learned KRS1: in terms of self determination. KRS1: Self existence. We would no longer move by society, KRS1: so we was able to look at it.

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KRS1: Our parents were immersed in society so they couldn't see it. KRS1: They did everything they could within the society and they did great work, KRS1: but they couldn't see outside of it. KRS1: There was no other paradigm.

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KRS1: Here comes their kids who saw out, first of all, KRS1: being rejected pushed you outside. KRS1: Now you can see there's something else other than what's going on here KRS1: now. So being aware, hip aware hop movement,

00:16:09.950 - 00:16:17.950

KRS1: we stripped off all labels. KRS1: This is the key. DR. ANTHONY PINN: Don't let labels label you. KRS1: Don't let labels. These are just coats.

00:16:18.590 - 00:16:30.880

KRS1: If you strip yourself down to the final. KRS1: Final. Just no name, no title, nothing. KRS1: No mother. Father. Son. KRS1: Uncle. What? Not any social title.

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KRS1: Strip yourself of it. You'll get right down to just being KRS1: intelligence. Moving. Just it. KRS1: This is just to say, right here, all we are is intelligence. KRS1: Some sort of understanding on the move.

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KRS1: Now, if we could go back to that consciousness, KRS1: we unite all of humanity. KRS1: The concept of race is an illusion. KRS1: I don't have to say that to rice.

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KRS1: You guys know what it is. KRS1: This is a social construct. KRS1: So why are we sitting here right now? KRS1: Look at this. Look at the insanity. Because hip hop deals with that insanity,

00:17:10.480 - 00:17:26.600

KRS1: okay? We know as educated people that KRS1: race is false. It's a social construct. KRS1: It's it's society. It's even could be cultural. KRS1: We know it's not real yet.

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KRS1: Here's Black History month. KRS1: Here's. Yeah, race race race race race. KRS1: Hip hop has a whole different view of this. KRS1: And this is when I come back to. Urban inspirational metaphysics. Because no,

00:17:44.760 - 00:18:01.120

KRS1: we're not talking about Western metaphysics. KRS1: In fact, we're not talking about that at all, because Western philosophy is KRS1: stolen. That's the first thing you got to understand the entire KRS1: thing. Like, I'm going to go slow, Imma

00:18:01.120 - 00:18:07.640

KRS1: go slow. Repeat. DR. ANTHONY PINN: You got to repeat that. KRS1: Because it's difficult. There may be philosophers in the room right now. You guys KRS1: may be spending money.

00:18:12.160 - 00:18:27.530

KRS1: The whole concept of Western KRS1: philosophy is stolen and thus KRS1: fake. Yeah. Once you studied all these, I wasted KRS1: 20 years of my life studying these philosophers.

00:18:27.530 - 00:18:39.250

KRS1: I don't mean wasted my life. KRS1: Wasted time. Okay. Aristotle, René Descartes, KRS1: Francis Bacon, these other dudes. KRS1: Idiots. All of them. Okay.

00:18:39.650 - 00:18:54.210

KRS1: Every last one of them. KRS1: Idiots. And I say that humbly. KRS1: Straight idiot. Here's why. KRS1: They're idiots. Because out of all the subjects

00:18:54.450 - 00:19:12.450

KRS1: to study out of every subject known to the human mind to study KRS1: philosophy deals with the truth. KRS1: Out of every subject you can put, the human mind could possibly know this one KRS1: subject. This one wants to know what's real.

00:19:13.290 - 00:19:29.180

KRS1: What is truly going on now? DR. ANTHONY PINN: So that's human education against lies. KRS1: Yes. That's that. That prompted that that whole movement. KRS1: Yes, it is human education against these lies.

00:19:30.220 - 00:19:44.700

DR. ANTHONY PINN: That let me let me get at this. DR. ANTHONY PINN: So your ability to speak a across DR. ANTHONY PINN: audience types without losing a beat is impressive. DR. ANTHONY PINN: And one of the things that stood out for me was a sermon.

00:19:44.700 - 00:19:51.700

DR. ANTHONY PINN: And I'm going to call it a sermon you gave at hillside. DR. ANTHONY PINN: You had the folk shouting. KRS1: Oh. DR. ANTHONY PINN: At hillside. And the thing that stood out for me is you.

00:19:51.700 - 00:20:05.060

DR. ANTHONY PINN: You told these folks, look, get the gospel right. DR. ANTHONY PINN: The gospel has to be understandable to every life form. DR. ANTHONY PINN: Yes. Why? Yes. Because it's love. DR. ANTHONY PINN: Right. And then you said that the gospel of hip hop is love.

00:20:05.100 - 00:20:16.100

DR. ANTHONY PINN: And you know, that triggered something for me. DR. ANTHONY PINN: One of my favorite thinkers is that North African Albert Camus. DR. ANTHONY PINN: Oh, yeah. Who says absurdity is king? DR. ANTHONY PINN: But love saves us from it.

00:20:16.140 - 00:20:30.180

DR. ANTHONY PINN: Wow. So it seems to me if he had lived past 1960, DR. ANTHONY PINN: he could get with you or Richard Wright if Wright. DR. ANTHONY PINN: If he had lived past 1960, he could get with you or Zora Neale Hurston. DR. ANTHONY PINN: If she had lived past 1960, she could get with you in terms of this idea

00:20:30.180 - 00:20:45.660

DR. ANTHONY PINN: of love. But give me a fuller sense of of what that really DR. ANTHONY PINN: entails and how that kind of love gets expressed through hip hop as consciousness, DR. ANTHONY PINN: hip hop as life, or on other occasions. DR. ANTHONY PINN: You've said hip hop is the fountain of youth.

00:20:45.820 - 00:20:55.780

KRS1: It is. Um, I'm 59 right now. DR. ANTHONY PINN: Me too. KRS1: And. Hey, brother. DR. ANTHONY PINN: Welcome. Um.

00:20:55.820 - 00:21:09.940

KRS1: Hip hop. Uh, first of all, with the Fountain of Youth piece, KRS1: um, hip hop is the fountain of youth. KRS1: Yes. Because, first of all, all doctors will tell you that if you can get KRS1: your heart pumping at about 120 beats per minute,

00:21:10.180 - 00:21:21.190

KRS1: at least three times a week, you're doing good. KRS1: You could. You could add ten, 20 years to your life. KRS1: Just getting your heart ready 120 beats a minute, KRS1: three times a week. You can add ten years to your life.

00:21:21.670 - 00:21:34.470

KRS1: Breaking does that and seeing does that. KRS1: I'm doing concerts now. KRS1: Matter of fact, one of the reasons I'm sweating right now is because my body is so KRS1: used to sweating, uh, which is which is actually healing.

00:21:35.550 - 00:21:54.670

KRS1: When you emcee, you use both sides of your brain. KRS1: When you emcee, your whole body is involved, and you sweat and you move and KRS1: you exercise. I see people my same age that can't even KRS1: move. And I look, I say, man, you know, you know,

00:21:54.710 - 00:22:11.030

KRS1: maybe you should have been an emcee. I don't know, but it's it's the the KRS1: doctors say that, uh, every you know, I had two doctors tell KRS1: me, as a matter of fact, that I have the heart of an athlete. KRS1: And they say, well, what do you do? Because, you know, I'm six five and you sweat, you

00:22:11.030 - 00:22:22.280

KRS1: play basketball, you got to be in sports. KRS1: I ain't been in sports in 25 years. KRS1: Okay? Microphones. That's my spot. KRS1: So. But look at this. The mic.

00:22:22.320 - 00:22:35.600

KRS1: Life gives you the body of an athlete. KRS1: Think about that. The life of the mic. KRS1: Well, you got to lift stuff. KRS1: Well if you're if you're an original emcee, you still lift your crates.

00:22:35.800 - 00:22:48.800

KRS1: You still lift turntables, you still take stairs. KRS1: Hey, we try to take stairs today. You did you still take stairs? KRS1: We still do. So your body is always moving. KRS1: And if you're on tour, you're traveling.

00:22:48.800 - 00:23:00.480

KRS1: This too kind of thing. KRS1: Come back to the love. We did this for the love. KRS1: This is what people fail to realize. KRS1: Before the money, before the fame, before all of that.

00:23:00.600 - 00:23:11.280

KRS1: The first thing we did this for was the love of ourselves. KRS1: First. We were not being heard. KRS1: We heard ourselves. We said, listen. KRS1: We love ourselves. We know we exist.

00:23:11.400 - 00:23:22.280

KRS1: They corny, not us. So this was and this was the attitude, KRS1: a love for self. Now a next man comes. KRS1: Woman. Your friend, your homie. KRS1: Come with the same love.

00:23:22.800 - 00:23:35.480

KRS1: I love this too I love you, I love how I am I love how you are. KRS1: This is it now two people are down. KRS1: Three for this love was shared. KRS1: Now look at this. There were gangs in the community doing madness,

00:23:35.520 - 00:23:53.200

KRS1: okay? Violence, gang fights, so on. KRS1: When the love came into the community, all that went away KRS1: and I mean went away. This should be movies done on this. KRS1: How? Actually, organizations starting with Black Panther Party

00:23:53.920 - 00:24:10.120

KRS1: when they fragmented. There's never really been a a KRS1: really good take on what happened after the Black Panthers fragmented KRS1: because that starts the gang culture. KRS1: After Black Panthers fragment, everybody wanted to be a Black Panther.

00:24:10.320 - 00:24:19.610

KRS1: So they started up their own. KRS1: Everybody start their own thing up and keep it real. KRS1: The Black Panthers, I wouldn't call them a gang, KRS1: but they were gangsta.

00:24:19.610 - 00:24:31.770

KRS1: Straight up. Okay, this is the PBS special we're looking at. KRS1: Is not the Black Panthers. KRS1: Okay? I say that respectfully. KRS1: I know what PBS does. I know what they're trying to do.

00:24:31.770 - 00:24:48.210

KRS1: But for those of us on the ground that was actually sitting at the table waiting for KRS1: that little sandwich they used to give us in the cold chicken wrapped up in the KRS1: thing for us. Nah, them dudes was straight gangsters. KRS1: We was sitting there like, you didn't talk back.

00:24:48.210 - 00:24:59.250

KRS1: You didn't act out. You didn't. KRS1: It was none of that. You was in that building. KRS1: You was learning, you was eating, you was doing your thing. KRS1: So there was a love, another form of love.

00:24:59.530 - 00:25:15.500

KRS1: The gang culture is where the love was found. KRS1: It's called gangs today because that's the mainstream term. KRS1: But it's not. It's it's little families of people coming together. KRS1: But what's but now what happens is that families have beefs

00:25:16.020 - 00:25:30.700

KRS1: in the family and with other families. KRS1: And so now you get this gang warfare and it's going on today. KRS1: This is part of human nature for us to tribe up and fight against each KRS1: other. This is a lower part of our nature.

00:25:30.820 - 00:25:40.620

KRS1: But nonetheless, you can see it with the breakup of the Black Panthers all the way KRS1: up to Israel and Gaza. KRS1: This is all gang warfare. KRS1: And I want.

00:25:40.620 - 00:25:53.860

DR. ANTHONY PINN: To I want to get back to this issue of identity. DR. ANTHONY PINN: My favorite track, my favorite favorite track is why is that? KRS1: Yeah. DR. ANTHONY PINN: Right. And in part because of the way in which you break

00:25:53.860 - 00:26:06.420

DR. ANTHONY PINN: down how white racism. DR. ANTHONY PINN: And you don't use white supremacy, right? DR. ANTHONY PINN: White racism gets played out through these sacred texts. DR. ANTHONY PINN: Right. And you reinsert the a population that has been ignored.

00:26:06.420 - 00:26:18.900

DR. ANTHONY PINN: But then you blow my mind because then you say hip hoppers need to realize that they DR. ANTHONY PINN: may not be from Asia or Africa. DR. ANTHONY PINN: Right. That they may be from a different galaxy or a different dimension DR. ANTHONY PINN: altogether.

00:26:19.180 - 00:26:24.580

KRS1: Come on. DR. ANTHONY PINN: You got to see a little. KRS1: More on that. Right. Well, does it start with the Africa? KRS1: Me I'm a Pan-Africanist.

00:26:24.580 - 00:26:34.380

KRS1: Let me establish that. KRS1: Okay. Straight up and down Africa should be for Africans. KRS1: Let's just start there. KRS1: However, when you dig into the truth,

00:26:35.980 - 00:26:45.260

KRS1: Africa is a Roman title given to the continent. KRS1: We never called ourselves Africans. KRS1: The Muslims called us Alkebulan. KRS1: They called the place Alkebulan.

00:26:45.780 - 00:26:55.660

KRS1: Uh, Romans called it Africa. KRS1: Greeks called it Ethiopia. KRS1: What did we call it? It was just home. KRS1: It's just home right now.

00:26:56.060 - 00:27:12.230

KRS1: You call home a lot of things, okay? KRS1: You call home a lot of stuff. KRS1: Okay? And and so and so think about this original KRS1: African In mentality. Didn't understand a continent,

00:27:12.630 - 00:27:30.150

KRS1: a country, a nation. These are colonial titles. KRS1: So when you could somehow step out of imperialism and KRS1: imagine you got to fight, you got to fight because we're all KRS1: assimilated to colonialism.

00:27:30.190 - 00:27:44.670

KRS1: So so the spirituality of it is, is KRS1: instead of saying, um, the devil. KRS1: Mhm. Um, say George Washington. KRS1: No. No, seriously. Uh, no.

00:27:44.670 - 00:28:02.030

KRS1: No, seriously. If you really want to solve the issue, KRS1: you can't take on the character of a colonist. KRS1: That this is the new spirituality, not a man in the KRS1: sky or even prayer, meditation.

00:28:02.470 - 00:28:16.080

KRS1: Yoga. Ghost. Sorry, it did not work. KRS1: This is what philosophers look at. KRS1: Going back to the previous question, that philosophy. KRS1: Is it real? I want to know if it's real.

00:28:16.080 - 00:28:28.960

KRS1: I want to know if it's real. I want to know if it's real right now. And what is real. KRS1: What's real? The religions of the world have failed. KRS1: Humanity. That's real. KRS1: Okay, okay. That's it, that's it.

00:28:28.960 - 00:28:39.600

KRS1: You failed. You failed. KRS1: Now, if we could just step with the truth. KRS1: You failed. Yeah. Hinduism. KRS1: You failed Judaism. You failed Christianity.

00:28:39.600 - 00:28:51.840

KRS1: You failed Islam. You failed all of you. KRS1: You failed. Now, if we could deal with the truth, KRS1: we could come up with something better, okay? KRS1: And the better. Keep this in mind.

00:28:51.840 - 00:29:02.840

KRS1: The better is worse than what we got. KRS1: Listen to what I just said. KRS1: The better is worse. Look at this. KRS1: Because the worse is all these religions claiming of God all fighting amongst each

00:29:02.840 - 00:29:15.160

KRS1: other. Humanity is still screwed up. KRS1: They claim in Divinity. KRS1: It's a joke, but it's the bet. KRS1: Here's the better. No one of us have the answer.

00:29:16.040 - 00:29:28.920

KRS1: But all of us together got the answer? KRS1: Okay, okay. But now here's where it's bad. KRS1: Here's where it's worse. KRS1: Can the Muslim admit that Jesus Christ is Lord and

00:29:28.920 - 00:29:45.920

KRS1: Savior? Can the Christian admit KRS1: that the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon his name, KRS1: is the only prophet to exist? KRS1: Can the Buddhist believe in God?

00:29:48.000 - 00:29:52.320

DR. ANTHONY PINN: That's deep. Doctor Matthews. KRS1: Do I have time for. DR. ANTHONY PINN: Two more questions before we open. KRS1: It up? Yeah.

00:29:52.320 - 00:30:08.210

DR. ANTHONY PINN: Go ahead. Okay, so first question, 1994 DR. ANTHONY PINN: is significant. And 1994, you make a public DR. ANTHONY PINN: pronouncement. Yes, I am hip hop now. DR. ANTHONY PINN: So for me, what this suggest is you,

00:30:10.010 - 00:30:20.490

DR. ANTHONY PINN: in a very public fashion, become a steward of hip DR. ANTHONY PINN: hop. KRS1: Yes. DR. ANTHONY PINN: Right. And that you are following in the lineage of Afrika Bambaataa?

00:30:20.530 - 00:30:30.370

KRS1: Yes. DR. ANTHONY PINN: A steward of hip hop, preserving, teaching, DR. ANTHONY PINN: illustrating, correcting. DR. ANTHONY PINN: And so here's my question.

00:30:30.610 - 00:30:45.650

DR. ANTHONY PINN: Right. So there are folks, hip hoppers who are doing this. DR. ANTHONY PINN: And then it seems to me there are there are a host of others who are trying to get on this. DR. ANTHONY PINN: So you've got folks like like Nelson George or Greg Tate. KRS1: Harry Allen. Oh, yes.

00:30:45.690 - 00:30:57.650

DR. ANTHONY PINN: Tricia rose. KRS1: Yes. DR. ANTHONY PINN: Who are in 20? So most of these folks are doing their thing in the 80s, DR. ANTHONY PINN: the 90s, the 2000. Who in 2024 would you say represents

00:30:57.650 - 00:31:08.020

DR. ANTHONY PINN: the stewards of hip hop? KRS1: I think your question is in the future. KRS1: Okay. Okay. Uh, I think your question is future. KRS1: We have not reached there yet.

00:31:08.260 - 00:31:24.540

KRS1: Okay. Uh, to even answer that question, I appreciate, KRS1: uh, I appreciate your words toward me, but in the scheme of your KRS1: question, even I am not a steward. KRS1: Okay. Real hip hop has not been discussed yet.

00:31:24.580 - 00:31:37.980

KRS1: Okay, okay. We just got up to the 50 years. KRS1: Keep this in mind. Let me just give you a little background. Okay. I am hip hop KRS1: historian. Officially. KRS1: Okay. We we did our meetings in the early days with Afrika Bambaataa,

00:31:38.020 - 00:31:52.340

KRS1: Kool Herc, flash, Theodore, Crazy Legs, all of us. KRS1: Okay. Every pioneer we got together. KRS1: You mentioned 1994. In 1994, we took our meeting of the minds. KRS1: Was the first time all of us met to discuss hip hop as a culture.

00:31:52.740 - 00:32:04.060

KRS1: In that meeting, I was called Master Teacher, KRS1: and I was supposed to go out, write the history, KRS1: Find out what was going on. KRS1: Erect a temple. All of this type of stuff.

00:32:04.420 - 00:32:19.260

KRS1: So I took on the challenge with the support of everyone. KRS1: We got the knowledge down. KRS1: We got everything. But as we started to go into culture, KRS1: not commerce, not just who Kirk was, who bam is not just those

00:32:19.260 - 00:32:37.460

KRS1: stories, but we started looking at how do you transfer a way to be KRS1: to your children? How do you transfer a culture to another KRS1: generation and try to keep it intact at the same time? KRS1: So this this led us or led led me,

00:32:37.460 - 00:32:49.860

KRS1: for that matter, to consider language, KRS1: government, uh, that pretty much everything that I was against. KRS1: Um, and I'll show you this. KRS1: Me, I'm railing against government.

00:32:49.860 - 00:33:01.230

KRS1: When we actually did the research, we realized that the way to preserve culture KRS1: is through government. KRS1: Uh, and this is a bad taste in my mouth. KRS1: Okay. This is. And this is, this is the.

00:33:01.230 - 00:33:11.510

KRS1: This is the philosopher. You have to follow the truth, KRS1: not your ego. Not not what you think or what or even what. KRS1: Last week's knowledge was Monday. KRS1: I thought it was this. I had evidence and proof.

00:33:11.750 - 00:33:20.630

KRS1: Friday. It's the it's refuted. KRS1: What are you going to do, stay on Monday? KRS1: No. You have to change your view to this. KRS1: Me I'm like, sound it up.

00:33:20.630 - 00:33:35.470

KRS1: Police. Okay. The police are my number one fans. KRS1: Deal with the truth. Yeah. KRS1: Black cop, black cop, black cop, black black police officers. KRS1: Number one. I was just in Dallas.

00:33:35.830 - 00:33:46.310

KRS1: Black Latino police officers, I jump out, I just did sounded. KRS1: The police were screaming. KRS1: Okay, get off the stage. KRS1: Three Latino cops. Yo, I need that picture.

00:33:46.590 - 00:33:57.640

KRS1: Yo, I need, I need yo, I got to get this, y'all this one. KRS1: And and so you you when, when you look at that, KRS1: that preservation of culture. KRS1: You can't look at race.

00:33:57.800 - 00:34:10.640

KRS1: You can't look at uniform. KRS1: You can't look at any of the things you put on yourself to represent society. KRS1: You got to look at the heart of the person themselves. KRS1: And when you speak to the heart, not so much the mind.

00:34:10.680 - 00:34:24.600

KRS1: Speak to the heart. Then you understand the culture. KRS1: Come back. We. That took us 50 years from 73 to KRS1: 2023 to understand our heart. KRS1: Okay. Okay. We didn't understand.

00:34:24.720 - 00:34:33.800

KRS1: We didn't. We were all mind. KRS1: We were all mind, mind, mind. KRS1: Here's a quick example of the heart versus mind. KRS1: We're in a university.

00:34:34.320 - 00:34:49.000

KRS1: So the mind in a university can teach hip hop as culture. KRS1: Any professor that has done his homework or her homework can teach any KRS1: subject. You do your homework. KRS1: You teach the subject.

00:34:49.400 - 00:35:04.400

KRS1: You can master any subject and teach it. KRS1: That's the mind that is academia. KRS1: That's how you learn and teach. KRS1: But if you're representing a culture, the rules change a little

00:35:04.400 - 00:35:15.440

KRS1: bit. Yes, yes, you still have to study. KRS1: You still got to do your homework, but you're representing a culture. KRS1: So what does that mean? KRS1: Knowledge is not just taught.

00:35:15.480 - 00:35:32.880

KRS1: Knowledge is passed on. KRS1: So this is the piece that the university system needs to begin to embrace. KRS1: The university system is all mind. KRS1: Okay. But you have no connection to the Bronx if

00:35:32.920 - 00:35:48.800

KRS1: you're teaching hip hop in any university. KRS1: Okay. And this is what makes this meeting here so important right now in KRS1: history, because I humbly say, like I said, KRS1: I am hip hop's official master teacher.

00:35:48.800 - 00:36:02.050

KRS1: It is a burden. Okay? I am not bragging about this. KRS1: I got to do with some crazies. KRS1: Okay, this is. This is what it is, right? KRS1: Boom. But they are professors,

00:36:02.610 - 00:36:11.610

KRS1: teachers, even other artists that are teaching hip hop courses. KRS1: And they never met me. KRS1: Mhm. They never met me. KRS1: Now you're legitimate.

00:36:11.610 - 00:36:26.010

KRS1: You can teach, you can do your thing. KRS1: But I hold the culture. KRS1: Mhm. The certification that I give you is, is the KRS1: culture's approval of your teaching.

00:36:26.930 - 00:36:38.490

KRS1: You don't get that nowhere. KRS1: Okay. That don't go nowhere. KRS1: It's a passing on. I first had to sit with her. KRS1: Mhm. And her if anybody knows her this dude okay.

00:36:39.530 - 00:36:52.220

KRS1: He's a family member but he's difficult. KRS1: Okay. Herc. It's my brother. KRS1: Actually. My father in culture. KRS1: Chef Herc. Okay, you got to sit there with Herc.

00:36:52.500 - 00:37:01.540

KRS1: His sister Cindy. Wonderful woman. KRS1: Actually, Cindy is the one that started hip hop. KRS1: Because it was heard through the jam. KRS1: She only brought her brother in and said, DJ,

00:37:01.540 - 00:37:13.660

KRS1: real quick for me. And he took all the fame and the light. KRS1: But Cindy is the one that put the jam on. KRS1: You got to know, Cindy. KRS1: You got to. We say Afrika Bambaataa, but jazzy J is the one that threw

00:37:13.660 - 00:37:25.020

KRS1: the records on. You got to know J. KRS1: You got to know red alert. KRS1: Chuck. Chill out, these dudes. KRS1: I'm traveling right now with DJ Cash Money from Philadelphia.

00:37:26.140 - 00:37:41.900

KRS1: This is the. This is the champion DJ of the world. KRS1: Okay, this dude is nice with his. KRS1: Now, as DJs, as we travel, there's other DJs that are better than KRS1: him. But when he shows up, those DJs that are better than

00:37:41.900 - 00:37:51.860

KRS1: him say, yo, yo, cash money, let me get a photo with you. KRS1: Yo, cash money, sign this. KRS1: Yo, this is the culture. KRS1: I may be more. I may be smarter than you.

00:37:51.860 - 00:38:02.780

KRS1: I may be richer than you. KRS1: I may have a bigger institution than you. KRS1: But I recognize who you are in this. KRS1: Okay? And so in this I can.

00:38:02.820 - 00:38:13.900

KRS1: Now we're passing culture on. KRS1: We're passing it on here. KRS1: Just me being here, okay? KRS1: Just me being here in this room and we talking just like this.

00:38:13.900 - 00:38:25.700

KRS1: Just like this. You are. KRS1: You're validating Rice University right now. KRS1: I mean, the validation is crazy because you have the. KRS1: Well, I should be applauding you.

00:38:27.260 - 00:38:38.940

KRS1: Uh, the validation is crazy because. KRS1: Because here you have the the the steward of the culture. KRS1: And I'm going to get back to that. KRS1: The steward of the culture.

00:38:39.220 - 00:38:53.110

KRS1: That's who you decided to talk to. KRS1: Now I'm the one that holds the certifications for the For the culture itself. KRS1: We have the signatures. Everybody, I gotta I'm gonna give you one anyway, I KRS1: appreciate you. You got to get this.

00:38:53.950 - 00:39:05.470

KRS1: Um, you got to get this. KRS1: But, uh, it's, uh, we have a course, um, called a hip hop cultural specialist. KRS1: Course. You already took it. KRS1: If the way you're speaking to me, you already took the course.

00:39:05.790 - 00:39:20.910

KRS1: Um, but we have this course that makes you a hip hop cultural specialist. KRS1: One more piece to put on this about transference of culture through academia, KRS1: in that sense, is that our children need jobs. KRS1: Yeah. Uh, and matter of fact, they may not even say jobs.

00:39:20.910 - 00:39:33.230

KRS1: They need work. Uh, work, work is more, more connected to your purpose KRS1: in life. You know, a job is a job. KRS1: You do a job. Job well done. KRS1: But work, work, dignity and work.

00:39:33.670 - 00:39:49.480

KRS1: Finishing your work, knowing what your work is. KRS1: That's what our children are missing today. KRS1: And shamefully enough, you know, um, every once in a while. KRS1: I like to put my African American hat back on and notice what I said.

00:39:50.680 - 00:40:07.040

KRS1: Every once in a while, I like to put my African American hat back KRS1: on, and I like to look at my people and I say, KRS1: yo, listen, you know, as the youth of KRS1: us, I have a saying that I think helps our people,

00:40:07.040 - 00:40:23.280

KRS1: which is that when younger people listen to older people, KRS1: they move faster. Mhm. KRS1: And when older people listen to younger people we move KRS1: faster. Mhm. The problem is nobody's listening.

00:40:23.440 - 00:40:42.320

KRS1: Mhm. And listening is more than just hearing you KRS1: speak. Listening for me to hear you I have to set KRS1: myself aside. Mhm. And this concept of setting KRS1: yourself aside to hear the view of the other one is what the whole country

00:40:42.520 - 00:40:56.000

KRS1: needs to learn right now is that I give it just. KRS1: I give it just to African American youth. KRS1: Don't be afraid of nothing you hear or see. KRS1: Expand your consciousness.

00:40:56.720 - 00:41:09.360

KRS1: Expand your understanding. KRS1: People think that intelligence means reading a lot of books and you become intelligent. KRS1: That's nothing. Intelligence is understanding. KRS1: That's all intelligence is.

00:41:09.360 - 00:41:23.600

KRS1: It's understanding. The more you understand, the more intelligent you KRS1: are. But it's a simple thing. KRS1: Do you understand the Klansman? KRS1: Mm. Yeah. Do you understand, uh, Israel's position?

00:41:23.960 - 00:41:42.970

KRS1: Mm. I don't. But do you KRS1: can I expand my mind to understand Israel's position, KRS1: to understand God's position, to understand KRS1: Ukraine's position, to To understand Russia's position

00:41:44.130 - 00:41:56.290

KRS1: due to the history of that whole region. KRS1: You come out on Russia's side. KRS1: If you did the history, they only taking back land, KRS1: it was I. But can we

00:41:56.290 - 00:42:15.370

KRS1: have those discussions where I don't agree with you? KRS1: I'm never going to agree with you, but I understand. KRS1: I do understand, though, and not a fictitious sun like KRS1: Marcus Garvey. Famous, famous meeting with him in The Clansman.

00:42:15.650 - 00:42:26.690

KRS1: Mhm. Everybody you know, NAACP, they fighting from a distance. KRS1: Garvey went right up to the Klan. KRS1: Yeah. Yeah. Met with the grand jury. KRS1: He was criticized. Crazy for it.

00:42:26.730 - 00:42:37.410

KRS1: Yeah. But he. But look at the solution. KRS1: Yeah. And now black folk got. KRS1: Garvey taught such a brilliant lesson with his life. KRS1: I don't think he was trying to teach it, but here's the lesson.

00:42:38.330 - 00:42:49.580

KRS1: The white racist says, go back to Africa. KRS1: You get upset, Garvey said. KRS1: Bet. Go back to Africa. KRS1: You packing your bags?

00:42:50.220 - 00:42:57.540

KRS1: So you got to think for a minute. KRS1: Wait a minute. Yeah. What's racism? KRS1: What is what is this? What? KRS1: What am I really feeling?

00:42:57.540 - 00:43:08.340

KRS1: A white man is telling me about myself, and he's degrading me. KRS1: He's telling. He's saying, yo, why don't you black people do this and KRS1: that? Why don't you black? KRS1: And I'm calling him racist, I don't understand.

00:43:09.300 - 00:43:23.300

KRS1: He's not at fault. I'm at fault. KRS1: This is another human being with an intelligence. KRS1: Okay, I may not agree with how you coming at me, KRS1: but let me try to understand.

00:43:23.420 - 00:43:38.790

KRS1: First, let me just first try to get your point. KRS1: What's your point? Well, I think da da da da da da da KRS1: da da. So then I went there, I said, man, right. KRS1: You know what? How much stuff in the in the black community. We don't even need no more.

00:43:39.870 - 00:43:48.550

KRS1: But we make us feel good. KRS1: Other communities looking at us like, what the fuck? How you doing that? KRS1: How you acting like that? KRS1: Other communities looking at you crazy.

00:43:49.030 - 00:44:06.750

KRS1: There's a list of stuff that black folk are doing right now that other communities KRS1: are looking at us like these dudes is crazy. KRS1: And we're going to exploit them on their insanity. KRS1: Yeah. And so I just say that the ability to understand

00:44:06.750 - 00:44:23.590

KRS1: which let me bring it down to the ability to listen. KRS1: If our children could learn to listen, if the elected officials can learn to KRS1: listen, just listen. Don't talk. KRS1: Listen. And when you listen, you hear the solution.

00:44:23.790 - 00:44:36.230

KRS1: Because if you're willing to expand your heart and say, KRS1: you know what? I don't agree with what you did. KRS1: I don't agree with your history. KRS1: But let me try to understand Why you felt

00:44:36.510 - 00:44:52.790

KRS1: it was important to colonize the United States. KRS1: And when you have the discussion. KRS1: I had a discussion with a CIA agent one time about torture, KRS1: and he said, Chris, nobody gets away with that.

00:44:52.830 - 00:45:05.070

KRS1: And as a matter of fact, I think CNN years ago had something similar KRS1: to this where a CIA agent confessed that all that waterboarding and KRS1: all that stuff. Yeah. You see the blurb on TV. KRS1: They waterboarded them all.

00:45:05.590 - 00:45:23.710

KRS1: But then that CIA agent that went that did that act, KRS1: they messed up. They go back to their house and they got to take pills or something KRS1: to get that off them. You can't execute a person and walk away. KRS1: You can't, you know, um, uh, what is it?

00:45:23.750 - 00:45:38.320

KRS1: Torture a person, hear the cries, hear the screams, KRS1: see the pain, and then walk away? KRS1: No. Every human has a soul and that soul checks you. KRS1: And. And we don't see the check.

00:45:38.760 - 00:45:55.640

KRS1: We don't see the check. We only see the posturing. KRS1: Oh, yes. This Klansmen coming in on horse or the black man getting whipped against a KRS1: tree. But when you do the real history, right after that whipping went KRS1: down, the wife of the slave holder left him.

00:45:55.680 - 00:46:12.400

DR. ANTHONY PINN: See, this is deep. I already had 16 questions for you that that lesson added DR. ANTHONY PINN: about 20. No. So when you come back now, you'll see how I'm speaking that into DR. ANTHONY PINN: reality, right? Yes. When you come back, we'll dig deep. DR. ANTHONY PINN: Yes. So one more question from me, and then we'll open up for a few questions.

00:46:14.000 - 00:46:28.160

DR. ANTHONY PINN: So you have consistently over the decades talked about the DR. ANTHONY PINN: transformative potential of hip hop culture. DR. ANTHONY PINN: One word hip hop culture, consciousness. DR. ANTHONY PINN: And so I'd like you to I'd like you to talk just briefly about two developments,

00:46:28.640 - 00:46:41.410

DR. ANTHONY PINN: because I, you know, I study religion. DR. ANTHONY PINN: So I got to deal with the spirituality, right? DR. ANTHONY PINN: So if you could say a few words about the temple of hip hop, DR. ANTHONY PINN: but also the you in 2001

00:46:41.410 - 00:46:56.850

DR. ANTHONY PINN: declaration. Just tell us a bit about those two. KRS1: Right after the 1994 meeting, we realized that hip hop needed KRS1: its own space. The argument was, if hip hop is $1 KRS1: billion culture and it was in 94.

00:46:57.930 - 00:47:12.890

KRS1: Imagine every year from 1994, hip hop has produced $1 billion. KRS1: Imagine that. Well, we're not getting none of the money. KRS1: Our community is suffering and blah, blah, blah, KRS1: blah, blah. So in 94, we met on that and we said,

00:47:12.890 - 00:47:27.370

KRS1: what's the point? Now, a couple of years later, KRS1: I did the research. I realized I had to do the research into the IMF and KRS1: how countries are financed. KRS1: And I realized that hip hop is not getting it's not receiving its

00:47:27.370 - 00:47:45.010

KRS1: own value because hip hop doesn't have its own space. KRS1: Everything that you see that is hip hop comes through something. KRS1: And when it goes through something, that something siphons its wealth. KRS1: So what you're getting is the the waste, really the end result,

00:47:45.010 - 00:48:01.210

KRS1: the exhaust of hip hop, while the real value is kept KRS1: in by whoever is presenting hip hop. KRS1: So we came up with this scheme and it was a scheme. KRS1: The scheme was that we need to build a space for hip hop now.

00:48:01.250 - 00:48:13.450

KRS1: Kool Herc said we need a complex. KRS1: We need an actual building that is hip hop. KRS1: So we wrote that down. KRS1: Then we got into a conversation about hip hop soul space.

00:48:13.770 - 00:48:28.460

KRS1: And so I came up with this thing. KRS1: This concept called hip hop. KRS1: And hip hop is just like you have Chinatown or Little KRS1: Italy, these little sections of places in, In cities

00:48:28.620 - 00:48:40.180

KRS1: that, uh, um, exemplify culture specific cultures. KRS1: A little Armenia in Brooklyn, they got a little Caribbean, KRS1: but you could go there and get that culture, uh, KRS1: in that section of town.

00:48:40.460 - 00:48:55.260

KRS1: So I've been going to governors, senators, mayors, KRS1: and putting a proposal on their desk for hip hop to give us a KRS1: dilapidated section of your town. KRS1: Uh, and let's turn it into hip hop, change the street names.

00:48:55.380 - 00:49:08.540

KRS1: This kind of thing. And we bring investment in, KRS1: uh, tourism, the entrepreneurism, like the people already in the city, KRS1: get to meet international people. KRS1: Businesses created now.

00:49:09.260 - 00:49:16.020

KRS1: So we we took this to Virginia. KRS1: We took it to California. KRS1: I took it to New Mexico. KRS1: They all got problems. They all.

00:49:16.420 - 00:49:30.030

KRS1: Maybe. We'll see. Oh. Great idea. KRS1: I'll get back to you. All of this at the end of the day. KRS1: Um, uh, Mayor Ras Baraka of Newark, new Jersey, KRS1: took the idea. Okay. Um, Mayor Ras Baraka, we

00:49:30.030 - 00:49:36.430

KRS1: put the put the proposal on his desk. KRS1: He read it, he came in. KRS1: We had to meet him in City Hall. KRS1: Met him at Newark City Hall.

00:49:36.430 - 00:49:50.030

KRS1: He had his Adidas on. He said, yo, this, I read it. KRS1: He loved the concept and the chief of staff. KRS1: I got a shout out Amiri Baraka, junior uh, as well there as well. KRS1: And keep in mind, look at the name Amiri Baraka Junior.

00:49:50.390 - 00:50:09.950

KRS1: These are the two sons of Amiri Baraka, the poet civil rights poet KRS1: Amiri Baraka. His two sons became mayor and chief of staff of KRS1: Newark. So in in that we saw the KRS1: prophecy fulfilled. We said, okay, we see Amiri Baraka coming in.

00:50:10.070 - 00:50:22.750

KRS1: His two sons are right there. KRS1: The new Ark, Newark. Newark is also called Brick City. KRS1: Latifah, come out of there. KRS1: Naughty by nature, Redman, uh, Whitney Houston,

00:50:23.110 - 00:50:35.030

KRS1: uh, all types of people come out of Newark, new Jersey. KRS1: So we saw how the ancestors were moving us. KRS1: We looked at that, we saw that. KRS1: So we went. Now that's going to be called hip hop.

00:50:35.750 - 00:50:51.670

KRS1: The South Ward section of Newark is going to be called hip hop. KRS1: We're still building it now. KRS1: We just got started in the South Ward area. KRS1: In that South Ward area in the South Ward area.

00:50:51.830 - 00:51:06.750

KRS1: We started a temple because we have to teach the surrounding community how KRS1: to take on international people now, because keep in mind, KRS1: it was such a brilliant idea from the mayor. KRS1: I have to give him the vision because I came with a

00:51:06.750 - 00:51:20.910

KRS1: proposal and he just blew it out and said, this is what we need, KRS1: this is what the city needs, this is what it is. KRS1: And keep in mind, Newark is coming up unto itself. KRS1: Lionsgate, the film company, bought land out there.

00:51:20.910 - 00:51:33.240

KRS1: They building a film studio in Newark. KRS1: Newark International Airport just got $100 million from American KRS1: Express. They're doing the roads over. KRS1: The city is really rising.

00:51:33.400 - 00:51:45.840

KRS1: And I tell you this on this level, not me. KRS1: I'm not a political guy like that. KRS1: You're not going to catch me railing for voting and all that? KRS1: Nah. Sorry. However, when the truth is in front

00:51:45.840 - 00:51:56.720

KRS1: of you. For years, I was against voting. KRS1: I think the whole system is a joke, to be honest with you. KRS1: Especially with the Electoral College. KRS1: That's a joke. Okay. What are we doing?

00:51:56.720 - 00:52:11.080

KRS1: Really? Does anybody's vote really count? I know mine don't. KRS1: Okay, so this is what it is. KRS1: However, when you get in to politics KRS1: and you start talking to real people, they sound like,

00:52:11.080 - 00:52:23.010

KRS1: you know, you're not hearing me. KRS1: The people in government sound like me. KRS1: Yeah. Okay. Now, I didn't know this. KRS1: And I'm it. I'm saying this for young people to those that are protesting and all this

00:52:23.010 - 00:52:36.490

KRS1: stuff, when you're out there protesting stuff, the government's with you. Think about KRS1: this. Don't look at TV. KRS1: Forget the television. KRS1: That's all hype. The real people working at FBI,

00:52:36.530 - 00:52:51.490

KRS1: CIA, NSA, DEA, all the health KRS1: areas, agriculture measures and weights and help KRS1: all of the departments of government. KRS1: All of them think just like you.

00:52:52.330 - 00:53:02.530

KRS1: And they're sitting there frustrated with their own God, KRS1: with their job. They're saying, man, we should be doing this. KRS1: We should be doing that. KRS1: We should be going here.

00:53:02.650 - 00:53:14.570

KRS1: We should, but can't do it. KRS1: Red tape bureaucracy. This one got to get in the office first. KRS1: That one's leaving. These are the things that got nothing to do with anything. KRS1: So they can't do nothing.

00:53:14.970 - 00:53:32.930

KRS1: So that changes my view about voting. KRS1: Here's me. I'm a staunch anti-voter staunch. KRS1: I got facts. I could totally convince a person not to KRS1: vote. Straight up. But

00:53:32.930 - 00:53:49.450

KRS1: in the face of the truth. KRS1: The truth is, more elected officials are running on hip KRS1: hop and winning offices. KRS1: The truth is, it was a man in political power that was able to

00:53:49.490 - 00:54:02.410

KRS1: put hip hop in this position. KRS1: He had to get voted in. KRS1: Okay. Okay. I can say whatever I want about voting, KRS1: but if hip hop ever had a voting block.

00:54:02.930 - 00:54:24.220

KRS1: Mhm. If, if some reason CNN had to say on election KRS1: night, well we got the white vote, the white votes come in and the black KRS1: vote is at 63% and the hip hop vote. KRS1: Is that this person? You know, he's really going to need the hip hop vote to

00:54:24.260 - 00:54:37.700

KRS1: really go over this next leg or he's really. KRS1: Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. That that. Yeah. KRS1: In the in the face of that truth.

00:54:37.740 - 00:54:53.380

KRS1: Yes. Which can happen I have to yield in my position. KRS1: I have to yield in my position. KRS1: And again this goes back to intelligence and listening and KRS1: wanting truth. I just told you I'm not with voting.

00:54:53.940 - 00:55:03.380

KRS1: I'm not with it. But in the face of the truth, KRS1: I'm with it. I'm with it. DR. ANTHONY PINN: All right, all right. KRS1: And I will be voting all right.

00:55:08.940 - 00:55:19.270

DR. ANTHONY PINN: Thank you. All right, fam, we're going to open up for a few DR. ANTHONY PINN: questions. Now do me a solid. DR. ANTHONY PINN: No speeches. No sermons. DR. ANTHONY PINN: Ask a question.

00:55:19.270 - 00:55:27.910

KRS1: That's for me. Are you talking to me? KRS1: No speeches? No, sir. DR. ANTHONY PINN: So I'm going to ask the teacher to pick. DR. ANTHONY PINN: So let's do about three.

00:55:28.150 - 00:55:34.910

KRS1: You know what? I see you. KRS1: But let me start with the lady right here. KRS1: I'll come right over here. Okay. SPEAKER3: I just want to say thank you so much.

00:55:34.950 - 00:55:46.910

SPEAKER3: I'm Mary Jane, Esquire, at the Wall Street Lawyer.com. SPEAKER3: Let's go. And you taught me that Buddha was black and that you had SPEAKER3: Bantu knots. I did not know that. SPEAKER3: Yes. And so I wanted to thank you.

00:55:47.790 - 00:55:56.830

SPEAKER3: My question is, how can. KRS1: I support hip hop? Yes. SPEAKER3: And how can we get you to speak at Thurgood Marshall School of Law? Because what you say.

00:55:59.830 - 00:56:13.150

Is. KRS1: First of all, I would be so honored to even walk into the KRS1: Thurgood Marshall School of Law. KRS1: I that obviously are like my beautiful wife is

00:56:13.150 - 00:56:30.310

KRS1: somewhere here. Right there. KRS1: She's right there. That's Simone. She's. KRS1: Yeah. Right there. She'll she'll she'll bring me right through. KRS1: Okay. Uh. No problem. Uh, in terms of of support,

00:56:30.630 - 00:56:45.470

KRS1: um, it really, uh, the first part of, of of the support has to do with your own KRS1: personal conviction. After you've heard what it is we discussed today, KRS1: a lot was discussed in this way. KRS1: Part of it, most of it is intellectual support.

00:56:45.990 - 00:56:59.950

KRS1: The intellectual support is some of you in this room are writers spell hip hop with a KRS1: capital H. That's all. KRS1: Some of you in this room also have influence in other areas KRS1: outside of arts and entertainment.

00:56:59.990 - 00:57:10.310

KRS1: Bring hip hop with you. KRS1: Uh, bring hip hop into psychology. KRS1: Bring hip hop into theology. KRS1: Yes, uh, bring hip hop into science.

00:57:10.640 - 00:57:24.200

KRS1: Bring hip hop. And I say this, of course, in terms of the question the KRS1: sister brought up in terms of support. KRS1: This is the support we have an intellectual fight to give. KRS1: This is not a physical thing.

00:57:24.480 - 00:57:39.360

KRS1: This is about a character, a way to be. KRS1: And if we forget this way to be, then the fight is lost. KRS1: So the idea. Oh, and by the way. KRS1: So I'm going to leave this gentleman here, our illustrious

00:57:39.400 - 00:57:52.360

KRS1: professor with, uh, what is called the hip hop cultural KRS1: specialist course. And it's a master class. KRS1: It's a two hour master class. I'll give you a flash drive. KRS1: It's a master class. Two hour masterclass.

00:57:52.480 - 00:58:08.930

KRS1: There's also a lecture on history. KRS1: Because the something else we discovered, the writing of hip hop's history KRS1: is not 73, 74, 75, 76. KRS1: That linear history. Hip hop is super But historical,

00:58:09.650 - 00:58:25.730

KRS1: which means that you could find Hip-hop's history in every aspect of the world. KRS1: And this is the reason for this, is because breaking and seeing graffiti KRS1: art deejaying has always existed in the world. KRS1: We're only calling it this today.

00:58:25.730 - 00:58:39.450

KRS1: But when you go to the Aboriginals. KRS1: I did a study there a couple of years ago. KRS1: Aussies in in Australia, but the Aboriginals there in KRS1: Australia, they got dances from 70,000 years ago,

00:58:39.730 - 00:58:58.370

KRS1: dances that resemble breaking from KRS1: 70,000 years ago. Graffiti art the oldest form KRS1: of human calligraphy. So if you take hip hop out of entertainment KRS1: and put it in paleoanthropology, put it in religion,

00:58:58.690 - 00:59:13.250

KRS1: put it in astronomy, even put it in chemistry, KRS1: like, for instance, hip hop, Hydrogen. KRS1: Iodine. Phosphorus. Hydrogen. KRS1: Oxygen. Phosphorus. So you can look at hip hop.

00:59:13.290 - 00:59:30.250

KRS1: I did this with NASA. We did see the speeches cut me off. KRS1: I did this with NASA. With NASA, there's a guy named DJ scientific KRS1: working with NASA. He. KRS1: I asked him, what does hydrogen iodine, phosphorus make?

00:59:31.330 - 00:59:48.890

KRS1: And the hip hop, the the name hip hop KRS1: has water in it. Phosphoric acid and iodine. KRS1: Now, what that is, is. KRS1: Well, phosphoric acid is also in your stomach.

00:59:48.970 - 01:00:02.770

KRS1: It helps to burn the food in your stomach. KRS1: But it's also used for fertilizer in the ground. KRS1: So and it cures it mercurochrome. KRS1: And things that you put on for, for cuts and stuff.

01:00:03.170 - 01:00:20.740

KRS1: This is what Hit. The word hip hop in chemistry KRS1: actually makes me want to actually make KRS1: hip hop in a bottle, because hip hop in a bottle KRS1: cures things. The iodine.

01:00:20.740 - 01:00:35.660

KRS1: The eye in hip hop is a cure. KRS1: Hip hop is made of water. KRS1: It has two H's and one O. KRS1: If you can take your culture and apply it to other things,

01:00:35.660 - 01:00:49.420

KRS1: you'll create other inventions outside of art. KRS1: We did the arts and we did it well. KRS1: Now let's go into science. KRS1: Let's go into engineering, let's go into law.

01:00:50.380 - 01:00:58.700

KRS1: Let's go into these areas. KRS1: Because hip hop can be in all these areas. KRS1: And again, what does it mean to be hip hop. KRS1: Hip I am aware of my movement.

01:00:58.820 - 01:01:10.390

KRS1: I know why I'm doing what I'm doing. KRS1: And that's a deep lesson because it's lifelong to know why you're doing what you're KRS1: doing. You never stop questioning yourself or not. KRS1: Or at least you shouldn't. So they're going.

01:01:10.390 - 01:01:24.750

DR. ANTHONY PINN: To have to wait till you come back to get the details on that sermon, DR. ANTHONY PINN: because we got time for one more question. KRS1: You gotta cut me off. The gentleman right here, KRS1: please. Oh, sorry. Uh, hi.

01:01:24.790 - 01:01:35.070

KRS1: Oh, please. No. Please. SPEAKER4: Stephen. I am a student at rice. KRS1: Oh, great. Great. That's college radio. KRS1: Yes, yes.

01:01:35.110 - 01:01:47.630

SPEAKER4: And so I have a show called Sample Snitch, where each week I break down a producer SPEAKER4: and their samples they use. SPEAKER4: Okay. And your talk has been so enlightening. SPEAKER4: And it's sparked a ton of things in my head.

01:01:47.630 - 01:02:00.910

SPEAKER4: And I want to ask you, in hip hop, what do you believe is the SPEAKER4: intersection between sampling other music and culture? SPEAKER4: Right. KRS1: The there's a lawsuit out happening right now.

01:02:03.030 - 01:02:20.470

KRS1: There's a lawsuit out right now, and it's so funny because I'm at the center KRS1: of it. And what happened was Kanye West sampled KRS1: my record, South Bronx and South Bronx KRS1: is on an album called Criminal Minded.

01:02:20.750 - 01:02:34.470

KRS1: Yeah. Criminal minded is an illegal album, as the title KRS1: suggests, meaning that 3 or 4 different people KRS1: claim ownership of it. KRS1: None of them own the album.

01:02:34.630 - 01:02:52.470

KRS1: I own the album, but the contracts we signed and all KRS1: of this gave permission to these other entities KRS1: to to sell the master recording. KRS1: Now, these entities also try to overstep and take

01:02:52.470 - 01:03:04.200

KRS1: the publishing from the record as well, because you have the master recording as you KRS1: can sell. But then there's the publishing, the copyright, KRS1: the ownership of the of the song itself. KRS1: They try to take that as well.

01:03:04.680 - 01:03:25.160

KRS1: Kanye West sampled South Park's one of these companies KRS1: sued Kanye West, claiming they owned KRS1: South Bronx. Kanye West called me KRS1: and said, Kris, you own South Bronx?

01:03:25.160 - 01:03:37.640

KRS1: And on top of that, I had said publicly for many KRS1: times and for many years, if you sample KRS-One, KRS1: I will never sue you for anything. KRS1: I believe in sampling.

01:03:37.680 - 01:03:52.120

KRS1: It is part of culture. KRS1: However, I said, and this is what Kanye is telling me, KRS1: he says, I heard you say this. KRS1: I remember you saying we could sample your music if you own it and you can

01:03:52.160 - 01:04:03.450

KRS1: sample it. You're not going to sue us. KRS1: I said, yes, Kanye. You're right. KRS1: I'm standing on that. What is the deal? KRS1: He said, well, we sample South Bronx and these dudes over here claiming they own it.

01:04:03.690 - 01:04:18.650

KRS1: So I took a deposition with Kanye's lawyers and KRS1: said, no, they don't own nothing. KRS1: Okay, I own everything outright. KRS1: And I give permission to all of hip hop to sample any of

01:04:18.650 - 01:04:42.090

KRS1: my music for any purpose, for any reason. Now, wait, wait. KRS1: Wait. Now, just because I said that. KRS1: Did not make it so. Now, here's what

01:04:42.090 - 01:04:57.090

KRS1: happened. And it's a legitimate argument. KRS1: So I claim full ownership. KRS1: Now, when I claim full ownership, universal, KRS1: which handles my publishing claims ownership to

01:04:58.530 - 01:05:12.570

KRS1: now we sampled the record. KRS1: South Bronx is a James Brown sample. KRS1: Those horns got James voice at the end. KRS1: He's taking the publisher.

01:05:13.650 - 01:05:26.810

KRS1: South Bronx, to clear a record. KRS1: Just so you guys know. You know, you sample a record, you got to pay the KRS1: original artist. And throughout the life of the record, KRS1: whatever happens to this record, the original artist get residuals off this

01:05:26.810 - 01:05:46.450

KRS1: record now. So even though I said KRS1: you can sample me and I'm not suing you, James Brown cat. KRS1: Okay. No, James Brown can come up and say no. KRS1: Chris. Your bucket. You sampled my record.

01:05:47.690 - 01:06:00.220

KRS1: I want my money off your record. KRS1: Not. I'm going to sue the people who are suing. KRS1: You know, you are all looking at this racket. KRS1: Okay, I'm James Brown II.

01:06:00.780 - 01:06:20.180

KRS1: You used me, I want them, I want my share of KRS1: this record. You could give your share away, but I want my share. KRS1: It's a legitimate argument if you're sampling. KRS1: So we began to talk about when does sampling become

01:06:20.180 - 01:06:36.940

KRS1: legal and when does it become illegal? KRS1: The latest discussion on this is that KRS1: all artists should be able to sample music samples, KRS1: because right now, if you're home and you sample music,

01:06:36.980 - 01:06:56.910

KRS1: you're illegal. The minute you take a copy written KRS1: something, you got problems. KRS1: We're saying you should be able to take any copywritten anything KRS1: But just before you sell it, that's the

01:06:56.910 - 01:07:14.150

KRS1: dividing line is the commerciality of the product. KRS1: You should be able to do anything with anything as long as you don't sell it. KRS1: That's right. The minute you say this is for commercial KRS1: use, then go get the record cleared.

01:07:14.350 - 01:07:29.030

KRS1: Mhm. But what's happening now is if a DJ throws KRS1: the record on in a major like let's say Rihanna's DJ and I don't want to KRS1: call Rihanna. She just came to my mind for some reason. KRS1: But she's a major artist.

01:07:29.070 - 01:07:42.790

KRS1: Let's say she got a DJ on her. KRS1: Her thing. An artist like Rihanna or Beyonce, KRS1: even Jay-Z. They have to. KRS1: They have to bring a they have to write a set list out of the songs they're going to

01:07:42.790 - 01:07:57.710

KRS1: perform, because the artists that they use and all the samples, KRS1: all that get paid out, all that All I get paid out when we're on KRS1: stage performing. And the minute that song comes on, KRS1: everybody involved in that song is getting money.

01:07:59.190 - 01:08:15.350

KRS1: Everybody. So. And but that's for the major artists and and for guys KRS1: like me, the lowly artists, we, uh, sometimes have KRS1: to sign stuff or make a play. KRS1: Sometimes they say we're paying publishing tonight.

01:08:15.430 - 01:08:29.350

KRS1: What's your playlist? You give them your playlist, KRS1: and every one of your songs goes into some database, KRS1: and the club pays publishing, or the arena pays the KRS1: publishing, and you get that money.

01:08:29.350 - 01:08:35.990

KRS1: So to answer your question, bring it to an end. KRS1: Yeah. DR. ANTHONY PINN: They ain't ready for all this. No, no, I've been told we have a little more DR. ANTHONY PINN: time.

01:08:36.350 - 01:08:43.070

KRS1: Do you get it? Okay, I'm about to commercial. KRS1: Yeah, I've. DR. ANTHONY PINN: Been told we have a little more time. KRS1: So. Oh, a little more.

01:08:43.110 - 01:08:49.160

DR. ANTHONY PINN: Yeah, a little. KRS1: More, please. You was right there. SPEAKER3: Thank you. Brooklyn. Jersey? KRS1: Yes, indeed. Flatbush Avenue.

01:08:49.200 - 01:09:01.760

KRS1: Utica. SPEAKER3: So I moved here three years ago, and I share a platform called Pop Night SPEAKER3: Poetry Night with artists from different levels. SPEAKER3: And, um, he's actually one of my artists.

01:09:01.800 - 01:09:15.040

SPEAKER3: Nice. And, you know, I should talk to them about, SPEAKER3: you know, um, preserving their, you know, just their body and their SPEAKER3: minds to, you know, to, to be sharp like yourself. SPEAKER3: Right. What are your thoughts on that?

01:09:15.280 - 01:09:30.320

SPEAKER3: What what what can you tell me to tell them how to, SPEAKER3: you know, to just leave the drugs alone or like, SPEAKER3: some good advice because they're all looking for mentorship and guidance. KRS1: You know? Um, one of the first things to look at,

01:09:30.520 - 01:09:44.160

KRS1: uh, is to know thyself. KRS1: Um, especially with health, especially with health, KRS1: there are things we know we should be doing. KRS1: Drink water, exercise, keep the green leaves in your body.

01:09:44.400 - 01:09:58.130

KRS1: Eat stuff that makes sense. KRS1: Stay away from the fried food that this kind of thing when you can, KRS1: uh, you know, this kind of thing. There's things we know we can do, KRS1: but everybody's body is unique to them.

01:09:59.010 - 01:10:12.290

KRS1: And I tell you the truth, me. KRS1: For many years, I leaned toward a vegetarian diet. KRS1: I eat fish, uh, salmon is my go to. KRS1: Um. And I eat like this for 30.

01:10:12.330 - 01:10:28.210

KRS1: Well, pretty much my whole professional career. KRS1: Uh, maybe 35 years. I'm leaning toward a vegetarian diet with a little fish. KRS1: Do it like that. So I'm doing that 35 years. KRS1: So I get into my 50s, and I realized it was one time I,

01:10:28.210 - 01:10:38.450

KRS1: um, I don't know what happened. I can't travel across country. KRS1: Stomach is ailing me. What happened? KRS1: I must have breathed something in. Ate something. I don't know what it was. I'm KRS1: throwing up. Yeah. What's going on?

01:10:38.450 - 01:10:51.460

KRS1: What's happening? I'm like, what is wrong with me? KRS1: Because when you are healthy and you don't get sick when you get KRS1: sick. It's like you're going to die. KRS1: Okay. It's like, oh my God, what's going on?

01:10:51.620 - 01:11:03.420

KRS1: I have been sick for ten years. KRS1: All of a sudden I'm throwing up. I'm like, what is going on? KRS1: Something came to me. So y'all eat oxtails? DR. ANTHONY PINN: Yeah.

01:11:07.700 - 01:11:19.540

KRS1: Yeah. This is. This is it. KRS1: This is it. Just keep in mind. KRS1: Now watch it. Okay. Look at this. KRS1: I am I have no intention whatsoever to eat any kind

01:11:19.540 - 01:11:31.580

KRS1: of beef. Yeah. And it just it was just like I'm sitting there like, KRS1: oh, my God, what am I going to do? KRS1: I'm taking all the herbal remedies. KRS1: I'm taking the water. I'm trying to get this.

01:11:31.620 - 01:11:49.380

KRS1: Some say eat oxtails. And it was so KRS1: wild that I went to the Jamaican. KRS1: Yeah. And I got the KRS1: oxtail first time in 35 years.

01:11:49.700 - 01:12:09.500

KRS1: Wow. I ate the oxtail. KRS1: Lo and behold, five hours later, I'm KRS1: back. Look, you know how things take a long time to heal. KRS1: No. I ate this about 5 or 6 hours later, I

01:12:09.500 - 01:12:26.660

KRS1: was up like this, and I'm like, wait a minute. KRS1: Hold on, hold up. The body used the meat KRS1: as a cure. I don't eat meat, but every KRS1: once in a while, the body says, eat this

01:12:28.660 - 01:12:40.100

KRS1: or or or do this. And it's that my grandmother KRS1: used to call it the still small voice. SPEAKER5: Mhm. KRS1: It's a still small.

01:12:40.100 - 01:12:55.830

SPEAKER5: All voice. KRS1: And to walk with that, I would first tell you to KRS1: tell your students to look at that small voice, KRS1: because it's not logical.

01:12:56.150 - 01:13:14.230

KRS1: It doesn't it doesn't make sense, but it's always right. KRS1: And a lot of times we don't listen to that voice and we regret it. KRS1: You know how many times you say something told me, KRS1: but you're saying that because you didn't listen? You say something told me to do

01:13:14.230 - 01:13:23.950

KRS1: this, and. But to go back and really recognize. KRS1: What was that? Something that told me. KRS1: What what what was that? KRS1: So the first thing I would say, and of course,

01:13:23.950 - 01:13:38.230

KRS1: with health, uh, as, as well your body is your KRS1: body and you should listen to it. KRS1: My mother in law is 82 years old. KRS1: Every day, every day I knew her.

01:13:38.640 - 01:13:50.440

KRS1: She had bacon and eggs in the morning. KRS1: And I mean that greasy bacon. KRS1: That bacon in the morning. KRS1: Okay. Vegetarian. Over here.

01:13:51.120 - 01:14:04.720

KRS1: Bacon in the pan. Okay. KRS1: 81? Yeah. 81. 84. 84. Right. KRS1: 84. Simon's mother. 84. KRS1: Okay. Kicking. Moving.

01:14:04.960 - 01:14:15.560

KRS1: Excellent artist. She's scarfing down the bacon every time she can get a chance. KRS1: Doctors told me to stop. KRS1: She's like, whatever. Let's just keep going. KRS1: She's been living. She's doing well.

01:14:15.840 - 01:14:33.080

KRS1: I look at this and I say, look, in the face of the truth, KRS1: you've got to look at the truth and just make your decisions based on that. KRS1: Sometimes it's not going to make sense or make sense to you or or to KRS1: your condition. But if it's there, if it's right in your face.

01:14:35.720 - 01:14:49.240

KRS1: Then you have to have to make an assessment on what's right there. KRS1: So come back to the health. KRS1: The first thing is your body is your body. KRS1: I tell you, I tell you the oxtail story only for those of us in this audience as

01:14:49.240 - 01:15:04.840

KRS1: well that you know, you may need to you may need to contradict yourself KRS1: for health. Mhm. Uh, contradiction is not so bad. KRS1: We don't like it. You know, we want consistency. KRS1: But every once in a while, especially when you get older,

01:15:05.360 - 01:15:20.000

KRS1: uh, you know, we Simone and I was reading something about women actually getting KRS1: older and needing more magnesium and iron. KRS1: More so than men, for that instance. KRS1: So you figure a, um, a

01:15:20.000 - 01:15:37.810

KRS1: female vegetarian, a woman that practices vegetarianism, KRS1: eating. In that sense, when she gets older, KRS1: you're going to need that B12 vitamin that the B12 complex KRS1: vitamins means you only get B12 in beef.

01:15:40.410 - 01:15:56.170

KRS1: At least the portions of B12 that we need to survive. KRS1: You only get it in beef, but you learn this as you get older. KRS1: Some women after menopause, they figure out what's happening to me. KRS1: What's going on? The doctor gives you the pill of magnesium or whatever you

01:15:56.170 - 01:16:08.850

KRS1: mentioned. Iron, whatever it is. KRS1: But you really, at this stage, are supposed to be eating more meat and even KRS1: to go further with you. KRS1: There's a deeper study that says that we should be eating

01:16:09.170 - 01:16:27.850

KRS1: grasshoppers, crickets and KRS1: spiders. This society, KRS1: this society does not allow us KRS1: to eat. They used to be a show called Fear Factor.

01:16:27.890 - 01:16:44.660

DR. ANTHONY PINN: Yes. KRS1: Yeah. And they touch on this concept of these weird KRS1: things that you trying to eat, and they prove that it's only in your KRS1: mind squiggly little stuff moving around and stuff.

01:16:44.660 - 01:16:58.380

KRS1: But this is high in protein. KRS1: And a doctor will tell you. KRS1: The question is, is this if I came to you with a with a roach with three KRS1: cockroaches in my hand, three cockroaches in my hand,

01:16:58.580 - 01:17:12.500

KRS1: and they said, but listen, if you eat this three times a KRS1: week for four years, you're going to live forever. KRS1: Like you'll live to 200. KRS1: You're going to be 200.

01:17:12.860 - 01:17:24.540

KRS1: I need you to eat three cockroaches three times a KRS1: week. Well, this is it. KRS1: And this is this is the question. KRS1: This becomes the question of health.

01:17:25.300 - 01:17:39.580

KRS1: Uh, in terms of health. KRS1: Your body knows what your body needs. KRS1: And on another level, there's things that we should be eating that KRS1: will help us. But the society does not allow us to eat these

01:17:39.580 - 01:17:53.100

KRS1: things and it causes bad health. KRS1: We only eat beef, chicken and fish, maybe veal or KRS1: lamb. Maybe some restaurants serve bison. KRS1: Now, you know, like this.

01:17:53.220 - 01:18:14.500

KRS1: But no snake. No cat. No we don't see. DR. ANTHONY PINN: We we going to leave them with the big with them big ass Texas roaches. DR. ANTHONY PINN: We're going to leave them thinking about them roaches.

01:18:14.540 - 01:18:19.860

KRS1: Oh, in Texas. DR. ANTHONY PINN: We got we have time for one more question. KRS1: Your roaches fly. SPEAKER5: Oh, yeah.

01:18:21.140 - 01:18:30.870

DR. ANTHONY PINN: They carry cars. KRS1: Listen, my man's jumping right here. Let's get him. SPEAKER3: All right, so here's the deal. SPEAKER6: I'm a professor, and You can teach a class on Prince.

01:18:30.910 - 01:18:42.910

SPEAKER6: Yeah. I'd like to introduce my students to different genres in new ways and rock SPEAKER6: and roll, Little Richard, and all sorts of things. SPEAKER6: So I'm inspired by the day. SPEAKER6: What's the connection that you can introduce to me?

01:18:42.910 - 01:18:56.510

SPEAKER6: That I can introduce my students to the connection between Prince and hip hop? KRS1: You know, I would, um, first of all, Prince always been down with KRS1: hip hop. Everybody in hip hop know Prince. KRS1: This dude been in and out of our culture.

01:18:56.510 - 01:19:10.190

KRS1: Like. Like you can't imagine. KRS1: Prince always was hip hop. KRS1: Same thing with the time as well. KRS1: Um, when hip hop was first starting, you see Prince's whole style

01:19:10.710 - 01:19:26.070

KRS1: and Sheila E, and that whole style was a style KRS1: of hip hop. Like punk rock was punk rock. KRS1: The whole style of it used to be hip hop. KRS1: They used to be part of hip hop.

01:19:26.510 - 01:19:40.960

KRS1: It's just as hip hop became more commercial and got put in this particular KRS1: box, the Sheila E look disappeared. KRS1: The punk rock look disappeared. KRS1: Other looks as well. Um, there was like a rock and roll.

01:19:41.160 - 01:19:53.840

KRS1: Not punk rock, but like a big hair look for a hot minute. KRS1: Uh, within hip hop. Uh, so. KRS1: So come back to Prince. KRS1: I would move more toward Little Richard.

01:19:55.040 - 01:20:11.640

KRS1: Um, in that sense. And I see the legacy you come in with as well. KRS1: Uh, Prince. I'd add Michael Jackson in there as well. KRS1: People don't realize how hip hop Michael Jackson was. KRS1: Okay. In terms of in terms of being influenced by the street culture.

01:20:11.960 - 01:20:25.480

KRS1: When he did that moonwalk, when Michael did the moonwalk at the Motown KRS1: 25th, I think that's what it was. KRS1: It might have been the Motown 25th. KRS1: When, when, when when he did the move, we was already doing the moonwalk.

01:20:25.480 - 01:20:42.920

KRS1: Walk 1015 years in the hood before him. KRS1: He saw that, took it to the mainstream, but unable KRS1: to. But to be able to see that you had to be in the hood somewhere, KRS1: because that was not nowhere until Michael did it.

01:20:43.200 - 01:20:56.680

KRS1: So you got this group of people, you got Prince, KRS1: you got Michael. I would even throw in, uh, KRS1: Parliament-Funkadelic, a different situation. KRS1: But the same kind of vibe is going on right around this,

01:20:56.680 - 01:21:07.520

KRS1: this, this time. Little Richard is sort of the father of all of that in KRS1: a in a lot of ways, Michael, even James Brown. KRS1: Come on, Rosetta Tharpe. KRS1: Say again.

01:21:07.560 - 01:21:15.600

SPEAKER5: Was that a thought? SPEAKER6: Um, she's the sister that kind of came up with the whole, SPEAKER6: uh, Rock Island guitar. KRS1: Really? Yeah.

01:21:15.720 - 01:21:26.050

SPEAKER6: There's a whole documentary on this. Really excellent. And Little Richard in the SPEAKER6: documentary on HBO is, um, mentions her a are like. KRS1: Yeah, they just had one on him. KRS1: That's right.

01:21:26.290 - 01:21:40.130

SPEAKER6: So I kind of go through this whole flow a little bit and we start talking about funk. KRS1: So what Little Richard was doing on the piano is what we would eventually do KRS1: on turntables. SPEAKER6: Definitely, definitely lifted a lot from Little Richard's.

01:21:40.170 - 01:21:47.690

KRS1: Right. That's why I say exactly. KRS1: But but but look at it. KRS1: Be careful with the word lifted a lot. SPEAKER6: This was inspired.

01:21:47.690 - 01:22:01.450

KRS1: By, inspired by, but look passing on of culture. KRS1: Exactly. You touching on it right there. KRS1: No, we totally understand what you're saying in terms of being inspired, influenced and so KRS1: on. But in this, in the context of this conversation here,

01:22:02.090 - 01:22:15.090

KRS1: no, the lineage by which you're coming, and we could probably go before, KRS1: um, Little Richard as well. KRS1: But but the in terms of passing on of culture, KRS1: this is one thing that we all tap into.

01:22:15.770 - 01:22:35.660

KRS1: And keep in mind that just because there's a Little Richard or a key KRS1: figure, that is the exemplification of of this expression. KRS1: Remember that it's him or her or them and the audience. KRS1: That's the culture. This is the difference between the commercial and the culture.

01:22:35.980 - 01:22:52.300

KRS1: The culture is all of us in the barn jamming together. KRS1: Little Richard is is he is the the he's like the ringleader KRS1: for what we all know is supposed to be happening. KRS1: That's culture, commerce or commercial.

01:22:52.300 - 01:23:08.900

KRS1: The commercial part of this is when you only focus on Little Richard and his commercial KRS1: achievements. He's in a room full of people, but you only focus on him. KRS1: You never focus on the people, how they got there, KRS1: what, what his music meant to them, why they were listening to him,

01:23:09.180 - 01:23:19.460

KRS1: what they felt about him. KRS1: Those are all cultural things. KRS1: So. And you see, I mean, obviously, I commend you. KRS1: You're doing your job because actually to mention Prince and Little Richard in the

01:23:19.460 - 01:23:26.700

KRS1: same. Way many people don't go there. KRS1: They can't make the connection. KRS1: But I understand that connection. KRS1: I see it as well. I grew up in it as well.

01:23:26.940 - 01:23:37.060

KRS1: So you see the connection, but come to hip hop. KRS1: Okay. Because Little Richard and Michael and, KRS1: well, Prince is with us. KRS1: But even Michael predates hip hop.

01:23:38.300 - 01:23:56.740

KRS1: You could see the vibe of hip hop starting at least the entertainment part, KRS1: the arts of it. You could see it in the 50s, 60s today. KRS1: I'm sorry, 60s, 5040s, 30s KRS1: before hip hop, bebop or actually doo wop, bebop.

01:23:57.340 - 01:24:07.460

KRS1: All of these are precursors to what we're doing, KRS1: and there'd be no us without them. DR. ANTHONY PINN: On that note, you're going to have to leave them wanting more. Now, when when you come DR. ANTHONY PINN: back.

01:24:07.460 - 01:24:11.780

SPEAKER5: Cutting me. DR. ANTHONY PINN: Off when you come. SPEAKER5: Back. Yes. DR. ANTHONY PINN: They can get some more.

01:24:12.100 - 01:24:18.700

SPEAKER5: But fam. DR. ANTHONY PINN: Please join me in thanking showing some love to DR. ANTHONY PINN: KRS1, The Teacher.