WHY? interview
Anticon’s WHY? chats with MESH
By David Ma
A couple months back, I had the brilliant idea to interview the entire Anticon stable. An editor from an outlet I write for gave me the go-ahead, as did the folks at Anticon. I had spoken and written about them individually before, but I rarely saw an interview with Anticon as a whole. So I thought it’d be worthwhile to discuss how their music, record label and overall outlook has changed since their debut, Music for the Advancement of Hip-Hop. Though terribly titled, the album had its merits, showcasing young talent that has remained active to this day. But the entire article I envisioned never materialized due to bad timing on my part. Of all the core members who agreed to be interviewed, only one got back to me—Yoni Wolf, known to his fans as WHY?
In this brief chat, Wolf discusses some of his favorite current CDs, his future plans, favorite spots from touring, and other questions he sufficiently answered without his label-mates. And you’ll see, his quirky responses are probably a far better read than my initial idea of interviewing the entire crew. Thanks Yoni.
How has Anticon changed through the years in your opinion?
I think there was some idealism in the beginning about Anticon becoming some kind of collective collaborative unit, like some kind of hippie cream dream. I think it has become a pretty standard record label other than the fact that the original artists who were dedicated to releasing their music on this independent platform, now own the label collectively, like a co-op.
Has your own direction and approach to making music changed?
I think that all of us have gotten a lot more serious about recording and playing live. I think this was naturally occurring with the onset of external appreciation of the music we were doing. I’d like to think that the reasons for continuing to work are still pure for the most part.
As you guys branch into different musical genres, how would you classify Anticon’s music nowadays?
It is funny to me how fixated press and fans are to labeling what everyone’s music is or isn’t. It is a lazy way to describe something to say it is rock or hip-hop rather than using creative adjectives. Those words have pretty much lost their meaning at this point in the post-modern pre apocalyptic era.
What are Anticon’s intentions from a business standpoint, besides obviously selling a bunch of records?
Any label’s function is to sell records effectively. For better or for worse we are a part of this whole commerce game, and it would be a lie to say otherwise. With that being said, we are dedicated to putting out music we believe in. Music we think should be out there and listened to by a lot of people.
On a more casual note, what CDs have you been listening to lately?
Oh, I have been listening to a lot of Johnny Cash and Bob Dylan recently. I have trouble listening to anything else lately. The Johnny Cash cover albums he did right before he died, Bob Dylan Blonde on Blonde and Bringing it all Back Home. De La Soul’s Buhloone Mindstate too.
You seem to be very comfortable rapping, singing, producing and just making noise on record. Sometimes all at once I’ve noticed. Ever thought about making a purely instrumental record?
I’m honestly not very interested in that. I make music primarily as an outlet for my words. Not that the musical aspect of it isn’t important, because we take that very seriously, but I think I’d just as soon leave an instrumental record to someone else.Anticon’s success has given you a chance to travel, which must be nice. What have been some of your favorite spots from touring?
France is really hype crowd-wise although its not easy to eat vegan there. I like the West Coast of the US.
What projects do you have in store in the near future?
I am working on writing songs for a new WHY? album…I don’t know what else right now.
What do you want people to say about you when all is said and done?
He did what he did and he died.
Well, that’s pretty much it. Thanks for actually getting back to me man.
Anytime Dave.
