Dead Prez

M-1 urges rappers to stop promoting White power

By GEZUS ZAIRE

bprn.moonfruit.com

Of today’s hip-hop artists none other had a more
mandatory appearance at the National Hip-Hop Political
Convention than dead prez.
The duo made up of M-1 and stic.man serves as the
nation’s most radical rap group that can occasionally
be heard on mainstream radio and rarely seen on BET.
Prior to a mini-concert the group through for free on
the last day of the convention, M-1 spoke to the media
on June 17, the second day of the groundbreaking
event.
“ Everything is political and understanding that
everything is political, music is not exempt,” the
Florida native said about his groups unapologetic
music.
“ The job of the M.C. is to communicate,” he said.
“ It’s not just to communicate to people who listen to
rap, it’s to communicate and make the people who don’t
want to listen to what we talking about listen.”

While many of today’s mainstream rappers throw the
word pimp around like a nerf football, dead prez has
applied it to its message in gaining freedom for Black
and Brown people who suffer in capitalist economies.
“ What we are here to do is pimp the system,” M-1 said.
“ How do we pimp the system? We recognize that the
system of capitalism will sell you enough rope to hang
them with. They’ll sell you enough guns to fight them
with. So we have to turn around and use this.”

At the convention, M-1 had the popularity of a
biblical prophet. People wanted to take photos of and
with him, interviewers followed him in droves and some
fans just wanted to have the chance to meet him, look
into his eyes, shake his hand and say thank you. Most
would have “Caroline Syndrome” (see OutKast’s latest
radio single “Roses”) but M-1 sees his influence as a
job requirement.

“ I’m not a star,” M-1 said. “People want to hear the
voice of the community and I represent that. I work
for the people. The streets is my office, dead prez is
spelled with a lowercase d and a lower case p because
we put the people first. It’s not about us or our
record sales or an image. Red, Black and Green was-
given to us by the OG, Marcus Garvey. We’re here to
follow out the work. We’re here to create social
justice.”
The message that dead prez distributes through the
form of a compact disc is not directed to Black
Americans, M-1 said that the oppressor in America is
now a global force.
“ All across the world we have a problem,” M-1 said.
“ We have the same [expletive] problem with the same
enemy, the same oppressor. He looks the same every
where we are and every where oppression is it goes
down the same way every where we are. We’re on drugs;
we are homeless there is no opportunity for the
resources, which we rightfully should own, and the
land, which we sit on.”

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