Old school ties

By now, the rap star cliche has passed the point of no return.
However, despite the blinding glare of the so-called Bling Dynasty,
alternative rap acts like Blackalicious have begun lighting up
audiences with their back-to-basics brand of hip-hop.

“For me, what it comes down to is skill level,” said
Gift of Gab, the MC half of Blackalicious. “Whether
they’re talking about bling-bling, being gangsta, or being
conscious, it’s really about having the skill level to be
original about their perspectives on life.”

For the past decade, the skill levels of Gab and DJ Chief Xcel
have helped the Davis, California duo earn critical acclaim as one
of the most significant hip-hoppers in the underground scene. Fans
of hip-hop can witness Blackalicious’s skill level today at
UCLA’s Westwood Plaza.

Gab first encountered Xcel when the two were attending high
school in Sacramento. Each went their separate ways after Gab
graduated in 1987, but they reunited in 1992 when Gab moved to
Davis to form Blackalicious with Xcel, who was studying at UC
Davis. Blackalicious and Xcel’s Solesides Crew, which
consisted of DJ Shadow, Lateef the Truth Speaker, and Lyrics Born,
managed to score an underground smash with the EP
“Melodica.”

“We were a group of people who shared a vision and a great
passion for the music,” Gab said. Solesides eventually
evolved into Quannum, but remained allies with Gab and Xcel as
Blackalicious released the EP “A2G” and its debut album
“Nia.” In April of this year, MCA released
“Blazing Arrow,” Gab and Xcel’s first major label
release.

“We’ve been blessed with a bigger fan base every
year, allowing us to spread our music,” Gab said.
“We’ve been able to evolve as artists to where we can
make the kind of records we want to make.”

“Blazing Arrow” sees Blackalicious collaborating
with a slew of guest performers, including Jurassic 5’s Cut
Chemist, former Rage Against the Machine vocalist Zack de la Rocha,
and jazz singer Gil Scott-Heron.

“It’s like chemistry class,” Gab said.
“You get all these different elements and mix them together,
but we don’t feel we have to tweak our sound. We still have
our stamp on the music.”

In fact, frequent collaborations with peers are about the only
thing Gab and Xcel has in common with mainstream hip-hop artists.
Like Jurassic 5 and the Roots, Blackalicious deviates from the
usual lyrics of sex and violence, and puts little emphasis on their
outer image. Blackalicious is not about Nelly-esque party romps or
Eminem-like shock rants. However, Gab feels the “alternative
rap” label is unnecessary.

Blackalicious’s growing success has them toeing the fine
line between underground credibility and mainstream popularity, but
they see no need in making a conscious effort to remain
underground. To them, there shouldn’t even be a line.

“I just like good music and talented artists,” said
Gab. “Hip-hop is hip-hop. I think Outkast is phenomenal.
I’m not going to stop listening to them just because
they’re mainstream and sold so many records. At the same
time, there are underground artists that I don’t really care
to listen to.”

Two rap acts Gab does listen to are hip-hop stalwarts and
current touring mates Public Enemy and Dilated Peoples.
Blackalicious has been compared to both groups in terms of their
uncompromising music.

“To me, Public Enemy is one of the greatest groups in the
history of hip-hop hands down,” said Gab. “I grew up on
Public Enemy. It goes without saying that there would be no
Blackalicious without Public Enemy. Dilated Peoples is one of the
most important groups in hip-hop right now. Dilated Peoples is
vintage classic hip-hop like Gang Starr ““ raw beats and raw
lyrics.”

Despite its reputation as one of the leading rap acts with the
potential to change popular hip-hop, Blackalicious is in no rush to
become revolutionaries.

“We’re just black men who make delicious
music,” said Gab.

Blackalicious plays at Westwood Plaza today at noon.