Known for being a passionate hip hop artist, writer, poet and educator, Akala speaks with Tom Gane about the issues facing the British music industry, his creativity, and racism.
Akala makes an impact. Whether you’ve listened to his music, seen his hip hop Shakespeare productions or watched his lectures, what he said probably resonated with you. He’s a passionate activist, an eloquent journalist and a respected academic, renowned for his intelligence and nuance in discussing racism and inequality, but before he became the embodiment of a modern Renaissance man he was first and foremost a rapper.
This shines through on his new album, Knowledge Is Power 2, which sees him rapping hard over classic 90s style beats, and whilst the social commentary remains, more than anything else it sounds like he’s having fun. “That exactly how I would summarise it”, he said. “I was feeling very Wu-Tang and I felt like rapping over some boom bap. I thought about the hip hop that I grew up on and what made me love hip hop in the first place. Most of my stuff so far has been very experimental, and I really wanted this to just be break your neck beats and raps.”
Calling his previous work ‘experimental’ is, if anything, an understatement. He began as a grime artist but 2010’s DoubleThink was all electronic and 2013’s The Thieves Banquet was recorded completely live. He constantly develops his sound and each project is sonically distinct, which Akala says was intentionally done to push himself artistically: “When I start an album I think about the musical, philosophical and topical things that I want to say, and then pursue beats and themes that are in that direction. It’s sort of a joint decision because the type of music almost commands you to rap in a certain way, but at the start of the process I think about what I want to say and how it should sound simultaneously.”
On top of his varied musical output, Akala has also written novels, plays and lectures, so I was curious to know he decides what an idea eventually becomes. He conceded that sometimes he isn’t even sure himself: “That’s a really good question and I don’t really know if there is a hard, fast answer. I just try to apply the ideas I have in the best fashion possible, and sometimes it’s hard to decide what the correct medium is, but it’s often shaped and changed by the content of the idea. For example The Ruins of Empires, my last graphic novel, I had that recorded in music before I decided on the book format. So something like that can be two things at once, even though people haven’t heard the musical incarnation yet”.
This reminded me of Childish Gambino, who has said that he doesn’t see his different projects as separate and that they’re all linked, albeit sometimes indirectly, so understanding one will give you a greater appreciation of the others. Akala agreed with that sentiment: “I think he’s right. There’s an overarching theme, an overarching approach in the way I think about art and the world, I think that informs everything that I do.”
Every year the MOBO Awards recognise the best music of black origin in the UK, and Akala has been nominated for Best Hip Hop act this year (having won it in 2006). Given the inadequate representation of black musicians at music awards, Akala feels the MOBOs are important in counteracting the industry’s inherent biases.
“Everyone reflects their biases in everything that they do, I don’t believe people can be objective”, he explained. “So obviously if you’ve got a selection panel that’s overwhelmingly middle class or wealthy and white, then sadly in a racialized society, that’s going to be reflected in the musical choices they make, especially when you’ve got a history of black music as a dissident form of music. That’s obviously not saying people who are white won’t like types of music produced by people who aren’t white. It’s that the music industry is a politicised, racialized industry, so things like the MOBOs are set up acknowledging that fact and acknowledging the fact that black artists do face challenges and that there is a history of erasure. When we think about rock music, it’s something we never associate with African Americans anymore. But all the early rock albums were made by African Americans, and Pink Floyd were named after two blues musicians. It’s to combat that symptom of erasure. It’s not about saying other people can’t take influences, of course they can, and anyone can be influenced by whatever they want. But if I love something from a different culture then I’m going to want to acknowledge the originators too.”
This year’s MOBOs are also an indication of the strength of British rap right now. Stormzy, Skepta, JME, Krept & Konan, Lethal Bizzle; all have had numerous hits in the last year. The aforementioned grime artists and more alternative acts such as Young Fathers and Kate Tempest are contributing to make rap one of the most exciting genres in the UK right now, so to conclude the interview I asked Akala what he attributed this blossoming creativity too.
“I think that creativity has always been there” he asserted, “and that now the industry is being forced to recognise it by the popularity on the internet of someone like myself, or Skepta, or JME; none of us are new. There’s always been talent here, but for too long the mainstream industry has been all about kissing American urban artist ass and not supporting any local, home-grown talent, but the internet has forced them to acknowledge it. Just look at the MOBO nominations. In the year I won it, 2006, me and Kano were the only English rappers nominated. This year the entire best hip hop category is English. There isn’t one overseas rappers in the best hip hop category, think about that. That’s a dramatic change, and I think we’ve got to give the fans loads of credit, we’ve got to give the supporters credit, but we’ve also got to say that the internet has democratised the industry.
“It’s a shame that radio and television haven’t yet followed suit. If you look at radio playlists you see that they’re heavily skewed towards America. If you look at the way money is spent in the industry it’s heavily skewed towards America. We don’t have what the French have where it’s 40% home-grown talent on the radio, and I think if we did have that you’d have a wider range of artists being played. Even in the hip hop world if you are ‘alternative’ or ‘political’, quote unquote, then your music is probably not going to get played”.
Akala is fiercely intelligent, but he has a disarming charm and way of communicating that makes the most difficult and complicated subjects seem accessible. This comes across in his writing, in conversation and his live show, which combines the energy and anger of his message with the sheer joy of making music that is so apparent throughout Knowledge is Power 2.
Akala, Monkey Cafe & Bar, Swansea, Fri 27 Nov. Tickets: £12. Info: www.monkeycafe.co.uk; Clwb Ifor Bach, Cardiff, Sat 5 Dec. Tickets: £12. Info: www.clwb.net
photos NXSH