Rolling out recently had the pleasure of talking with a Chicago hip-hop artist who is turning the world of hip-hop, as we know it, on its ear. A refreshing blend of hip-hop influences from soul, jazz, rock and R&B, “SB” is at the forefront of a hip-hop “revolusean” –tony binns
Tell us about your music and its message.
A lot of people use the term “rapper” or they use the term “MC”, and so do I. However, I think if you are doing it right, hip-hop is literally a derivative of the Griot tradition. I know this isn’t true for every “MC,” but I believe I carry the torch of that legacy. As Chuck D said, “I don’t rhyme for the sake of riddling.” Just as the Griots told stories packed with substance that passed on valuable life lessons, morals and values — the very ethos of a people.
You have dedicated a lot of your time and energy to education, what prompted that?
I came by it honestly. My father was an educator and for many years taught at the grade school level in the Chicago Public School system. I watched my father, on one level have to wear so many hats; not only did he have to be the teacher, he had to be the disciplinarian, he had to be the psychologist, he had to be maybe, in some cases a psychiatrist. He had to be an entrepreneur. I feel I am doing the same work, teaching, but the forum is music. My mother was also exceptionally creative. I am who I am because my parents educated me to not only understand where I came from, but to also … that I have a responsibility to make a better way for others with any resources I have been blessed with.
What’s in store for the future of SB?
I have my sophomore album I am working on called Evolusean. In one respect I am a Booker T. Washington kind-of-guy in terms of really believing the power of the individual to be a catalyst for social change to pull oneself up by their “boot straps,” however, in that same breath, I am also very much inline with Martin Luther King, Jr. in terms of understanding the interdependence of human beings. So in the spirit of that “Evolusean,” my first album was called “Revolusean.” “Evolusean” to me is the next step, as evolution is about a process of changing for the better that I believe should never cease. Not a Darwinian evolution, but an evolution that is evidence of a direct relationship with the Supreme Being.
For more information:
Booking: 661.727.3224 or [email protected]
Website: www.sbhiphop.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/Sean-Butler/509565895
