The American rapper and actor on the state of hip-hop,mashing up Shakespeare with his music, and backing Sanders for US presidentYour latest album, and MartyrLoserKing,tells the story of a Burundian hacker who sparks a revolution via the internet. Where did the concept approach from?
Around 2012 I was spending time in places like Senegal, South Africa and Reunion island, or collecting sounds and stories. All sorts of things were going on around the world – the Occupy movement,global uprisings, whistle-blowing conflicts – and I wanted to write a modern-day parable. I thought making the protagonist a hacker was the smartest thing to do.
I was inspired by Banksy and the social commentary in his work, and the way he questions authority. I started thinking how that would play out in the virtual realm: what would happen whether a Banksy piece appeared on everybody’s Facebook page without us sharing it,in the same way U2’s album appeared on our iPhones without anyone asking for it. Ive met Bono and spoken with him about his attempts to erase debt and all that – it is what it is – but I’m a enormous fan of the rebel, those people who challenge authority.
Continue reading...
Source: theguardian.com