If you’ve heard him rhyme, you’ve either bobbed your head, clutched your jewels or ran for you life.
I first encountered the gawd emcee at the hip hop proving grounds that was the Foundation Funkollective open mic in Pomona almost 20 years ago.
When people ask for a list of the best to ever do it, that list better include Triune–or it’s blasphemy.
Hear for yourself.
I was lucky enough to catch up with this hip hop pops earlier this month and learn more about how fatherhood has made him fresher.
1. Tell me about your kids. How old are they and where did their names come from?
My kids are 9 & 7 years old. Both girls. My oldest daughters name is Alanee. Her name came from a name book. It means “Heavenly Cloud.” My youngest daughters name is Adjoa, and her name means “Born on Monday.”
2. What’s one family tradition you’re upholding and what is something new you are doing?
One family tradition that we uphold is spending New Years Eve together. Bringing in the new year together is important to us.
Something new I do with my kids that I didn’t have as a kid is something we call “Talk Time” where we share our experiences unfiltered with each other.
3. What do your kids think of your rapping? Do they participate?
My kids are ultra supportive. They love the music I create and often show it off to their friends at school. My oldest got Executive Producer credit on my last album because she helped me choose the beats for it. They don’t participate quite yet, but I know they’re interested in doing so.
4. How did your rhyming change when you had kids?
It didn’t change much. My music has always been about my experiences so when they were born, they were mentioned because of course they’re a huge part of my daily experience.
5. Is there any music that you’ve made that reflects on fatherhood?
Yes, I did a few records but one in particular was called “Born To Succeed” where I spoke directly to them in the song.
6. How has hip hop prepared you to be a better dad?
Hip
Hop is about expressing emotion and being that I have all girls, it
allowed me to be more sensitive towards their emotions and changes.
7. Who’s your favorite TV dad? Why?
While controversial, it’d have to be Cliff Huxtable. He was in tune with his family on a special level and he chose to educate through laughter rather than yelling or talking down to his children.
8. Big Daddy Kane or Father MC?
Kane
Plug into Triune‘s newest release, The Love Album, here.
That’s when I heard what sounded like two bicycles colliding.
I peeked around the bumper and noticed a tall, lanky 30 year-old black guy seated on his bike but hanging onto the hooded sweatshirt of a skinny, short 20 something white guy.
A second bike lay at the feet of the white guy.
The black dude bellowed, “Stop this guy! He’s a thief.”
Say, what?!
I’d seen this kind of thing on TV and for a second I wondered if it was a hoax.
Before I could scope the scene for hidden cameras, the thief broke free from the victim—thereby ripping the hood right off his sweatshirt.
Like, “Riiiiiiip.”
Free and with a wild look in his eyes, the thief ran right in my direction.
With no time to deliberate, I slipped into JV linebacker mode: I shifted laterally, squared up, lowered my shoulder, hit and then wrapped the thief into submission.
That’s on mommas and them.
I put the patented Chicano fat-guy bear hug on him while some wimps, err… bystanders, called 9-1-1.
The thief struggled very little. He admitted he was caught and, defeated, said he wouldn’t run, so I let him go.
And he didn’t run.
And a crowd started to gather. That’s when things got very funny.
The black dude looked at the thief and said, “Man, I should beat your ass right now. How much money do you have in your pocket?”
“Man, I’m broke,” the white dude said apologetically. He took out his wallet to prove that it was empty.
I can’t front, I started to feel bad for the white dude.
“So, you’re broke? That’s why you’re doing this?” the black dude said, sympathetically.
Oh shit, the victim is starting to feel bad for the dude.
“But I can go to the bank,” the white guy quickly responded, sensing a chance to get out of here without involving the cops.
He pulled out his Chase card and pointed across the street.
“How much can you get out?”
The black dude looked to me as if to imply we’ll share the dough.
“30.”
30? I’m thinking dude should take it. His bike looked shitty.
I
wrote a Bible documentary in 2005 called Unlocking Ancient Secrets of
the Bible hosted by Sir Roger Moore. The way I got the job was a hoot.
I saw a posting on Craigslist asking for a writer for a Bible
documentary and applied. While I had a Masters degree in Philosophy
from a seminary and had written for Mun2, I wasn’t optimistic about
getting the gig. But I was eager to get back into TV writing and
production.
In fact, on the day I was called for an interview, I
was on the set of the never released Latin Rap film, Platinum Illusions.
I was standing next to Chino XL when I got the call.
When the
person on the other line gave me the address to the company, I gave a
double take. Lo and behold, I would be interviewing at the company
where our Mun2 offices were located, off Wilshire and Crenshaw.
When we launched Mun2 on the west coast in 03, there were about 10 of us
holed up in a stretch of offices on the 3rd floor of a huge building.
(Big ups Emiliano MirandaCarlos CaroXavier Villalobos Sharon Barragan Alejandro Villegas & the crew.) The company who owned the building, Associated Television International,
also had production staff on the 3rd floor. We’d see the mostly white
employees in the hallways and they’d see a band of raucous Latinos
running up and down the building. Occasionally, we’d say, “Q’vo.”
I remember one Mun2 employee weighing out Mexican tobacco in the
bathroom while an ATI employee came in, eyes wide and then turned right
around.
As it turned out, my interview for the Bible documentary job would be taking place in my old Mun2 office.
I brought some sample scripts with me but to be honest they were filled
with the Mun2 claptrap that I’d been writing. Shit like, “They’re
loud, proud and could rock a crowd. Give it up for Ozomatli” & “If
it’s on and popping, it’s most definitely dropping…Off the Roof!”
Yeah.
When I sat down for the interview, the person interviewing me, Michael Bouson
looked over my resume. “Hmm. Mun2? Wait, you look familiar. You guys
had an office here a couple years back. They called you Bookworm,
right?”
Oh, shit.
“Yes but I can tell you right now that the scale in the bathroom wasn’t mine….”
He looked at my Mun2 scripts. He smiled. He asked me to go home and
write some sample copy related to the Bible. My dude gave me a fucking
chance!
Whatever I wrote worked. I started writing with Steve Jarczak (who’s written for Netflix and Disney since then) and producing with Brad Thomas.
When I started, I noticed some holes in the apologetic argument the
documentary was making so I coordinated and conducted several more
interviews with leading philosophers, theologians, archeologist and
Egyptologists.
The American Bible Society
really liked the work. So much so that I spent over a year producing a
show for them, ABS Presents, where I traveled all over the country
producing stories on people doing interesting things with the Bible.
Boy do I have some stories about that. That’s for another time.
Here, I just want to give props to Michael Bouson
for being intentional about hiring a diverse team. There’s no reason
he should’ve hired a Mexican-American dude from Bassett to write for Sir
Roger Moore. But he did. And I’m glad.
Against my better judgement, I’ve embedded the film here:
