Photo credit: Jasmin Madera
I made a friend one Saturday afternoon, in the middle of a Midtown restaurant over French toast and people-watching. My new friend solidified a place in my heart with the following statement:
"Tupac is a timeless rapper. Tupac is not talking about anybody in particular, Tupac is talking about broad themes of life that never change. They're constants: fear, love, family, pain, misery. He's not talking about a Benz, and if he is, he's using it to paint an emotion on his canvas. It's not stuck in that particular mode; it's broad. Every generation loves Tupac the same, but in a different way, because people can interpret it for themselves."
I consider any human who speaks of Tupac in a biblical nature to be trustworthy, especially musically. Harlem-born HANiF (formerly known as Luck One) considers himself a craftsman. His latest album, the boom-bap golden era inspired EP 12 Inch Vinyls was five years in the making, and there are apparently an average of thirty versions of each track in existence, due to the meticulous perfectionism of him and his producer 5th Sequence. After talking to HANiF about his passion, experience, life in hip hop, and a wealth of other intriguing topics, I decided that an emcee like him is exactly what Hip Hop needs right now, and here's why:
1. He appreciates the old with a curiosity for the new and uncharted
Harlem-born, Portland-raised HANiF is among the last of a dying breed: the pre-viral video generation. He spent his younger years climbing the ranks of hip hop the old fashioned way, starting with neighborhood cyphers then local battles then graduating to studio production. He honed his witty lyricism through an understanding that only the cleverest survive a cypher without a relentless verbal attack from both adversaries and bystanders. But HANiF is able to be a full-fledged member of this near-extinct group of foundation loyalists while gracefully appreciating the new. He eagerly jumps on my innate resistance to what Hip Hop sounds like in 2016 by pointing me in the direction of new sounds that can appeal to even the most stubborn of curmudgeons.
2. He's nice ...
Not just as a person, but he's nice as an artist. A real storyteller. Planes, Trains & Automobiles was the first of Hanif's songs I listened to. He wrote it about his friend David Felix, a mentally ill Haitian immigrant who was killed by the NYPD in his East Village home last April (please click the link and read the article. I am quite certain Felix's death sank almost without making a ripple is among the most gut-wrenching sentences Vice has ever published)
Additionally, have a listen to what I rate as the two best tracks from his 12 Inch Vinyls project:
"Feels So Good"
"Servant II The King"
3. He IS Hip Hop
"If you do not breathe through writing, if you do not cry out in writing, or sing in writing, then don't write, because our culture has no use for it" - my favorite quote from Anaïs Nin easily applies to how HANiF has approached his passion for writing music his entire life. He has lived and breathed this life for his entire life and has made outlandish sacrifices to stay afloat while continuing to chase his unrelenting passion for making music.
HANiF: "I write all the time. I'll probably write about this, today. That's how I process things. I mean, you have an experience that is dope. You have an emotion about it. You write from that emotion"
4. He has earned his stripes
I don't believe in the idea of overnight success, however the paths of some are far rougher than others. HANiF's story is one that documentaries are made of. A painfully poetic tale of incarceration, poverty, and the inability to catch a break. Anyone who knows art knows the best of it is born in pain and is afforded to those who fight through whatever it is for what they want. There isn't much HANiF won't endure to continue his career in music including driving himself from city to city in a sketchy van - with extremely limited funds - to tour with Pete Rock and Slum Village. And now, as a brand-new father, he has made the ultimate sacrifice for his son - leaving New York City and moving back to Portland again to provide a more fruitful life for his family.
HANiF and the Legendary Pete Rock
5. HANiF believes in the future of Hip Hop
Let's be honest - many of us have lost faith in the direction Hip Hop is heading in. I asked HANiF if there is an impending return to artistry or is this the End of Days? Will it just be Young Thug and the like until we all kill ourselves?
"Young Thug is on his way out. Tupac is on his way back in. At some point, people are going to start demanding the same thing from their music that they demand from their workplace, their relationships, etc. They are going to start demanding authenticity and some sort of return. I've been listening to rap for 20 years; it all goes in waves," HANiF answered.
Although they seem few and far between these days, new artists who are able to be stylistically relevant while remaining respectful and loyal to the foundation do exist. And true music lovers have a responsibility to support these artists and do our part to keep the craftsmanship alive.
Connect with HANiF:
www.iAmHanif.com
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