“When I began writing poetry in the early eighties I felt music was dying because the same old stuff was being sung about. What I felt was needed was an infusion of human energy.”
“It’s obvious people can no longer depend on institutions of civilization to tell them the truth, so the only way it can be expressed is through art and culture.”
“Music is dangerous when it expresses feelings and coherency.”
“Anytime people in an oppressed society – no matter what the form or level of oppression is – start to truly express their feelings, it becomes dangerous. But it can also be very healthy because the more we understand what it’s really about, the less dangerous it becomes.”
“We’re in the same situation in many ways. Black people have been stuck on reservations but they’re called ghettos and they have no economic base of support. We’re both tribal people. They were taken from their tribes and brought here and we’re in our tribes here. It’s still within our genetic memory and it’ll never be erased so there’s a natural alliance there.” – On hip-hop artist references to the Native struggle in their music. ~
SOURCE: The Toronto Sun