A$AP Rocky’s lecture at the Red Bull Academy in April gave slight insight into the mind of the Harlem rapper (namely his love of crisps, King Krule and womens’ soft voices) but would his arrival at the Oxford Union extract any more information from the 26-year-old artist? The rap, fashion and film star visited the Union on Tuesday – less than two weeks after it was forced to condemn itself as “institutionally racist” – to discuss At.Long.Last.A$AP, misogyny, his duty to be political and his late friend and collaborator A$AP Yams. Here are some of the things we learned.
Rocky learned branding from A$AP Yams
A$AP Mob have always had an eye for branding. Their use of the internet was crucial, according to Rocky, in allowing “a bunch of teenage kids” to rival Odd Future as one of the world’s most prominent rap collectives. Offering advice to artists looking to boost their profile, Rocky celebrated the sense of independence the web offers: “People don’t need a record label any more. People like me, with no experience, the internet gave me a platform, a voice.” He also attributed much of his success to A$AP Yams, rap executive and co-owner of the A$AP label who died from an overdose in January. Showing none of the reserve that has characterised some of his recent responses when asked about his late friend in interviews, according to Rocky, Yams would often do “sneaky shit”, like slipping his name into blog posts alongside big artists. Major publications would see the posts and be confounded: “They were like, who is this kid A$AP Rocky?”
At.Long.Last.A$AP was a deliberate sidestep from the mainstream
Rocky’s new-found love of psychedelics was essential in his vision for his new album ALLA, which he described as “a move away from the mainstream”. Referring to songs like Goldie and Wild for the Night from his debut album, he said: “I wanted to prove to people that I can make mainstream commercial hits, without actually compromising my whole style.” After those songs he was apparently offered collaborations from “people with money” for songs that were “just … terrible”. Explaining why he had spent the year recording in London, he said he had to “isolate” himself from the commercial offers he was getting in the US. UK grime became an influence while he was here, and he mentioned that Skepta was in the studio a lot: “There was a lot of synergy.”
Rap music isolates women and men!
Despite remaining tight lipped over his Rita Ora reference on Better Things, during the Q&A, Rocky was questioned on whether his lyrics are misogynistic, to the point that he declared, “I’m scared of women now”, as well as coming out with such classic aphorisms as “a female’s vagina is the most addictive thing in the world”. When questioned about whether his music isolates women, Rocky responded: “At times. But we do it to men, too. How many songs do you hear, ‘I gon fuck with you niggas’? It’s the same thing.” When pressed, he spoke of the bitches-women dichotomy:“I’m not going to justify other rappers, but for me, I only speak about my experiences. What I will say is, I’m 26, and I’ve met a lot of women, and I’ve met a lot of bitches.”
You better get his name(s) right
Asked about his original name, Rakim, Rocky spoke of how he came to terms with being named after the great 80s and 90s MC. “I felt like the name Rakim, it’s like being named after Tupac Shakur or Michael Jordan. I felt like those shoes are way too big to fill. I wanted to pioneer my own way. I wanted, respectfully, to earn my own name.” It wasn’t until At.Long.Last.A$AP (also known as ALLA) that he felt comfortable with this status, saying: “It’s like the return of the God emcee, Rakim. I recognise that my name is Rakim. I’m taking ownership of it.”
A$AP will not be writing a protest album any time soon
When asked whether black rap artists have a responsibility to address race issues, Rocky stressed that the A$AP style is far removed from that of artists like Kendrick Lamar and D’Angelo. “I don’t feel like anybody’s obligated to talk about that kind of stuff unless they want to. I don’t think that everybody should have to be like Kendrick. At the same time, we don’t all have to be like A$AP, talking about drugs and clothes and girls. I talk about other stuff than that, right? Religion and stuff.”
He also insisted that he didn’t have a right to discuss the unrest in Ferguson and Baltimore as he was in London recording. “I didn’t go to any marches, I didn’t go to any protests. So for me, I can’t speak on that, because I didn’t do anything to change it.” Pressed on the question of police brutality, Rocky was hedgy. “That kind of shit is inevitable, man. I don’t justify cops killing kids, but that’s nothing new.” He cited instead a recent weekend in Chicago in which 60 people were killed in the course of two days: “Black on black crime. I feel like [that’s] the main topic. Let’s talk about black people killing black people.”
He thinks the N-word is “inevitable”
Rocky brought up the widespread use of the N-word on more than one occasion. “With my generation, I don’t think we’re necessarily racist. I think we’re just capable of saying racist stuff, you know, and I think we get judged on that.” Interviewer Cameron Alexander, president-elect of the Oxford African and Caribbean Society, tried to suggest that the issue might more complex, but Rocky repeated his point. “I don’t care who uses the n-word. The N-word is inevitable, it’s just – like the word ‘cool’”.
