Action Bronson
- A R E C I P E F O R S U C C E S S -
The date - December 15.
The place - A moderately suave hotel in Shepherd’s Bush, West London.
The occasion - an evening with rap music hit machine Action Bronson. Truth be told, it was more an entire day of fun and frolics with the man many are hailing as the east coast saviour to the otherwise turgid US rap scene.
Call him what you will; Action Bronson, Bam Bam Bronsolini, Hollywood Bronson, The Symbol, the list MOST DEFINITELY goes on; the 28-year old from Queens has been making power moves in a near perfect assail towards the very top of the rap music tree ever since his debut ‘Dr Lecter’ dropped back in 2011. The question that we have to ask is this; what exactly are the key factors behind Bronson’s transformation from largely anonymous chef-turned-lyricist, to respected underground rap heavyweight, to taking office alongside the biggest names in rap royalty in what feels like the blink of an eye? Well, remarkably consistent releases have done him no harm whatsoever, but as we are sure you will agree, it takes much, much more than that to become a rap legend.
Take a back catalogue of solid rap releases and add a hearty portion of charisma. Never hold back on the charisma. Let these vital ingredients simmer in a huge pan, at the same time slowly adding spices; namely, a pinch of ‘incredibly unique content’, a tablespoon or two of ‘indulgent food bars’ along with a dash of ‘style that commands the attention of rap fans worldwide’. Once the dish is simmering, be sure to sprinkle some ‘all-star collaborations’ and ‘spectacular live showmanship’ to the broth and finish off with a pinch of freshly squeezed ‘major record deal’. A recipe for success we are sure you will agree. Wordplay caught up with Action Bronson to pick his brains on how he came from the bottom but ended up at the top, how the past shaped his present and how he sees his future unfolding….
We’re really interested to find out where your love for rap music first manifested itself. I’d like to go back to when hip hop music first sparked in your life?
“You know just growing up in New York, that was the thing to do, everyone was listening to hip hop at that time. I was born in 1983 so I would say I started listening to it around 1989/90 when I was able to go outside by myself and just explore, I remember the first time I listened to that shit was at a birthday party sleepover at my homies house, we we’re all just doing the skit, fucking put ya dick on the table, laying ya nuts down and bang them with a spiked bat (laughs) nah we would all just go back and fourth with the skits and we just fell in love at that time man, bought every single album that ever came out. Just go to the record store, see all the tapes and just buy all of them, tell Mammy to buy all of them, please Mum!”
Tell us more about the transition from being a fan to becoming an artist. What made you pick up the pen and start writing bars?
“Honestly, it was just because my friends where doing it, it’s like drugs. I would say it was four years ago that I first started to write raps and shit. and you know I just liked it, I kept going and kept going, didn’t wait on anybody you know and crafted my shit.”
Wow. Thats quite a statement. Four years ago you first picked up a pen? You can’t knock that, that’s an amazing thing…
“Its true though, anyone who knows me knows, you know I was working in kitchens my entire life, I always loved hip hop and rap but I never ever picked up a pen, not even as a joke!”
Let’s talk about the explosion, four years from when you started writing to where you are now. How has your life changed?
“The only thing thats hard is being away from my babies, you know my kids. But in the long run this is what it’s all about, you gotta go out there and provide for them. I live the same life, I’m not gassed up or anything like that, I still live five minutes away from where I grew up. The only reason I moved out was because they were complaining about the weed smoke (laughs) that’s the only reason. You know I lived in an apartment, me and my mother my entire life, I was comfortable, I didn’t need to leave. I’m just able to do lots of things I wasn’t able to do before, you know I can live anywhere, I can buy anything I want, within reason. The most important thing to me is making sure that my kids are taken care of, so I’m able to provide for them and they can live the life that they deserve.”
Thats a far more noble reason to do this than 99% of the people doing it. So what is it like leaving your kids behind when you’re touring and traveling? What are your kids saying to you when you’re heading out the door, are they asking you not to go?
“Of course, you know they don’t understand what’s actually going on, they get it but…”
What do you tell them guys?
“They know, they see me on the fucking internet at my shows n’ shit, you know. They just know I’m going to work.”
Amen, so let’s talk about Rare Chandeliers. Let’s talk about production….
“I’m a genius man, I pick everything right (laughs) I’m on a good run.”
Production wise the record is off the chart. You’ve worked with a bunch of esteemed producers in your time but the Alchemist and Action Bronson is a match made in heaven. That guy, has he ever made a weak beat? How did this come about, and how good was he to work with?
“Yeah, I mean we met on the internet and obviously I was star struck. I’ve been a big fan my entire life but we just started working, we just clicked and now its like chilling with your brother. Having fun, just laughing, there’s an ill beat on and we’re just jotting things down.”
How much did the beats he sent you influence your writing process?
“There was no sending anything, I went to his house in LA, he made the beat and I wrote the rap right next to him and that was that.”
I feel like the bars on this are more literal than previous efforts that you’ve put out, there is a more simplified tone and it feels like you and Alchemist have both found another level.
“Yea, well I don’t know what you mean by simplified, what the fuck are you trying to say man (picks up a fork and laughs).”
Haha, you know, very in your face, straight up and down punchlines, nothing cryptic. Basically, ‘this is what it is’, the beats saying this to me, so I’m saying this in response to the beat…
“Yea yea its very literal, okay I understand what your saying now, I feel sometimes you’ve got to just say what the fuck it is, like I’m not smoking little pieces oregano, no, I’m smoking weed you know, I’M DOING DRUGS, YOU’RE A BITCH AND I’M FUCKING YOU IN THE ASS, I’M TAKING YOU TO GREECE WITHOUT LEAVING THE COUNTRY ……………silence………….. (Laughs).”
Let me ask you why you put 'Rare Chandeliers’ for free, what’s the deal with that? Is it a nice thing to put something out as glorious as that for free or do you feel sad because it deserves to make money?
“Of course, it deserves everything, it deserves everyone to spend a thousands dollars on it. But to be honest I don’t care, you know its going to generate more popularity and money comes no matter what, whether you sell it or not, but yes we were both like ‘meh’ but we understand what it’s about, you don’t know how many people will see this you know, could be millions already.”
We’ve talked about the past, we’ve talked about the present, let’s talk about the future. I’m really interested in the Hollywood Bronson tag, because that sounds like a future thing to me. There’s a lot of perks in making classic rap albums; free trainers, helicopter rides you know there are different tiers to this game, you might even get your hands on a couple rare chandeliers you never know. Where do you see yourself in five years?
“Shit I could do with a helicopter ride for sure (laughs). I see myself in movies no doubt about it, like my friend Slain look at him, motherfucking Slain is in a movie right now with Brad Pitt, James Gandolfini, Ray Liotta called Killing me Softly, he was in a movie called The Town; he’s an inspiration honestly so there should be no reason why I can’t see myself doing the same thing.”
And how about a movie about your life?
“You know we’re trying to make The Symbol into a short and we’re going to start from there, the guy who did the video for me Rik Cordero is putting it together, we’re gonna have me and Rif Raf and a bunch of good characters in there.”
I want to highlight something that happened in the UK a few years back, which was significant in the UK hip hop scene; a rapper called Chester P he ran this campaign called 'Chester P for Mayor’. Basically he tried to galvanise the youth to back his manifesto for him to become London Mayor. I was thinking Action Bronson for President has a nice ring to it, so when can we expect a campaign from yourself?
“I honestly don’t give a fuck about politics, I don’t care about things like that because I’m shallow (Laughs) and I don’t need that in my world, honestly, I was never into politics, I’m not a politician, I’m just a real person. I wouldn’t be able to go out there and unite the people, that’s the problem. You know I wouldn’t ever put myself in that position to compromise my integrity.”
Yeah, well, thats a manifesto in itself…