AN INTERVIEW WITH KILLAH PRIEST
Walter Reed, better known as Killah Priest is an American rapper and affiliate of the hip hop group Wu-Tang Clan. Priest also formed the group Sunz Of Man with rappers Hell Razah, 60 Second Assassin, and Prodigal Sunn. Killah Priest's first solo album was Heavy Mental, and his most recent release is The Third Eye in Technicolor. Priest talks to Teresa and Sam about the process of creating The Third Eye in Technicolor, his creative flow in quarantine, and the weed industry.
Sam: Yeah, thank you so much for taking the time to talk to us today. Yeah, we're both just really into your output from last year. And we have a bunch of questions. The first thing was that I think we're from a generation that experienced your music very differently than maybe other generations, because last year was the first time that I was exposed to a lot of your work. And I was wondering how it feels to have fans connecting with your music that are connecting with this whole different set of work, than you maybe have fans from the past.
Killah Priest: Man, my heart just jumped. It just like cannonballed out of my chest, man. It’s a beautiful feeling, man, I can't even express it. It's just that, I love it. And it just shows you, whatever you put into it comes out, and I'm just joining this, man, I can't believe this. This is incredible, man. It really hits me hard and it lets me know that people are waking up and open all over, and that words don't have any age to it.
Sam: Yeah, yeah.
Teresa: From your perspective what would you think has been the key to your longevity in hip-hop and how do you see the genre as you’ve know it changing and evolving over time
Killah Priest: I think it’s never compromising myself, my work, and my art, and basically sticking to my soul. Listening to what’s inside. And I think that’s, just the love of it, the love of hip-hop itself and the love of music. And for, you know, the new generation, I think that music’s always supposed to evolve in some way. I think it’s supposed to take whatever we did, like we took jazz or whatever, and cooked up the beat and evolved it. Sometimes it gets a little bit flashy, but it’s enjoyable, you know what I’m saying? It’s different.
Sam: Definitely, and where have you been going for influence lately. Have you been influenced by a lot of the newer people or have you been kind of going back to older stuff for influence? What's been influencing you?
Killah Priest: I like - there's a couple of new artists that I like, you know. I like Jay Cole and definitely Kendrick Lamar. And when I go back, I listened to a lot of weird stuff you know I mean, I liked listening to reggae, and different types of music. I'll listen to Calypso, I listen to- you know I’m from New York, so we got a gumbo worth of music, and I just like listening to different types of music, and that influenced me to keep going. And Michael Jackson maybe, too.
Sam: And are you back in New York often, or are you pretty much -
Killah Priest: I haven't been traveling since man, all this stuff happening. You know my family's still in New York, and I got family in New York, I got family in the south. So, we communicate all the time. My niece, she travels a lot, so I don’t know how she do it.
Teresa: Sort of shifting to your most recent album, The Third Eye in Technicolor, can you kind of tell us about the process of creating that album and also working with Jordan River Banks on it?
Killah Priest: Man, he's incredible. Y’all gotta interview him next. Crazy, yeah, his music is - some people say better than Kanye, I think he's eclectic like that, like he goes and he reaches out with different types of things. The process to Third Eye in Technicolor. It came a couple of years ago. It was like a little working, before the pandemic and all of that, and I was going out there and we just decided we was like, yo let’s do rocket to the Planet of the Gods two.
And so he rented this whole island, this guy gave us a whole island outside of Amsterdam, so it’s far away, man. And yeah, it was crazy, so we got to get together and it just happened. It just was like yo, through time and waiting and stuff like that, it just came out when it came out. It was a beautiful [unintelligible] and at first I forgot that - because we sittin’ on so much music I forgot the title, and I almost called it the Solo Mind of Technicolor at first, and it was cause of my good friend High King, said no Priest, you named it Third Eye, cause I texted him. Lucky I texted him before, I was like let’s call it Third Eye in Technicolor.
Sam and Teresa: *Laughs*
Killah Priest: And it's a play on, if you checked out any of the old movies and old cartoons it was in Technicolor back then, so that was the new thing in Panacolor. So, it was just a play back on words.
Sam: And what is that process of y'all working together like do y'all always need to be in the same place or does he over just send beats over, how do you guys go back and forth?
Killah Priest: Both. Both, we started off working together. We said, man forget this, we want it more organic, so I was there. And then when we got the whole body of the album done, then he started sending me stuff because I started recording, and I learning how to record myself.I learned how to record, I started learning how to record myself, my son had taught me that.
And so I started recording myself, and I was always scared. I bought my own studio and got my own studio setup so then I started recording myself. So he said, alright Priest - and a matter of fact, he came out to LA, and he stayed with me a couple of days and we recorded the first song in the album, which is Path Guidance. And we recorded it at the spot.
Teresa: Okay, cool. So sort of as an artist, I know you take on a lot of different roles, do you see your role as the teacher as much as an artist, and do they kind of blend together from your point of view?
Killah Priest: Well tea-cher, because I drink a lot of tea. So I call myself a tea-cher. *Laughs* You know what I mean?
Teresa: We were waiting for that!
Killah Priest: Yeah, exactly. But seriously, I just take it as it comes. But it does mean a lot to me when I get the feedback, you know, that just inspires me to keep going. And I'm on the right path and this comes from the fans, you know what I’m saying, when people talk to me and they really feel. Because it's just moments, it's just ideas and feelings. And I like to get it down on paper and record it as soon as possible, and that's the best feeling right there.
Sam: Yeah, and kind of talking about fan response, I know that, especially Rocket to Nebula, well both projects from last year, have gotten just like this wild response. People love them so much, and have really connected. Have you gotten to connect with any fans or hear from them about the work?
Killah Priest: Yeah man, on Instagram and on the podcast, the chat room, a lot of people tell me that they enjoyed the album, so you know some of my friends and stuff like that. Yeah, the feedback has inspired me to continue working now. Now, I’m getting on AD nerves and I'm getting on a C6 because I'm making music every minute, sending it to them. And they're like, yo, Priest. And I have to calm myself down like, yo man I have to chill out because -
Background: Nah, you need to keep up.
Killah Priest: *Laughs* I know between them two I know I drive them crazy, but they keeping up, though.
Sam: It's just too much new music, I mean that's a good problem to have, I feel like.
Killah Priest: It is, it is. I must say that is a blessing. Yeah.
Sam: On this project, I went down a bunch of Google rabbit holes. And my favorite rabbit hole that you sent me down was the connection between mushrooms and jellyfish. I was like there’s no way. We went through all these threads, but is part of your goal to push listeners like that? Because I was doing research.
Killah Priest: Yeah, yeah, that is trippy. You take some mushrooms, you would see some jellyfish.
Teresa and Sam: *Laughs*
Killah Priest: No, but they look just alike, right? And they have gills, and stuff - it’s a wild thing, man. I don’t know, sometimes I be tripping myself out, yo. But I'm curious, what did it say?
Sam: It said that like they come from a common family, cause they came from, back in the dinosaur times, it was like this -
Killah Priest: That’s what they say!
Everyone: *Laughs*
Teresa: So throughout quarantine, obviously, you know, everyone sort of had more time, but where do you get inspiration from writing wise in quarantine when, you know, you're not out and about as much, having new experiences, meeting new people, but yet you say you are so filled with all these ideas in your music?
Killah Priest: Well this is it, this is my time. I think this is my type of time, where I party at. Quarantine has me more focused and - I do party, you know, but I kind of slow down a little bit. I dad party now, little bars here and there and stuff like that, it’s close to the crib.
So, so, during the quarantine. It was like a gift and a curse. It had me really focused and I can literally just get up and do a bar and then change it, you know I'm saying, and it can be five in the morning. And that's what quarantine provided for me. I'm not on tour, which is a bad part, but I get to create the music, and then we're going to try to do something where I can perform, maybe here at the studio, something like that.
Sam: Definitely. And what else have you been doing during quarantine to keep busy? Have you been watching any TV shows or movies?
Killah Priest: Yo, I got this thing. I've been watching old movies. Yeah, from like the 60s. I'm just laughing my behind off. Those movies are so corny and so, it's just, I've been watching - I’ll watch one and then I'll just watch a whole bunch of them. It inspired me, a couple, watching those. Make some crazy music.
Sam: You have any recommendations?
Killah Priest: Screaming Skull. 1960. You're gonna die laughing when you check out the lady. When she runs after him and she's like the ghost, cause they weren't scared - I think it was like 1950 - and she, like, was doing the Running Man, but it was supposed to have been scary.
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Sam: It seems like, just, in each of your bars there's just so much knowledge, and so much history. And how would you recommend that we educate ourselves, so that we can get the references and also know where you're coming from with your bars?
Killah Priest: Um, there's a lot of information. Now, you can Google, you can research on YouTube. A lot of the stuff is like ancient Sumer and Egypt, and you can catch a lot of stuff like astrology, things of that nature. You go into anything esoteric, I guess. Hindu, you can go to ancient China, you go to the Buddha, all of that stuff, so I just - Gumbo. Gumbo. Yeah, somehow it comes out. Just a retardation of genius, scientists, sacrilege, crazy stuff.
Teresa: And what kind of drew you into these esoteric sort of themes? Can you also just talk to us about the album cover for Third Eye?
Killah Priest: To be honest with you, which one? Both of them? Rocket to Nebula?
Teresa: Both.
Sam: I mean they're both awesome.
Killah Priest: Alright, thank you. Rocket to Nebula is when I first got into weed. When I first got into weed, you know I have my own weed company. And so they used to send me out to all these weed products, and I used to see - weed influenced that album a lot, man, because I would go to the dispensaries and they would have all these tripped out mushrooms everywhere, and I would talk to the people, and they would be crying and telling me what, you know.
And so I learned a lot about weed, yo, and I kind of became a spokesperson for weed, like I started learning the difference between Indicas and Sativa and hybrid. And people said, Priest! They tripped out because I've never smoked like that, you know what I’m saying. So I started learning and all that and that's how Rocket to Nebula came in. And if you look at the cover, that idea came from - you know, if you see the gnomes - and that was an idea that I had for a weed album I was going to do and it just happened to go into Rocket to Nebula.
Technicolor. That was me and Jordan going back and forth, because that is more like the colors in the Hinduism. If you look good there’s symbols in there, there’s a snake over my head, a cobra something like that. And [Jordan] came up with that. And we just wanted it to be like, you know, something like a Lotus plant.
Teresa: Some of these themes are also reflected in the music video, I watched the Saffron music video. And it looks like the same graphics as the Nebulous Land music video. So can you talk to us a little bit about creating those?
Killah Priest: Yeah. My animator, Dave Flores - you can look him up too, Dave Flores Animation - he's with Proverb Music. He came up with most of the concept. The concept was inside the song, so I guess when he just took it, he kind of took it again but with little ideas of - it was a play on words, like, “the gods turned green like mint chutney”, you know I'm saying. And that was my whole idea was just to play on words, and then we somehow ended up in the temples.
And it worked out good, though. So, it was a combination of me and Dave. It was supposed to be like mixing food with the gods, but it all just blended together somehow. It didn't work out - things work out when it doesn't work out.
Sam: No totally, that makes sense and those videos are really beautiful. And going back to the weed stuff we were talking about earlier, what's it been like, going through this whole process of going to these conventions, having the brand, all that? It seems like a lot of work.
Killah Priest: Man, it opened up my eyes to a whole different world. It was where I wanted to be it was very mystic, very esoteric. And it's very trippy, and then I started learning about psilocybin mushrooms. And I'm sitting in there a long time, and just talking to - I call them the silver heads, you know hippies, you know the cats with the silver hair and white shirt, shorts, those guys with their beards like brownish because they smoke so much weed, you know, named George and stuff like that.
So I picked up a whole new view on that. And building with them, I said, yeah I got a new whole line that I'm doing. And it's been great. It is always good to be educated, you know what I’m saying, that you never really knew about. And then, just to get into it - those endorphins start kicking in and it gave me a good feeling.
Sam: Yeah, that's really interesting. And how do you feel like - you said it influenced Rocket to Nebula especially - how did you see that influence showing up in the music?
Killah Priest: Um, I started playing with instrumentals myself, and I got tired of waiting on cats to make beats. And so I started experimenting with myself. And I was just like, in this spell where I could just - I figured something out. If I just reverse certain music, it’d sound trippy, and everything was starting to sound trippy, and it just spun me into this world where nothing mattered. It was all good, and it's music. That kind of spent me into a more creative role on the album. My first time starting to make - I wouldn't even call them beats, was just sounds - melodic sounds and music.
So I changed my name to Unknown Source. I just went in as this character. And, you know, Unknown Source kind of took over, and Killah Priest just existed. And then we just came up with a Rocket to Nebula. And I've been enjoying the ride on my way there.
Teresa: In the future, do you think that you're going to experiment more and make more of your own beats, or are you still focused more on writing lyrics?
Killah Priest: Oh definitely, no I'm in it now. Both. Both, but I'm already past that. I already got stuff already done, ready to come. I'm in another stratosphere now. I’m making beats for other people. Playing with it, you know, kind of learning from AD and learning from C6. Little drum patterns, because I didn't catch that part yet, and just new things that I pick up. Just learned a little tech things. And then I get right back to my writing because that's the most important thing to me.
Sam: I mean you just said that you have a lot in the vault that's ready to come out. And I don't know how much of it you can talk about, but talk to us about what you've been working on lately, what sounds, what ideas are you working on?
Killah Priest: Well, I have an album with True Master that AD is going to end up mixing and mastering. That’s finished, and I have one with another Amsterdam producer named Shroom. Yeah, Shroom another name we all like.
*Laughs*
I'm working on making beats for Lost Children of Babylon, maybe three, you know added on. And then I have my own - another one. It's like Rocket to Nebula number two. It's called Outdoor Cafe in Another Universe - at the edge of the universe. Yeah, I changed it, cause it is so early. And I have one called a Lord’s Son. And that's not due until later on, but that's going to be another one, it’s gonna be crazy.
Yeah, all these projects, man, I have maybe… seven.
Sam: Wow.
Killah Priest: Quarantine’s been good to me.
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Sam: On a more serious note, I know that, like personally, the album's last year really affected me and made me think a lot about how I experienced music. And I was wondering, if there's one thing that you want people to take away from your music, what would it be?
Killah Priest: Take with them, or take away from it?
Sam: So like, yeah, take away from your music. What is the message that you're trying to give to people?
Killah Priest: Oh… The biggest… That you could do anything that you can imagine, you know, saying that there's no limitations to the imagination of the human mind.
Sam: Is that it? What advice would you give to somebody our age who's doing their own artistic pursuit? What is the way that they can have as incredible a career as you, because you’ve really made it through generations and are just such a legend in the space.
Killah Priest: Ah, thank you, man. I’m about to cry.
I would say never compromise yourself, never compromise your style, never change for anyone, believe in you. And go forward with that. And at the end of the day, love is the ultimate goal, and anything you put love into it, whatever you put into it, make sure you love doing what you do.