Jay Electronica traveled to Nigeria, where he’s taking time to get in touch with his roots. During his enlightenment tour, he sat with The Beat 99.9 in Lagos, Nigeria for a rare interview.
Electronica explained that music was a secondary reason for his travels. “Like any Black man in America, I was disconnected from myself and my family for a long time,” he explained. “That’s why I’m here in Nigeria: to reconnect with my family. I’m saying that because I’m glad to be reconnected, back with my black family.”
The Roc Nation rapper’s recent travels mirror past trips to Nepal and even, to some extent, London (prior to his relationship with a heiress).
He has little to say when asked about his in-limbo debut album. But that changed when he mentioned Hip-Hop’s current landscape.
“Yes, it is dumbed down hip-hop. It’s not what I grew up on. But I would be a bold-faced liar if I said I didn’t listen to some Fetty Wap and Drake. I know the lyrics to “I’m in love with the CoCo” and all that. Rap is poetry, and we come from the era of Rakim and Nas. That side of me can critique a Young Thug and these new types of people. At the same time, it’s young, black people using what they have to come up out of an environment they’re in to better their lives and their loved ones.”
Hear the full interview below, including what Electronica said about Kanye West.
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Photo: Instagram
