Interview with Digital Underground's Shock G

Old School Hip Hop comes back around from time to time. Just like the hands on the clock, they rotate and come back to their roots. This given night Shock G from the 90's hip hop group Digital Underground was coming into full circle. Twenty years ago in 1987 Shock G, Gregory Jacobs, formed the pioneering funk inspired group Digital Underground. Leaving a mark on hip hop isn't easy, but with classic songs and vibrant style, Digital Underground has still been favored by the hip hop gods looking down. Digital Underground is known for hits like "Humpty Dance", "Do Whatcha Like" and "Same Song" which consequently sky-rocketed the late Tupac Shakur into stardom.

Sunday nights are usually quiet in Tucson, Arizona. But April 22, 2007 was nothing but quiet. Shock G and his posse were scheduled to arrive around 11pm the night of the performance at Club Envy on Speedway and Wilmot. But before the festivities could begin, a small fight broke out in the club. Luckily the bouncers quickly responded and the night wasn't postponed any further. Minutes later the Green Beat finds a seat in VIP with Shock G.

Andrew Bess-The Green Beat-With so many one album artists in the hip hop industry how is it that Digital Underground is still running strong?

Shock G- I don't know, ugh I don't know it was a blessed time in the studio when we made those original songs and they are still in peoples hearts. Maybe it was 'Pac reaching back and shinning on us. Maybe it was the things we didn't say. It's not what we said but what we didn't say. I don't know I'm just grateful.

Andrew Bess-The Green Beat-The major hit single "humpty Dance" is considered the bread and butter of the group. How did the song come about?

Shock G- The whole click went out to the club and I stayed home and messed with that. Me and DJ Q stayed home when everyone else went out. And that was what we came up with. As far as the idea for Humpty being the beat rapper on the whole song, that was Monica Lynch's idea from Tommy Boy music. She's the president of Tommy Boy Records. She was like "Everybody love Humpty, give him his own song!" I had had him on a few things but never his own record.

Andrew Bess-The Green Beat-What do you think about the HYPHY MOVEMENT being from Oakland? Do you feel as if you have influenced that genre?

Shock G- Do what you like.

Andrew Bess-The Green Beat-Shock-G your alter ego is Humpty Hump, Edward G. Humphreys. How did the idea of the whole alter ego come about?

Shock G- I have always been throwing my voice goofing off doing cartoons. Humpty started with the Warner Brothers frog. [Breaks into song] "Hello my baby, hello my honey, hello my hip hop doll." So it started from the Warner's brothers cartoons and it just evolved from there. I can do blowfish and I can do a few more characters too.

Andrew Bess-The Green Beat-Do you feel that impacted the alter ego that HYPHY creates?

Shock G- I hope so man, I feel like hip hop is a wall that's growing higher and higher pyramid-like. And we put a brick or two in it. And we are proud of our brick because there are so many bricks. Everybody put a brick in the wall ya know. Everybody who's had one little song that charted into 50 all still put a brick in the wall.

Andrew Bess-The Green Beat-What created your heavily influence by Funk music like George Clinton and P-Funk?

Shock G- Right in the late 70's my family got divorced and we moved to Florida. It started with my dad; they didn't have hip hop down there, but P-Funk was real big. And I got influenced by that real heavy; George Clinton, Parliament and Funkadelics. That's also where I get the idea for two characters. I once heard George [Clinton] say that all the grown adult actors have come and went, but bugs bunny is still runnin' strong. So a character out lives a human. (Speaks to waitress: "I want a bottle in this hand, and a fifth of Patron in this hand.")

Andrew Bess-The Green Beat-Do you feel that artists nowadays are missing solid influences in the music industry?

Shock G- Naw, they got their own influences. The youth is leading the way right now. There's so much good shit out there right now it blows my mind. By the way, speaking about good and interesting, look out for a young cat we grooming. He's from Oakland by the name of BINK. We call him BINK, [spells out] Best In Northern Kali. Bink, look out for that cat. He's awesome, dude it ridiculous.

Andrew Bess-The Green Beat-Digital Underground was basically formed in 1987. How has hip hop evolved in these last twenty years?

Shock G- It's like a huge tree with a lot of different branches on it. It's going through all the things rock used to go through. Remember hip hop was only mad at the establishment back in the 80's, not each other. At that time rock was the American distrait with all the OD's and material excesses and drugs. Now hip hop has grown up. It's an adult art form. That means it has been through 30 years and it isn't a teenager no more. And it has some of the branches on it that are materialistic, some branches are violent, but everything that it has always been is still there. If you like spiritual hip hop it's still there; if you like humorous hip hop it's still there. There is always an artist representing every branch that has ever happened.

Andrew Bess-The Green Beat-A lot of hip hop artists sample music. Digital Underground has used samples from Prince, P-Funk, Parliament and Miles Davis to name a few. What effect does sampling have on music?

Shock G- It took us from the age where the musician used to be the painter, but now they are the photographer. Feel me? What a painter is to art, is what the musician used to be to music. But now the photographer is to art what the musician is to music.

Andrew Bess-The Green Beat-Does Digital Underground earn a spot in hip hop hall of fame?

Shock G- I don't know, I don't think about all that. Yo just catch me on stage, put some of the show in this.

Andrew Bess-The Green Beat-You have a keyboard tattooed on your forearm. What's the significance of that?

Shock G- Well people usually tattoo things on their body that mean something. I have always had a love affair with the keyboard. I like the relation to the black and white coming from a mixed family. It's the whole scale, the base register to the highs, the cords, and the full music sound. It's just a gorgeous creation and invention. Who ever figured this out is awesome.

Andrew Bess-The Green Beat-You dropped out of high school and spent several years involved in crime. You eventually finished your HS education and attended college where you studied music. What made you go back?

Shock G- You know one thing I wanna straighten out is that I was a criminal? please. When I was a teenager I stole a couple of cars, I got caught writing a bad check or two. I wasn't like a serious career criminal. I was always doing music. Goofing off in the streets is something every teenager has to get out of their system. But I woke up and realized what's real. You need to show that you can complete something. That's all college is. I stayed there long enough to get these credits for these courses.

Andrew Bess-The Green Beat-How did going to college and studying music effect your career?

Shock G- My teachers used to say, "you already can play the piano, why are you here?" I was like, [uses Humpty voice] "So I can get an easy credit." College helped me organize the rest of my life. It does give you a foundation to help you itemize things. It made me realize I had multiple choices. That's what college taught me.

Andrew Bess-The Green Beat-You have produced for the likes of Tupac Shakur, Prince, and Bobby Brown. In July 2005, you said you were going to retire from studio work. Where does that stand as of now?

Shock G- That wasn't really an announcement. People were slave driving me in the studio for their own personal purposes, and none of us had deals so I was just frustrated. It was just letting off steam, I was just hating my job at that time like anybody else.

Andrew Bess-The Green Beat-Where is hip hop heading in the future?

Shock G- The skies are the limit. We're going out to Uranus and Pluto, Saturn and Mars. We are gonna take it out there. Hip Hop is ever-expanding like the universe it's self. Hip hop is forever now.

Andrew Bess-The Green Beat-What's next for digital Underground?

Shock G- More drugs, more sex, and more flavor also more intelligence and more ignorance. More everything...

By the way, Shock did get his eccentric drink order minutes later.

By Andrew Bess

The Green Beat

http://www.dagreenbeat.com/andyb.html

abess@email.arizona.edu