POETREE teases the line between hip-hop and spoken word

"Gimme somethin' I can dance to. Yes. Gimme somethin' that'll make me think. Please," says the 27-year-old, charismatic member from his post on the floor of Natalie's, the operations coordinator, apartment. Brother Mike, one fourth of the group POETREE, is the baritone voice behind this request. Three co-signers egg on his comment.

"Watching this conglomerate of art that was put together just amazed me," Natalie explains. Being a friend of Phenom for thirteen years, an industrial engineering major, and loving the idea behind the group, she was naturally chosen to represent them.

"You can't be an artist and do business all at the same time. It takes years to learn that," the zealous lyricist, Phenom explains. "So when I asked Natalie to be the operations coordinator, I knew she was an industrial engineer. [Industrial engineers] make things better. Cool. And we're friends too? We could work together and be friends at the same time."

Phenom, 26, is the second place winner of the Source Unsigned Hype (winner: Proof of D12). Proof's lyrics lack substance but encourage ignorance with "I call you a bitch but don't trip, I say the same to my momma".

Listeners block him out for the beat. On the other hand, Phenom has the ability to make listeners disregard POETREE's fantastic beats in order to listen to his intellectual, but satirical lyrics like "Oops, I'm callin' my gods niggaz, I'm callin' my queens bitches, I'm callin' these gravediggaz, I'm callin' these pennies riches, I'm callin' this Bible thesis, I'm callin' these haters blingers, I'm callin' these rapists singers." It's astounding to figure out why Phenom didn't win. With his clever wit and outspoken demeanor, he was the force to bring in another outspoken and witty lyricist.

"My name is Rhythm. Righteous Human Yielding Toward Her Master," the next member explains in her distinct melancholy tone. Hearing her voice made me wonder if she's a poet. "[Music] is all poetry. If you rap, your delivery is faster. If you're doing poetry, it's slower. If you're singing, you have a harmony behind it. But all of it is poetry. I know a few people that don't like poetry, but they like us. But if they like us, they have to like poetry."

So where does poetry come into the current state of music today?

"Every bar has been pushed. NWA is pretty much as far as you can take [gangsta rap]. Lil' Kim brought sexuality to hip-hop and you can't take it no further," Brother Mike clarifies. "Can we break through this wall that's up in the industry?"

Traveling all over the United States to cities like Milwaukee, Baltimore, Philadelphia, Detroit, Sacramento, Cincinnati and their hometown of Chicago, they're obviously trying to. But for every goal, there are boundaries. When Rhythm was getting ready to put out an album with a record label, they wanted her to wear make-up and arch her eyebrows. But this 32-year-old's youthful features require no eye shadow to make her cute.

With her hair dreaded, styled in two ponytails, and a black and yellow T-shirt with a happy face on it ("Peace" printed underneath), I didn't get the impression that she thrives on the "sex sells" strategy.

Phenom, also on the tightrope of success in the music business, was a little pissed about getting a T-shirt and a 'thanks' after making it all the way to the finals of the freestyle battle. I wondered if he knew the prizes before he competed, but after him telling me 'I didn't lose, I came in second' four times, I was a little weary of asking him.

"I wanted to be like Kris Kross; riding in limos, playing video games, and no whoopings. I wore my pants backwards too. I didn't really understand hip-hop until I heard Fast Eddie. I started battling at school. I was late from recess. Kids asking me to rhyme again. I realized I didn't have to be Kris Kross. I could be myself cause I could do what Fast Eddie did. After The Source, I got the respect and now I want the control."

These two hard workers came together to stop being "pimped", their explanation of their obstacles, and headed a new direction. Originally eleven members represented the group, but after some personality clashes, four are left. The fourth member, Isa Starr, brings the melodic croon to POETREE. Isa Starr got her name from the Holy Karan, with Isa meaning "of God" and the Starr complimenting the name, translating to Star of God. Jogging around the question of age, she says she's in her mid-20s.

"When I first saw Isa, I was thinking 'Okay, she fine'," Brother Mike said, nodding approvingly while Isa brushed her shoulders playfully. But after hearing her voice during an open mic performance they both attended, Brother Mike was concentrating on her voice to bring her into the group.

POETREE's name was created by an outside source, Wise, the father of Rhythm's child. POETREE stands for People's Organized Entertainment Teaching Righteous Education Everywhere.

"We are strategically placed first where we gone change. Rhythm

So how does he and Brother Mike fit in this strategy placement? After rewinding (eighteen times) the freestyle Brother Mike broke into while Phenom beatboxed, they both proved they are also helpers and teachers of the musical art.

"I have a degree in Earthology, I have a masters in psychology, in theory, even if you don't want to listen you hear me, even if I never touch you, you feel me," Brother Mike rhymes on their latest album, Positive Pollution. This album has the intelligence, sarcasm, the soul, and the bass-empowered rhythms to get your ears open, your hips swaying, and your brain working.

"Every time I buy an album, I'm disappointed. Most of the songs are just fillers. Nobody's really putting any effort in their whole album unless you're like The Roots or Common or those underground cats that don't really get too much attention. [Hip-Hop is] more than commercials. [Today's songs] are commercials," Brother Mike explains. So when are there no "commercials" about pagers, cell phones, shoes, and liquor, then what is the radio playing? "Producers become the forefront of the music industry.

The industry has certain formulas they're locked into. Corporation now is just outta control. It kinda throws me back to Lauryn Hill and Bahamadia, which we don't have anymore. What sista in the industry is really talking about something? Is Lil' Kim or Trina talking about something? You got the 50 Cents and the Eminems and the Jay-Zs consistently admitting 'these are my throwaway rhymes. I'm not even putting any effort into hip-hop cause I don't even have to. All I gotta do is do a dumb hook and freestyle and just a throw a title on the song and it's a hit."

All readers, please have a moment of silence for Change Clothes by Jay-Z and Stunt 101 by G-Unit. Now nod, give an imaginary dap to Brother Mike, and resume reading.

POETREE does like some artists though. They performed at Tupac's birthday party and Brother Mike gave Tupac his due credit as a respectable lyricist. But he didn't grin from ear to ear the way Rhythm did, recalling her favorite performance with the group.

"I love Roy Ayers. When we performed at the Garage, he was really groovin' to what we were doing. He asked us to go on tour with him. He invited us onstage to perform on BET Jazz."

Phenom chalks Summerfest 2002 in Milwaukee,WI as his favorite performance. "We ended the show with that song Teen Spirit," he says, reenacting the scene from onstage. "It was like a blue man situation but we poets."
T
een Spirit isn't exactly hip-hop. It's rock. So how would POETREE classify themselves?
"We call it hiphopetry. It's more hip-hop than anything," Rhythm states.

With Chicago artists like Common Sense and Kanye West rapping about topics with substance, it only makes sense that POETREE be next in line. Phenom boasts on the album, "You thought the last crew came on and rocked the set? Like a constipated baby, you ain't seen shit yet."

"That's the most unique thing I've ever heard," says a German listener after seeing one of POETREE's performances. With no reference to money, hoes and jewelry as their reasons to live, sadly, it is unique.

"All in all, we want to have a block party for our people without the police harassing us. We wanna let kids in the community do plays about Africa as opposed to Abraham Lincoln and Thanks-f*cking-giving. We haven't forgotten Brother Malcolm, Brother Huey Newton, Fred Hampton Sr., 21 years old, who started the free breakfast program that the CPS now have and sometimes charge kids to use. We are not only gonna change music, we're gonna change parts of the world," says Phenom. "POETREE is like a tornado. Either move or get sucked in. But this is positive pollution."

-For more information, visit http://poetreechicago.com, e-mail at poetreechicago@excite.com, rbg4life@comcast.net, or ask for Rhythm at (773) 592-8844