Guru is a name famous in hiphop circles by his being one half of the incredible DJ Premier fuelled Gangstarr group. Since Gangstarr's demise, Guru found critical acclaim with his Jazzmtazz series, and now with producer Solar by his side, and their latest release 'Street Scriptures' being so well received worldwide, HoodStars.net caught up with the New York duo to discuss their latest album, upcoming projects and hiphop worldwide .... .... ....

"Worldwide we’ve done over 100,000 units and it’s a great feeling for an independent record. We feel really good, especially on a worldwide level," enthuses Guru about their latest release Street Scriptures, which was helmed by producer Solar who is keen to point out these are big numbers for any record let alone an independently released one and the push for more success is only starting.

"We’ve reached a level for independent distribution. We’ve taken it as far as we can go, so now we getting ready to embark upon a much larger major distribution deal." As well as pushing for major label backing or distribution deal, the duo are hard at work in the fourth album in the Jazzmatazz series.

"We’ve got the tracks done. It’s gonna be a double CD, so we’ve got about 44 or some more tracks and now we’re working on securing all the features. We’ve just completed a track with David Sanborn, the saxophonist, which is incredible. We’ve got tracks with Teairra Mari, Common, Raheim, Devon and a host of others."

It’s gonna be a double CD, so we’ve got about 44 or some more tracks and now we’re working on securing all the features. - Guru on Jazamatazz Vol. 4

Solar is someone who realises the problem today with hiphop, where the marketing will make or break your product and your success.

"The marketing is more important than the product and it’s disgusting. We actually have to change that. We spent over two years working on The Street Scriptures album, which is unheard of in these days. The average album now is made in maybe like two or three months, especially when they use 30 different producers. We literally did almost 40 songs for The Street Scriptures, and we brought it down to 19. Actually, it could of have been longer, but we felt that those 19 are the 19 songs that represented the concept of the Street Scriptures. Jazzmatazz is gonna have two discs. It’s gonna have 22 to 24 songs."

One face who will not be appearing is Guru's old partner in Rhyme, Big Shug, & he's not sorry about that. "I haven’t worked with him in about 3 years, I don’t work with anyone from the old Gang Starr. That’s over. Those days are gone!"

Gangstarr was hugely successful & as Guru put it, it was "classic beats and rhymes for that era, but that was that era. That was that legacy and I’ve moved on from that." Sometimes it's hard for artists who've been in hugely successful or seminal groups to find new energies or motivation, but not for Guru.

"I wanted to reinvent, recreate; all my favorite artists were able to do that. Through Solar’s cutting edge production and his hot new style of beats, I’ve been able to reinvent and recreate. I never wanted to stay in the same place and I never wanted to dwell on the past, so I created something new for myself and actually Solar has been around from the Gang Starr days. He and I have been friends for a while now, for over 5 years. He was around during the recording of The Ownerz, the last Gang Starr album, and he knew that I wanted to change and I wanted to do something new and he also knew about the major label influences on my music that were really annoying me. That’s why we created 7 Grand Records because I was tired of all of that."

Me and Guru worked very hard and carefully to make sure that his comeback, so to speak, didn’t look forged or ridiculous. - Solar

Solar's vision for the kind of hiphop he wants to put out there is simple, and modesty like any bragadocious artist in hiphop is not in his vocabulary. He has a grand plan, and a grander vision.

"Basically, I’m born and raised in New York. I’m born and bred in the streets of New York, I’m a New York product, a New York success story. I tell that New York hip hop is not even being represented the way I see it. My vision of New York hip hop is something like going back to that great era, but with an updated style, with an updated business plan, with an updated business approach to the music industry as opposed to just bling, cars and pornography coming with a more chanceable message for the hip hop listener and the hip hop culture. I’m all about this hip hop game: I love it, I bleed it, I breathe it, this is what I do, this is where I come from and this is what 7 Grand is gonna give back to the hip hop community and to the world. Beautiful great music from Guru and Solar."

Hiphop is a medium by which exploration is common and more than any other music form, it is quick to embrace new ideas or new technologies to keep it pushing forward as Solar explained.

"We’re really coming at it from a multimedia angle. We’re doing a lot on the internet. We’re really bracing the new technologies and like Guru said: I’m a cutting edge producer. I’m the top gun now. I’m the hottest producer in the game and I got the heat. I got those beats. Love it or hate it, I’ma be here for a minute. This is what it is right now. "

Guru knows good production having been producer by DJ Premier while with Gangstarr, but he knows times change.

When you hear my voice on the record it’s gonna always stand out, but the flow and subject matter has changed and is completely different. - Guru on 'updating his style'

"I know that Solar’s in the forefront of today’s new producers. The new producers today are not beat makers. Back in the day, we used to loop a beat, put in some drums, then leave with the engineer and artist to work with. Nowadays, you gotta be a real producer. You gotta be knowledgeable about more than just loops and beats. Those days are gone. These guys now have personality, they have character, they have style. I would say Solar is in the forefront of that."

While his understanding of the necessities of modern production have changed, there are many who thing Guru hasn't moved with the times as a emcee, who think that's a good thing, but Guru doesn't share that belief.

"I’ve changed my style incredibly. When you hear my voice on the record it’s gonna always stand out, but the flow and subject matter has changed and is completely different. The styles and the flow are always gonna be changing. The subject matter and all of that is gonna change and represent the times that we are living in. So the only constant is the voice. When you say I’ve been able to stay the same it’s because I have a powerful voice that everybody recognize.

Solar is quick to agree. "Let’s point to one song: Cave In on The Street Scriptures is 116bpm. That’s like almost club tempo. Guru and Premier never worked at that tempo before. Actually, I take great pride in pushing Guru in different directions, out of respect for Gang Starr, out of respect for Premiers production. That’s the way he tried to take it to the next level, but I’m coming up with a completely style and flows so it doesn’t sound like we’re revisiting that style. We got our own. If you listen to The Street Scriptures, you’ll understand what I’m trying to do and what Guru accomplished."

When asked if he thinks the day of the emcee is over or whether that time will come again, Solar believes the role of producer is more crucial than ever and those days may come again.

"It doesn’t look like it, as of 2006, but maybe as time goes on I believe we’ll see a change where we cycle back to talent again and not gimmicks. It’s really up to the producer in a way. As a producer I feel like I’m a standout. I don’t believe in the rest of these producers. I’m not here to advocate alternative lifestyles. I’m not here to advocate clothing lines or cars. I’m here to advocate hot music and creativity! A lot of people can relate to my album. A lot of people love it and some people hate it, but one thing they all say is that I’m producing on a different level. I’m pushing the envelope, I’m changing my style, I’m using different approaches to different songs. I believe that that’s gonna set a trend. I think that producers will start to mimic me and once they do, you will see the emcees pushing themselves becoming creative again."

HipHop is a fickle game. Fans loyalties now are fleeting and few artists can depend on long term fans. Eminem's fanbase, for example, has changed in recent years. But for Guru, his fans are those that have been down since day one. Sticking around in this business is anything but easy.

"I met Eminem when he first came on the scene and I knew that he was gonna do well because he was very lyrical and a bit crazy. I had a feeling he was gonna do well because he is lyrical and he has good flows and all that. It’s a challenge for someone to have longevity in this game. That’s what I say to all the MC’s coming up. The newer MC’s is like let’s see how long you last, let’s see if you got longevity in this. That is something that I’ve proven. It’s hard. It’s not something that’s easy to do, but it’s been easier for me to do over Solar’s beats. That’s why I was looking for a new producer. Not a whole bunch of producers, but one new producer who could take me to that next level. Who could push me to that sound that was unique and complementary to my vocal style."

If all you rap about is murdering & killing and death & destruction it will come back. - Solar on hiphop karma

Guru is also one of those acts that is hugely popular worldwide, with a huge following in Europe, France in particular.

"I think it’s more that I’ve been to France probably more than a lot other US rappers. We performed at many places. We’ve spent a lot of time there; we did a lot of work in France."

He even extends his collaborations internationall as well, by working with acts such as MC Solaar, & Dutch rap artist 'Deams'.

"Deams was kind of like a Brooklyn guy as well. He had family in the heart of Brooklyn and visited Brooklyn a lot. He was one of the first Dutch rappers that I’ve met, probably the first and one of the first brothers that I’ve met out there when I went to visit. We just clicked and when he used to come to New York we’d hang out. Sometimes I picked him up from the airport, so we made a friendship. I recently saw him at a show at The Melkweg. He came through with his lovely wife. It was great to see him because we grew up in this business together. Even though there’s many miles between us overseas, but we grew up in this together and it’s great to see that he’s doing well still and working on new music and he told me that he was happy to see me looking so fit and well because it’s been four years for me I quit drinking and I’ve been working out regularly thanks to super producer Solar; his coaching and all that. Those types of relationships are always really important. That’s like brotherhood. It is brotherhood."

So, with Gangstarr firmly buried in the past for Guru, and a new updated approach coupled with production from the eager Solar, it begs the question - how have they as a team managed the transition from the 'old school' to the 'new school'?

"We’ve managed very well. That’s what it’s all about for us," says Guru. However, Solar doesn't agree as for him, there was no 'old school'.

"I didn’t have to manage cause I’m not from that era. I’m brand new to the game right now. I know that era, but yes, me and Guru worked very hard and carefully to make sure that his comeback, so to speak, didn’t look forged or ridiculous. He has something very relevant to bring to the game: his maturity, his years in the game and the things that he’s been through. When you listen to the album these are songs about his life. Scriptures is a powerful word. Scriptures is what God gives to the people. That is a word that lasts through time. They came to us and asking for it. They were like ‘Man, I wanna hear a new album from you. I love you. I grew up on your music. Your changed my life! You got me off the drugs.’ I’m like damn! We gotta give them a real album. Not no album about cars and bitches and hoes and pimps. They want a real album. You hear the pain. You hear the anger. You hear the frustration. You hear some social views. Feed the hungry! I feel very strongly about people not having food and not having basic necessities of life."

Yet true to 'old school' form, Guru & his new school partner Solar were not ones to step away from the roots of hiphop with their attacked on the war in Iraq.

"We spoke on that. On the last song of the album we speak a little bit about the war in Iraq and the so called War on Terror and other terrorist situations that people face in their own daily lifes of murdering and poverty. I believe it’s a great album that speaks volumes about the character of Guru as an artist and as a performer," said Solar.

This is hardly suprising when you ask Guru what emcees he's a fan of. "Oh boy… Rakim as far as lyrical content. As far as live shows I would say KRS One. As far as all around emceeing, I would say… Wow, gotta have to say a tie between 2Pac and Biggie."

Guru & Solar are eager to leave a lasting imprint on hiphop music, as did 1980's culture on the early days of hiphop as we know it today. Movies like 'Wildstyle' had a huge influence.

"That had a tremendous impact because it was the first real complete documentary about the culture, which included breakin, which included the turntablism, which included the graffiti and included obviously the MC’ing."

But hiphop today is a long way from 'Wildstyle', especially with the recent shooting of Proof from D-12. Solar has a very karmic approach to this.

"I don’t know what your particular belief system is, but you get back what you put out in life. When you’re in show business what you put out is even that much more powerful. If all you rap about is murdering & killing and death & destruction it will come back. That’s an old saying in America. It’s actually not even an American saying, it’s a Chinese saying. It says: if you live by the sword, you will die by the sword. Guru is not that type and neither am I, so we don’t feel that will come to us."

To find out more about 'Guru, Solar & 7 Grand Records', please visit Guru7Grand.com.

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INTERVIEW BY : Zuka & Amen-Ra

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