|
Photograph By Patrick Jacobs |
Phatmag: What? Here?
Amad-Jamal: My man had a piece in Jermyn Street last week when we were there.
Phatmag: What in the club?
Amad-Jamal: In the club. But bad men will have what they have you know what I'm saying. People who have perks are able to slide things through if they get love. That's the way it is at home as well. But on a whole when you see the police, the military and the coppers only carrying a Billy club...whereas at home, the cops got a shot gun in the car, he's got a gun in his holster and you're getting handcuffed and patted down and checked down and put on the ground and disrespected just to see 'what the hell you're doing on the block' you know what I'm saying. It doesn't happen here. I've passed many police and I know they only have a Billy club and it makes me feel safer only because I know that if it comes down to something on some Rodney King level, I'm not gonna get electricuted or whatever.
I know they're beating fools to death with the clubs but it's more of fair one. You've got more of a fair chance to square up with another human being and if you feel he's unjust, do your thing you know what I'm saying as far as a hand-to-hand combat. You can't even think about that at home because you'll catch a bullet from 2 feet away if they even think that you're coming on a raw level because they'll walk up to you even to stop on a moving violation with the gun out. That's another thing - here you guys just take pictures of the number plate, get the ticket, mail it, be mad because we're putting you on like that. But at home there's somebody with a 5.0 with the lights on chasing you down and when he gets out he's got his gun out and he's mad because he had to get you cause you're breaking the law....he's mad cause he gotta do his job and also, he's in fear of his life...... some of the dirty things those cops do there... they fear for their life. They're hated. It doesn't mean they're all bad it just means that a few bad people can f**k it up for everybody
Phatmag: Why are you doing music? Is it for the love of it or is an escape route? Is it a way out of something...what is it?
Amad-Jamal: You know what? I'm gonna quote myself...in the verse I say "I'm one of the best though, my income's still low". You know what I'm saying. I'm not trying... you know basically, if I was about getting paid...I've been in this 12/13 years and I haven't seen that much money yet from doing just music. So basically, I was doing music when nobody was giving me a deal and I'd actually given up on music and putting it out. But my friends are into it, so I will go out and I get juiced by my friends you know writing and doing stuff like that. Man I do it for the love. I do it for the love basically but I would use it as a vehicle to get message out but also to support my family
Devine
Phatmag: How did you get your recording deal?
Amad-Jamal: On the humble recording a song with my friend Evidence. Just thinking you know, it would be nice to do a song with them. They're about to do an album and blow up plus he came to me like 'I'm still feeling all your lyrics and if you'd like to work, I've been doing beats and people are buying them so catch me now because I blow the f**k off the side of the planet and you can't afford me. Let's go into the jam and do one because I really like what you're about'. And Start to Finish, he was on ABB....Benny heard it... you know Ev sent it to him and em Benny's from my neighborhood, you know contacted Ev and me and Benny talked about all the people we knew....lived around the corner from each other...He's a little older than me and hey man, we got along. Not only did we get along, he respected my music. You know, he said it's simple and with the formula of ABB, which is Always Bigger and Better which means you're gonna go from here and take off
Phatmag: Well thanks a lot Amad-Jamal
Amad-Jamal: No problem. Thanks for having me
