Putting a genre around this native Somalian does more of a disservice to his craftsmanship than anything. K'naan has been making an impact for quite sometime now and he recently sat down with us to discuss some of his current endeavors and overall general thoughts of how the world is being run. Enter K'Naan.illRoots.com: Your name means "Traveller" in the Somali language do you feel that this meaning has ever had a direct correlation with your actual life?
K'Naan: Yea I do. This is why I think the naming process of children
is important. We actualize our fate in many different ways,
and I think your name has something to do with your path.
illRoots.com: Always being a fan of your work, I remember (correct me if I'm wrong) you did a piece for the United Nations High Counsel of Refugees in 1999, out of that entire piece give me one line that you feel is most personal to you and why?
K'Naan: The event was in 2001, for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. One of the lines was.. something something "The truth I might say about people with fancy suits like UN high officials to the point I might be sued" something along those lines. But this is important to me because I remember really thinking they might just haul me off stage and put me in jail or something. I get my paranoia from my mother.
illRoots.com Why should we buy your new album?
K'Naan: Because it contains the secrets to eternal life. :) No it doesn't, it's just fresh and dope. So it contains dope. [Laughs]
illRoots.com: What exactly does Troubadour mean to you?K'Naan: Troubadour means to me what Obama means to politics. Sincerity. The album hits hard, uses real instruments, real lyrics, and no auto-tune.
illRoots.com: One track on the album that would be the most representative
of how you feel at this exact moment?
K'Naan: A song called "I come prepared" featuring Damian Marley. Just because I feel like I came through the survival of the fittest, and once you emerge on the other side, it's natural to be prepared.
illRoots.com: Your music is always filled with beautifully sequenced messages reminiscent of Bob Marley with more of a spoken word feel, when you sit down to write and construct these songs do you have a process or what?
K'Naan: My process is really the absence of process. I write to the most discomforting moments, sometimes a melody comes first, sometimes sounds or lyrics. The truth is, I just stay open to what comes, and try to not get in the way of the truth.
illRoots.com: K'Naan is ____________.
K'Naan: the Franz Kafka of Rap.
illRoots.com: It seems to me that the story of your home country of Somalia has always been that of divide and conquer from the times of the Scramble for Africa to more recent times, what are some of the more prominent issues that you feel needs to be focused on in the mainstream?
K'Naan: Well, just that foreign policy in the U.S has been actively diverting any initiative for peace in my country. I would very much hope that the new appointees in Obama's Foreign Policy team,
take an active look at how to undo the harm done by the past. Much in the same way they are trying to address internal affairs, because convenient forgetfulness, is a kind of an injustice in itself.
illRoots.com: With this new album what do you want people to do after listening to it?
K'Naan: Love new music again.
illRoots.com: One word that you feels summarizes your life?
K'Naan: Blessed.
Peace and thank you.
K'naan
