After the incredible success of their 2013 reunion show at Coachella, Jurassic Five are bringing their old-school hip hop vibes down under to Bluesfest.
Emcee Marc 7 explains how J5 fits right in at the predominantly blues and roots music festival. “I'm not heavily into the blues, but you know, we've done enough with different crowds. From doing the Lollapalooza tour and punk rock, we've done the Fiona Apple tour, Dave Matthews – pretty much anybody because we're confident with what we do. We'll see if we can get wild. We're more than up for the challenge.”
From Coachella to Bluesfest, Jurassic 5 are festival veterans. But for emcees Akil, Zaakir, Marc 7, Chali 2na and DJs Nu-Mark and Cut Chemist, J5 have always been about the live show. “They [live shows] have always been important to hip hop artists, because that was our calling card. Now the label puts [artists] on the road because they get money from it. I've watched it before; I've been in the game for a while,” Marc 7 says.
“I've seen where artists don't want to tour – where the artists didn't really talk to the fans, they would just jump off stage and go back to the hotel. It was only until their pockets started to get affected and now suddenly it's all about the fans. A lot of them are [touring] just because they have to do it, because that's where the money is at for them. But we've been doing it and loving it from the beginning – from the inception.”
A few years after J5 split in 2007, the group's manager persuaded the group to catch up with each other. “It was actually the manager at the time that we had. He got us all together in a small hotel room in Hollywood and we really vibed that day. We kind of felt each other and we talked about the tension of us getting back together, and you know, the stars aligned man. Once the practices were going good and the vibe started coming back, we we're like 'yeah – it's time'. When we did the Coachella show and it went over so well, we just knew.”
Despite tension between the group at the time of their split, the time apart gave each of the members a chance to spend time with family and work on other creative projects. “We had been doin' J5 for years upon years – we needed a break from each other. The way we went about it I didn't agree with but we needed it. You know what I mean?
“At the time it was difficult with family, I had my baby girl and I wanted to see her learn to walk and talk but I didn't really get a chance to see her through her baby stage.”
When it comes to popular music of today, Marc 7 admits the current chart toppers can be frustrating. “As far as popular music goes – it honestly just seems like anything gets called dope. There is a lot of stuff that is just wack but people like it … Just because something has a good beat with just one word being said over and over does not make it hot to me.
"But I'm cut from a different cloth, you know what I mean? I'm from the era of Chuck D and KRS One, Big Daddy Kane and Rakim – those are my idols. Those are the people that I looked up to. The lyricism as well as the music, and that's just not the case anymore. It is what it is, but I think hip hop as a whole has taken a hit. It's kind of dumbed down a bit. Actually it's dumbed down a lot.”
Jurassic 5 fans have been eagerly awaiting new material from the group since their 2014 single, 'The Way We Do It'. “In the pipeline right now actually, there's a documentary that we're working on for J5 and it's about us getting back together, culminating in the Coachella show. There's also a special re-release coming out soon, so we're looking to get either one of them out this year.”
The members of Jurassic 5 are looking forward to their upcoming Australian tour. “We're lookin' forward to coming out there – it's gonna be a blast. I remember, I think it was last time, we were in New Zealand – we were in Christchurch and I was like, 'yo, why does it look so bad out here?' I had just found out that there was this really big earthquake recently. One of the things that people told me was that a lot of artists don't come down here anymore and we're really glad that you came.
“We had to do a show in this tent, but this tent was like 2,500 kids packed tightly with the craziest energy – it was incredible. The same in Perth and Adelaide – the appreciation for the music is what keeps us jumping on a plane and coming out here. It just a good vibe.
“When you go outside of the United States, it's a whole other beat. I tell a lot of other artists that. It's a big world. Stop trying to just do something in the United States because there's a whole other world out there man. They think to get anywhere in the United States you have to be on the radio. They want you to believe that. There is a whole world out there and this is just one piece of the puzzle.”
Written by Matthew Sales
Jurassic 5 Tour Dates
Thu 26 Mar - Panthers (Newcastle)Fri 27 Mar - Waves (Wollongong)
Sat 28 Mar - Enmore Theatre (Sydney)
Sun 29 Mar - West Coast Blues & Roots Festival (Perth)
Wed 1 Apr - Festival Hall (Melbourne)
Thu 2 Apr - Bluesfest (Byron Bay)
Sat 4 Apr - The Tivoli (Brisbane)
Sun 5 Apr - Bluesfest (Byron Bay)
