Above Average

While I touched on this topic in a recent interview, I wanted to go a bit more in-depth on being different than the other artists. The question: what makes you more than just your average rapper?

See, the thing with me is, I record music that I feel like will either connect or I think people will be interested to hear. But for every song you hear from me there's so many more that'll never leave my rhyme book. Music, to me, is more of a passion than a pasttime. It's powerful, provocative, inspirational -- there's so much that music has the power to do. The music in my rhyme books typically act as a personal outlet -- either for creative purposes or theraputic healing. The music I record tends to be music I think will be inspirational, moving, or interesting to others. So Cold is actually the first body of work I've recorded where I didn't really care about an audience per se', but rather, I recorded the type of music that I tend to keep to myself or in my close circle.

But I digress. In regard to the original question, and I talked about this in the recent interview I did, I feel like I approach music in a different way than most people. I'm at the point where I'm confident in my ability to write and record good music, and now I'm trying to actually go to the next level. I want to be on that "classic" level -- not classic like Nas or 'Pac, I mean classic like Michael Jackson or Luther Vandross. It's kind of like the gripe Kanye had recently with winning "Best Album of the Year" versus winning "Best Rap Album of the Year."

There's a fair number of people who are not traditional hip hop fans who enjoy my music because they can relate to it or they can appreciate it, and I feel like my music is getting to the point that it can be appreciated as more than a good "hip hop" song, but rather, a good song. I definitely do not want to stray from the hip hop genre, but I'd like it to be appreciated on a broader scale, without losing my roots.

I have a ways to go before I get to where I'd like to be but I listen to the music I'm making today and the reception I get today versus my older work and there's a clear difference, and that's where I want to be. Not that I can't appreciate my old work, but I feel like time has only made me better.

So how is N. Talekt above average? Well, maybe I'm not -- music is subjective, I won't be in everyone's top 10 :). But I think there are things that make me stand out as an artists. I put a lot of effort and detail into how I write my lyrics -- yes, I still write them -- while musically exploring various types of beats, rhythms, and tactics. My latest release, "Gave My All," is a perfect example. I recorded this on a high-energy, non-hip-hop beat, but I'm amazed at how well the song content (a relationship lost despite my efforts but learning to let go). It brings emphasis on the fact that, while there is an upbeat tempo, the despair is still felt and the instruments actually work.

I don't think it's especially hard for other artists to begin to separate themselves from the masses either, I think it takes first, making music through personal experience, as no one on this earth has lived the life you're living. Second, be comfortable with yourself and confident enough to look at yourself and your music objectively. As I said on "Can I Get Signed?," "only a true artist can paint a self-portrait." Finally, once you're able to do that, dare to venture out of your comfort zone. Find your niche, then expand. Learn. Grow. Don't accept mediocrity, don't be content with complacency. That growth will help you connect with larger audiences, and you'll then reach the tip of the iceburg in regard to wielding the power of music.

N. Talekt