INTERVIEW::
conducted
by
JiZO Jewles
JIZO:
Kiwi and Bambu, were you guys born in the
Phillipines or US? Do you actually both speak
fluent tagalog? And what about you DJ Phatrick?
Where were you born and raised?
DJ PHATRICK
- born and raised in Sugar Land, TX, a suburb of
Houston.
KIWI
- born in Los Angeles Echo Park, raised in
Koreatown/Hollywood. Mom spoke a little tagalog
at home, so I picked a little of it up, enough
to at least include it in some of my lyrics. But
I still need more work.
BAMBU
– I was born in San Diego, raised in the Watts
district of Los Angeles, and now call East
Hollywood home!
JIZO:
What's the exact story behind the name "Native
Guns"? Can you educate us on it?
BAMBU
- The name was originally born by playing off
the name of a 90’s Hip Hop collective, The
Native Tongues. The replacement of the word
Tongues with Guns was done consciously to
properly depict our belief that words can be
powerful weapons. I mean, we can go on for hours
on the analogies and comparisons of words and
projectile weapons, but the bottom line is the
“Native” pays homage and signifies our stance
with the struggles and triumphs of all
indigenous people on the planet, and we do
believe in armed struggle, which is represented
with the “Guns” in the 2-word name of the group.
JIZO:
What kind of music did you guys listen to when
you growing up? Who were your favorite artists
back then?
KIWI
- Michael Jackson to Hip Hop to Alternative Rock
& Punk back to Hip Hop: The Fat Boys, RUN DMC,
Doug E Fresh & Slick Rick, Roxanne Shante,
Whodini, Kurtis Blow, Ice-T, BDP, De La Soul,
NWA, Ice Cube, D.O.C, Low Profile, Public Enemy,
Eric B & Rakim, X-Clan, Paris, Kwame, Poor
Righteous Teachers, YZ, Queen Latifah, A Tribe
Called Quest, Jungle Brothers, Black Sheep, the
Pharcyde, Souls of Mischief, Freestyle
Fellowship, and yes, MC Hammer! The emergence of
Nas was a definitive time as well.
BAMBU
– I was a huge “Gangster Rap” fan. I stayed up
to speed on all the new releases from N.W.A.,
Compton’s Most Wanted, South Central Cartel,
Above The Law, Spice 1, etc. But, my favorite
artists growing up, meaning the cats who never
let me down were Ice Cube and The D.O.C. When I
heard The D.O.C’s first album, I decided then
and there that I wanted to write rhymes. Then,
when I heard Ice Cube’s “Death Certificate”
album, I knew that I would die engulfed in this
music.
JIZO:
Two of you are former
L.A gang bangers. Were there any particular
event(s) in your life that made you want to
change your life and dedicate yourselves
entirely to Hip Hop music? (kiwi & bambu)
KIWI
- I can't really say I ever wanted to get into
gangs in the first place, except there was
nothing else to do and all the homies I grew up
with were all banging. I was resistant pretty
much the whole time. So when I found something
"cool" (hip hop) that I could shift my identity
and energy towards, it wasn't that hard of a
transition really. What really set it off was
when my homeboy Russell got killed. Of all the
homies that we lost, he was the closest to me,
and it made all that drama real. It made me
really reevaluate my life and purpose.
BAMBU
- My change began with the murder of my cousin,
Frankenstein, who I idolized and held in such
great esteem. When they murdered him, in front
of me no less, the wheels in my head started to
make the little questions become big questions…
I could’ve gone the other way, and let my anger
take over, but instead, I questioned the
validity of what we were fighting for.
JIZO:
What about DJ
Phatrick; what made you want to become a DJ?
DJ Phatrick: When I was about 16 or 17, my older brother would go to his
friend’s house who had a cdj setup and would
come back with these mixtapes. Hearing them, I
was amazed at the art of blending and
beatmatching, falling in love with the art of
djing. At the same time, there was this wack dj
crew who had all the community parties on lock,
but had no real dj skills! In response, me and
my homie, Jeff aka Kid Stylez started our own
crew. Using a cheap Numark mixer and cd
walkmans, we had to find songs with the same
tempo and mix them. From there we moved on to
some cdjs and then to turntables. The rest is
history.
JIZO:
What is the grass-root movement? How do you go
about incorporating it in your music?
KIWI
- Well, the "grass-root movement" can be alot of
things, but as it relates to us and our music,
we're essentially talking about those
marginalized and disenfranchised folks who are
tired of being exploited at some messed up job,
tired of being pushed out their communities
cause of some rich dude wants to build a
market-rate condos in their neighborhood, tired
of getting a low-quality education where they
don't even learn about their own history... and
who are ready to learn about and take action to
create real positive change for themselves and
their families.
JIZO:
Did you or do you
have any mentors or role models?(kiwi and bambu)
BAMBU
– My earliest mentors were considered the
“wrong” mentors -- Older gang members or older
family members who intrigued me because they
were considered “bad apples.” I listened to them
very closely, because most of their advice
geared me into “survival” mode. I also found the
secrecy, discipline and codes to be very
alluring. A man named, Earl White eventually
found his way into my life and woke me up.
Through cultural appreciation and the study of
history in regard to people of color in this
country, he was able to start me on the path I’m
on now. Also, Fidel Rodriguez, of Divine Forces
Radio really geared me up into the world of
organizing in the community and helped me aim my
art in the right direction.
KIWI
- I can't say I really had any personal mentors
or role models. I didn't have a dad and my
mother was always working. So I learned alot of
stuff by emulating folks on the street or trying
to mimic my favorite emcee. Some of it worked
out okay, some of it didn't. As I've gotten
older, I've discovered elders such as Bill Sorro
(long-time organizer and I-Hotel Activist) and
Al Robles (community poet) who've treated me
like a son and shared their experience and
wisdom with me.
JIZO:
What are your reasons
for being now so actively engaged in community?
KIWI
- There's almost no other choice. Our
communities are under attack constantly, so we
have an obligation, especially after we learn
the TRUTH, to take action, to be advocates and
organizers and do whatever we can to protect and
fight for our folks.
BAMBU
– If you TRULY see what goes on in our
communities and with our people here in this
country and it’s relation to all the atrocities
happening right now around the world – how could
you not?
JIZO:
What do you expect listeners to get out of
"Barrel Men" CD?
KIWI
- I think Barrel Men offers a good balance of
bangin' beats, quality lyrics, a variety of
styles and concepts, and critical content. I
think we also did a pretty good job of making
the music easier to digest than your typical
"political" rap album.
JIZO:
Is there anything
specific that you would like people to know
either about you or your work?
KIWI:
I think that the process in creating Barrel Men
was crazy. From the fact that Bambu & I live 300
miles away from each other, to just our own
personal growth both politically and personally.
it's a testament to what we're about and what we
stand for that we got this album done.
JIZO:
What was the biggest
challenge for you at the beginning of your
career? (kiwi and bambu)
KIWI:
Finding a space to express myself. I think it's
a lot different now, but back when I was trying
to get started, it was hard for a young Filipino
dude to be taken seriously or be given a chance
trying to rap. Add that with my own issues being
shy and all, man, it was a struggle. Thankfully
I found some open mics and other spots that were
open and that let me just do my thing, whether I
came off wack or not.
BAMBU – Well, as far as the craft of
emceeing, the biggest challenge for me was
trying to find my own style. I found early on in
my career that I was very easily influenced by
whatever music I was listening to at the time.
Once I started to actually record my songs,
dissect them, and find my “footing,” my distinct
style was born.
JIZO:
Do you have any
advice for younger Asian American rappers?
BAMBU
- As cliché as it may sound, just be yourself.
You know who you are – be true to that.
Recognize that there are bigger things than rap
music, learn about your surroundings (socially,
politically, emotionally, etc.) and give
yourself something to write about. Pay homage to
this art that was created by young Black and
Brown youth, and give your music a true
expression of you – which is what this art was
created to do in the first place: give us a
voice. Oh, and don’t get it twisted, this is a
Black art, so please don’t go around saying that
you make “Asian Hip Hop.”
JIZO:
What's been your
biggest challenge as a hip hop group?
DJ PHATRICK - The biggest challenge as group has been trying to maintain a
music career while juggling full time jobs and
community work AND working across three cities
(LA, SF, and Oakland).
JIZO:
What do you want
today's youth to learn from music?
BAMBU
- Music is the sound and expression of an
artist, or group of artists. Remember that these
are human beings with individual opinions and
flaws. Youth need to learn how to maintain a
critical ear when listening to music. Don’t
believe everything people say on their rhymes,
but, at the same time don’t close your mind to
the music because of how “real” an emcee is.
Music is entertainment, it’s art. Be able to
separate your enjoyment of art with the hype
surrounding it. Just because an artist is famous
doesn’t mean he’s a talented musician, and vice
versa. Separate fame and skills. Enjoy the
music and let it evoke whatever emotion comes.
JIZO:
How does the
relationship between you and your local
communities impact or inform your music?
KIWI
- I think it keeps us accountable by making sure
that we're not just around during shows and
performances, but in our everyday lives. By not
only seeing but also experiencing the stuff our
communities go through, we can really do justice
to that experience and that struggle. And
essentially it keeps us from ever turning our
backs on them.
NATIVE
GUNS consists of California-bred, Filipino MCs
KIWI and BAMBU, who have been doing
work together since 2002, combining their love for
music & word with their love for community and their
commitment to turning the system upside down. They
have rocked crowds all over California as well as
New York City, Seattle, Chicago, Boston, Florida,
and Vancouver with their fearless mix of
hard-hitting beats, machine-gun lyricism, and
unapologetic critical content. 
