Kendrick Lamar Terrace Martin Talks Complex Controversy, Touring & Possible Kendrick Lamar + D’Angelo Collabo

Started by Ordinary Joel, Nov 25, 2015, in Kendrick Lamar Add to Reading List

  1. Ordinary Joel
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    Ordinary Joel Found a new way to flow

    Nov 25, 2015
    Article Source: okayplayer - http://www.okayplayer.com/news/terr...kendrick-lamar-dangelo-collabo-exclusive.html

    POSTED 14 HOURS AGO BY SLAV KANDYBA

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    The first time that I met Terrace Martin was at his home in a gated community in Porter Ranch, a subdivision of Northridge, itself a neighborhood within the sprawling San Fernando Valley suburb of Los Angeles.

    I was called up by his assistant — an apartment manager by day, dot connect by night — to write Terrace’s bio. As I rode up to the residence, I drove past the gate security and parked where instructed. Lo and behold, Kurupt, one-half of the infamous group,Tha Dogg Pound, was chilling on the stoop. It was a mid-size home and he was chatting with a young lady who could be his daughter. Or s**t, she could’ve been one of Terrace’s kids, the dude has four with his oldest one being 18 at the time.

    For those who aren’t hip to the legend of Terrace Martin, the Locke High School standout was a jazz prodigy who bounced around schools in Los Angeles. Before falling back into his favorite alma mater, Terrace attended Santa Monica High School, eventually returning back to South Central Los Angeles. To be clear, Terrace Martin has led two very interesting, intertwining lives. On one hand, he is the son of a Spanish Harlem-based jazz musician and created an opportunity for himself by working withSnoop Dogg as part of The Snoopadelics at age 16. On the other, he has been closely associated with the best of the best out there in West Coast music from Kendrick Lamar to YG to Problem to Ab-Soul.

    He would perform on stages using a professional horn that he earned from late night talk show legend, Jay Leno, and would go on to produce numerous joints for Snoop and other West Coast artists. This would include the radio hit “Joystick” for the group 213, which featured Snoop Dogg, Warren G and the late, great Nate Dogg. Simultaneously, Terrace put in work in the independent circuit as a rapper and a tenor saxophone player. He helped to place the live band element behind hip-hop music’s biggest stars such as Sean “Puffy” Combs and the aforementioned Snoop Dogg.

    Along the way, Terrace Martin’s dual worlds folded together and that manifested in such a beautiful way that efforts like Locke High, Here, My Dear and 2013’s heralded masterpiece, 3ChordFold placed him on music’s radar before Kendrick Lamar’s To p---- A Butterfly was released earlier this year. Terrace Martin’s choice to work with both underground and independent artists is exemplary. From Murs, who worked with Terrace on the 2011 mixtape Melrose to Ty Dolla Sign and Problem — Terrace Martin is ahead of his time with a futuristic ear that attracts talent.

    All these and other factors enabled Terrace to be a part of the genius band of players who put in work at a pivotal time in Kendrick Lamar’s career, which was piping hot off of the success of the good kid, m.A.A.d. city. Butterfly, billed as the quintessential “unapologetically black” recording, has had robust commercial sales on a limited-but-well-grossing touring schedule. It might not have been the right cup of tea or coffee for the music-and-culture journalism juggernaut known as Complex, most particularlyJustin Charity, but his writing did soundly spark an awakening.

    In having Justin Charity writing this piece, he admirably reached out to Terrace Martin to interview him as a follow-up to his controversial offering titled, “Why Did Everyone Claim to Enjoy Kendrick Lamar’s ‘To p---- A Butterfly’?!”. Throughout the process, Terrace revealed a lot of interesting insights and keen observations of Kendrick, their interactions through creating such an excellent work of art and discussed the influences behind the production of To p---- A Butterfly. So, last week, Okayplayercaught up with the talented multi-instrumentalist at an apartment in West Los Angeles to chop it up about the Complex controversy, touch upon the topic of his touring of Turkey and dovetailed into the highly hyped question about a possible Kendrick Lamar and D’Angelo collabo.

    Okayplayer: You said that you have been to Turkey, can you talk about how the experience of traveling to a place so far outside the U.S. was like?

    Terrace Martin: I was in Istanbul, y’know? And being there there are sorts of beautiful, kind people, who are very loving. There are some very beautiful women there as well. The food is incredible with such amazing spices, and they have a strong appreciation for the Arts.

    OKP: While there did you have Turkish coffee as well?

    TM: Nah, not really. It wasn’t my thing to be honest. But there was definitely some hashish out there that was cool.

    OKP: Speaking of cool, Kendrick Lamar is really out there with his music, right now. The fact that you gave Complex an interview is simply interesting…

    TM: Justin [Charity], yeah, I know that dude. I didn’t know that he wrote the piece that caused all sorts of controversy, but I definitely know that dude.



    OKP: He sparked a very interesting conversation that caused all sorts of thinkpieces to be written around the web…

    TM: That’s what a good writer is supposed to do.

    OKP: Yeah, the piece was very elaborate and even got a reaction from me, like, ‘You’re calling people out for being fans?!” Black Messiah, To p---- A Butterfly were both powerful works of art, you know what I’m talking about?

    TM: Justin is just an individual and he wrote how he felt. He understood what happened when he wrote it and what was the misunderstanding. We all do this within art sometimes. We s---t the gift and we talk it out. His article or op-ed doesn’t make me have an ill feeling — that was just his own opinion.

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    OKP: You’re the man that stepped up and laid that out in the conversation, which I feel is very important to have when dealing with media types.

    TM: I think that it is overwhelmingly important because it is life, armed with twists and turns everywhere. If we gave a f**k what people’s opinions about us really were, then there would never have been a To p---- A Butterfly. The article was on my Facebook so many times and I had my boy hit me telling me, ‘You seen this?’ and then 9th Wonder hit me. If anyone knows him, they know that he’s very much an intellect in hip-hop. 9th has continued to read, study and teach about what he does, that’s why he is such a giant and I regard him as such.

    OKP: The connection between To p---- A Butterfly and Black Messiah is not intentional, but is very impressive. Can you speak about how these two records are tied to one another? Also, which songs from D’Angelo’s album astonished you to produce what you created with Kendrick?

    TM: When people ask about what songs inspired what, I could honestly go down the list. But, more so than the songs, I feel like the album was more than a few colors to me. I pulled from the record pure life. I didn’t pull from just the harmonic aspect, I also pulled from the chord structure. So, to me, mentioning the song would be irrelevant. To me, for To p---- A Butterfly, I saw hues of blue, I saw shades of brown and I definitely felt black. You understand what I’m saying? On the real, To p---- A Butterfly was powered by certain colors that inspired me to create certain things on the record.



    OKP: Could there be an existence where the world and music lovers alike witness these two juggernaut — Kendrick Lamar and D’Angelo — collaborate on a project together?

    TM: As a pure fan of music, anyone would love to see these two guys, D’Angelo and Kendrick Lamar, on a record together. When it comes down to making those decisions, I’m purely a fan, a team-player, so I just sit back and listen to whatever flows through the air. Whenever and however Kendrick and D’Angelo talk to each other, I hope the end result is fruitful and powerful. Hopefully, they say, ‘Hey, man, let’s do our music and call in the troops like James Poyser, like Questlove, like Thundercat, like Sounwave and Terrace Martin.
     
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  2. Ordinary Joel
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    Ordinary Joel Found a new way to flow

    Nov 25, 2015
     
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  3. dkdnfbdjdkdddjdjfvcgfl
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    Nov 25, 2015
    I would definitely look forward to this if it were to happen. While i do miss hearing Kendrick on more conventional sounding production, i don't mind if he continues with this jazzy/funky s---, since he seems to do well with that style too.
    :idk:
    And i'd imagine him & DeAngelo would make a PRETTY good duo.
     
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  4. Posh P
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    Nov 25, 2015
    A Kendrick and D'Angelo collaboration needs to happen. They would compliment each other so well.
     
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  5. FreeAgent
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    FreeAgent Resurrected like Jesus

    Nov 25, 2015
    Haven't heard much of D'Angelo
     
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  6. Jakey
    Posts: 11,334
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    Jakey You Reckon

    Nov 25, 2015
    D'Angelo got that Brown Sugar!!
     
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  7. Ordinary Joel
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    Ordinary Joel Found a new way to flow

    Nov 25, 2015
    His Brown Sugar album (debut album) is awesome imo. Very smooth neo-soul/RnB.

    Favourite track would be Alright or s---, d---, MFer or his cover of Cruisin by Smokey Robinson.

    I still need to listen to Voodoo and Black Messiah but so far I reckon D'Angelo's awesome.
     
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  8. FreeAgent
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    FreeAgent Resurrected like Jesus

    Nov 26, 2015
    Got Brown Sugar ready to bump soon when I get around to it.
     
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  9. shahidah
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    shahidah watch me work it JT

    Nov 26, 2015
    Terrace Martin is a dope individual

    I always enjoy his interviews.
     
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