Liberator 5.2
The Art, Business and Politics of M-1 International.
words: David McDuffie
 

Mutulu Olugabala has been known to the music industry as M-1 of dead prez. Today, after traveling the world, maturing and preparing to embark on his solo career, he is M-1 International. Since his entry into the game, M-1 International has grown to recognize the responsibility of his words and their impact on his culture. Take a glimpse into the mind of M-1 International with The Liberator and find out what inspires him to create music.            

Many have lamented that, "Revolutionaries don’t rap." These individuals obviously do not know much about M-1 International and the life he leads outside of rap as Mutulu Oluabala. His days of organizing with the International Peoples Democratic Uhuru Movement, under the tutelage of Chairman Omali (labeled as the world's leading revolutionary theorist) has lead M-1 to a place of "overstanding" that he has a role to play in the struggle for liberation of African People worldwide. As an organizer in the Uhuru Movement, M-1 has been on the front line of many social issues, including the fight for reparations, the demand to end police brutality, the freeing of political prisoners and the linking of Blacks and Browns across the globe to yield their political power.

Considering himself an African Internationalist--a phrase coined by Chairman Omali--M-1 sees no boundary on his African mind. As he attempts to be "one of the strongest brothers or sons out of the revolution" he feels that "we have to use hip-hop as a weapon." His years of organizing coupled with his ability to tune his ear to the pulse of the people and understand what type of sounds they are listening to, has served as ample ammunition to produce musical hits such as "Hip-Hop," "Turn off the Radio" and "Psychology." Songs like these and others recorded by dead prez had many labeling him and his partner stic.man "conscious rappers."

M-1 has struggled with the term in part because he feels it has created a divide between rappers such as himself, Common, Talib Kweli and rappers like Twista or 50 Cent, when in reality they "live in the same community and suffer the same dangers from the same enemies." In addition to that, "the reason that I have struggles with the term conscious is that it would imply that there are unconscious people, true, there may be some in the world but when you are talking about hip hop music you are talking about some of the most informed people that there are and they are conscious of exactly what their interest are. So they are very conscious." For M-1, it's not about conscious or unconscious but rather where the rappers' interests lie.

M-1's interest in hip-hop rests in part on the need of the "makers and owners" of hip-hop to take control of it. "Hip-hop is our economic development. We are at a disadvantage because we can't take control of the money that hip-hop generates in this economy and in the world's economy." M-1's interest in the industry and political point of view "doesn’t allow the media to unite" with them being that the media are "the legs and arms of the ruling class" that he seeks freedom from. This is fine with M-1 because he accepts that as part of doing his job. He sees his actions as contributing to the opening of a pipeline that up-and-coming rappers like Saigon, The DAYand K'naan, a refugee from Somalia living in Canada who is featured on M's debut album, will need in order to serve in the game.

M-1s forthcoming solo debut entitled "Confidential" is guaranteed to kick down doors like police raids for all up-and-coming emcees that are focused on using hip-hop as a tool of the revolution. The album is sure to push the creative envelope and redefine what it means to be a revolutionary emcee. The title, "Confidential" is inspired by the term given to top secret documents that the U.S. government compiled against people in the Black and Brown community. Currently you can catch M-1 on tour with Ghostface in a hood near you. To get more info on M-1 International and dead prez you can link with M-1 on his Myspace page or via bossupbu.com