Poe Picasso Interview

Above we have Poe Picasso standing in front of a Picasso.
Anyway, I'm going to be posting a write-up of his tape Exhibit A: The Real Hip Hop Project in the next few hours. And trust, once you hear the tape, you'll want to know more about dude, so here is an interview the late HHHead did with Poe:

1. Gotta start it off with the usual. For those who don’t know much about Poe Picasso, can you provide a brief rundown?

Poe Picasso is a hip-hop artist representing Brooklyn as the new face for New York and hip-hop music in general.

2. Exhibit A was dope. Was there an overall message you were trying to get across with it, or were you just trying to get your name out?

Well first and foremost, thanks for taking the time out to at least give the music a chance. Well honestly Exhibit A wasn’t a tool for me to push a name with at all. Not once in the process of recording, did a thought like “yea this shit bout to put my on” cross my mind. In actually “Exhibit A” was exactly what the title intended it be, a “project”.

The overall message that I wanted to convey with this project was that, their were still real artist making age defying “hip-hop music”. Take in account that I began writing Exhibit A in circa 06′-07′ where the topic of discussion was primarily “hip-hop is dead”, so in writing Exhibit A the whole premise of the project was to experiment with real hip-hop music. That’s evident in the production that I choose as backdrops for the pictures I was paintings stemming from J Dilla & Hi-Tek to my own producers “JonnyGo “The Problem Child” & The Architect”. What I mainly wanted to get across was there were still artist “from New York” who had a passion for the art form itself and took their crafts seriously. That was the overall message of the project while still touching upon certain issues such as: politics, ignorance, the economy, global warming, war and many of others while keeping a gritty hip-hop sound which was always associated with. “Real Hip-Hop”!

3. When it comes to music, Who or what were your main inspirations?

For inspiration I would mainly turn to where I grew up, which is Brooklyn. I take everything as inspiration from daily life situations we deal with such as: Work, Unemployment, School, Debt, Street Temptation, Women, Pregnancy, Sex, Relationships, Drug Use, Party Life, Fashion, and everything I see and deal with when I step outside of my crib. Another form of inspiration comes from Movies that I love like Paid in Full & Boomerang, books that I read like Prince of Foxes & Lord Of Rings, Comic Books, Music, Japanese Anime & Manga, Sports, and anything that involves some kind of thought.

4. How did you come up with your name?

Originally I went by another name Poe.it Da Prophet. I dropped the “.it Prophet” part because I thought that shit was wack and wouldn’t look good on anything that would be publicly seen. I felt that the name had a heavy religious undertone so I dropped it and kept Poe. I kept “Poe” solely because of Edgar Allen Poe who was a prolific American writer and “Alpo” because I love Paid In Full. I felt that part would suit me because I always aspired to be a great writer and make a whole lot of money at the same time. It wasn’t until a close friend of mine came up with the Picasso part, because he used to call himself “Marvel Da Vinci”. So one day he just said “Poe Picasso” because both of our names ended with a famous painter/artist. So from that day I adopted the Picasso part. Poe being from Edgar Allen Poe and Picasso coming from the famous artist Pablo Picasso, I was a writer where my words were vivid enough to envision as if you were seeing everything I was saying. Poe Picasso!

5. You’re currently working on Exhibit B, do you have any other projects in the works?

Yea actually I’m in the midst of the second installment Exhibit B: Manifest Destiny. I have a few other projects but the names are too ill to disclose! Fuck around see my shit on the some big name artists’ record, you know how that goes. But I definitely have other projects in the works, one of which is already completed, but that’s between me and you! What I can say is that 2009 and beyond are going be some good years for hip-hop music & music as a whole.

6. What artists/songs/albums do you currently have on heavy rotation?

That’s a cool question because anyone who knows me always ask me “Poe what chu rockin to” because they know my taste in music is ridiculous. As of now I’m really abusing “Mixtape About Nothing” which was Wale’s recent release, my favorite joint on their has to be between “Artistic Integrity & Vacation From Ourselves. I got a lot of Chromeo on deck “Fancy Footwork” my favorite song on their, has to be “Opening Up”. I kill that Chromeo album I swear it reminds me of 80s Scarface club music. I been on “My Dedication II” 06′ Lil Wayne that was my dude. I always have some Pac in the equation whether it’s in the car or the iPod, some old school “Jigga Jay-z and Bigga Baby”! I have my dance hall and cultural reggae music that’s just a Brooklyn thing, Lastly some jams from The Dream, The SOS Band, Maroon 5, Ne-Yo, SWV, New Edition and Mary J. I kid you not I just looked at the different playlist on my iPod. At this very moment I’m listening to “Be” by Common.

7. How would you define your style?

It’s kind of hard to define my style but I’ll try. I feel I’m a good mix of New York Hip-Hop with a progressive and a mainstream twist. A little bit of everything because I draw my style from a lot of places. Honestly it really depends on the feel of my production that day. “Sometimes I rhyme slow sometimes I rhyme quick” Nice & Smooth couldn’t put that line any better.

8. If you had you own label, what would it be called, and who would be the first to get signed?

If I told you I had a name for my label that would be a lie because I always change them. But when I do get the name it would have to be something universal that wouldn’t just limit me to music, and the first artist I would sign to that label would have to be Colin Munroe. I like his energy and he knows his craft.

9. Is there anything specific that makes a beat stand out to you?

Being that I’m always around two great producers, you could say my ear is extremely refined and spoiled. What grabs my attention in beats whether its sample based or original, are the drums. “Sorry I’m just a sucker for good drums”. But the mix on them has be super crispy too because that can make or break good drums from great drums. Like that Cool Kids joint “Black Mags” for example, the drums were mixed so good the snares sounded flawless. One other important thing that attracts me is if the beat conveys emotion. Does it make me happy, sad, fight, dance, cry, aroused, or just feel cool groove? That’s really important for the beats I choose to use. A beat needs to have a story to it behind it feel me!

10. What can we expect from you in the future?

Well you could expect a lot of me but not too much of me to the point I exhaust the listeners. Look out for Exhibit B: Manifest Destiny “Certified Classic” on HHHead.com mark my words. “Save that line for me so you could use it against me if the tape is otherwise”. Mmh also look forward to some new singles and videos from ya boy and some very interesting joint ventures that are in the works. The debut album isn’t coming any time soon but I already have 24 joints for it and have a lot of music that will be available pretty soon. Expect to see alot of innovation in the way music is distributed to the listeners and just look out for the name Poe Picasso. Exhibit A: “The Real Hip-Hop Project” free download on www.myspace.com/Poepicasso and its also on the one and only www.HHHead.com. Check that out and stay tuned. “Brooklyn What Up”.

HHHead.com thanks for having me

Till next time you guys over their keep it official.

One EZ