With a new album set to release in the early part of next year, Common Market continues to breathe air underneath the wings of the Seattle music scene. Comprised of Beacon Hill dweller and University of Washington alum, Sabzi - who acts as the duo's producer and DJ - and emcee RA Scion - who's called nearly every corner "home" at one point or another - the duo returns to Bumbershoot this weekend for the second straight year.
In what RA Scion calls an homage to the "value of labor and strong work ethic," Common Market will debut some of their new sounds on Saturday at the Esurance Stage. Just 52 Saturdays ago, Common Market stood atop the Bumbrella Stage just outside Memorial Stadium with a blistering sun at their backs and a newly-released LP to showcase. This year, new challenges stare Common Market square in the face: a heavy cult following and weighty expectations. I had a chance to sit down with the lyrical half of Common Market before just a few days before his early evening set.
What's the show going to be like this year?
It's certainly not all new material. There will be a medley of some new songs, so people will get an idea of what the new album will sound like. I think that we owe that to the people who are coming out to see us. But then, of course, there are the Common Market staple songs too. Everyone wants to hear "Connect Four." It's a great song, but I think I know how some other groups might feel, you know, when Jimmy Buffett steps on stage and does "Margaritaville." Its like, 'Wow, have I played this song a million times, or what?' But everyone wants to hear it. That's what they know you by. So, I give it to the fans, because it's what they want.
How do you think you guys fit into the Seattle hip-hop scene?
I think that we have a pretty broad demographic of fans. But the largest group that makes up our fan base, are people that are like, 'You know, I never really liked hip-hop music until I heard you guys, and now I love hip-hop.' They don't really know anything about hip-hop. Nothing. They were exposed to hip-hop through Common Market and now they might know Common Market, Blue Scholars, Gabriel Teodros, maybe Macklemore, you know, local hip-hop.
Cancer Rising...
Yeah, Cancer Rising. Then they'll start to [laughs] "open up," and then they'll get into Common and Talib [Kweli]. So we kind of get lumped into this category of, you know, the conscious rappers, or whatever. And then there are other people within the scene, whether it's in Seattle or nationally, or even abroad, who feel like we're not an accurate representation of the Seattle hip-hop sound. Personally, I don't know how you would justify us not being representative of that sound. We make music in Seattle, therefore, it's Seattle hip-hop. Right? But whether or not people want us to be the representatives of Seattle hip-hop, we're not standing out in the forefront saying, 'Yo! Everyone pay attention to us, this is what Seattle hip-hop sounds like.'
What do you think that is that everyone anticipates a Seattle hip-hop artist to sound like?
Well, I don't know. I don't think it's very fair for anybody to expect that we should be so homogenized. I mean, to some extent, you might say that Houston rap has a particular sound. Or that Atlanta rap has a certain sound. But I would hate to be an artist in either one of those cities, and feel that my music had to sound like the people making music out of those cities. I would want to have the creative liberty as an artist to be able to make the kind of music that I want to make, and if it sounds like the next dude, who was the first to rep that city, then it does. If it doesn't, it doesn't.
Seattle has this label as the town that gave life to grunge music. Lately, it seems that hip-hop music is becoming more popular. Where do you think Seattle hip-hop fits in with the national movement?
I didn't move to Seattle until January of 2001. Which was a long time after the grunge thing came and went. So I wasn't around when Seattle really established their musical identity on a national level. I think in terms of where we fit in the national music industry is as strictly independent driven [artists]. There's really nobody here making hip-hop music that's signed to a major label. There's nobody here that's putting on videos on a regular basis. To a large extent, that does give us more creative freedom because, like we had touched on before, when you have three or four acts that blow up out of a city that have established this one particular sound, or this image, then a lot of people feel like they have to conform to that. We don't have that in Seattle. That might be one of the reasons why people are so afraid that Blue Scholars and Common Market will be the first - I don't mean to say the first... I mean the latest - to really represent Seattle on a national level, because they don't like the way that we sound or the way that we look or the things that we talk about. It's not like I'm having trouble understanding where they're coming from - I fully understand it, I'm just not down with it.
What do you look forward to when you're playing at Bumbershoot - a place that's been your home for the past six years? It's getting to be quite a big deal. I remember going when it was damn near free. It's $35 a day now. It's not this little Seattle festival anymore, really.
Well, I think you're right. It is a big deal. I think as an artist, you have to be fair to the people who have paid such ridiculous prices for the tickets. You have to give them a good show. I can't really respect an artist that says, 'Oh, Bumbershoot's not really a big deal. It's just another show.' [Laughs]. Even if Sabzi says that. I don't care who says it, you have to understand that it's a music festival. People are coming there to hear music, to see the artists perform it live and you owe it to the fans to put on a good show. That's where I'm at, mentally, with it. I fully intend on putting on the best show I can put on. But you never know who's in the crowd is the thing, man. I just found out recently, when we were talking about playing Bumbershoot again to this one lady, and she was like, 'Yeah, I was there last year,' and we were like 'Oh, really? Did you know that we played?' and she said, 'Yeah, I came to the set, but there was an awful lot of cursing, and I had a five-year-old with me, so we had to leave.' So, I guess, you really have to put it all into context and understand that it's not our typical Chop Suey show. When we play a show for three or four - even five - hundred people, generally, those people have come because they're very familiar with our music, right? They've come to see us. I think they know there's going to be cursing in the set. They know that there's going to be sharp political criticism in the set. When you play a show like Bumbershoot, a lot of people are seeing you for the first time. A lot of people are seeing you by accident. They just happen to be there. They didn't necessarily come to see you. To that extent, I have to be a little bit more respectful that we're making a first impression on some people. That's been important for me to learn. I can't be up there saying, 'F*** this. F*** that,' even though I might feel that way. Some people aren't ready for that yet.
What do you want your first impression to be?
Wow. That really is a tough question. I want people to understand that this is hip-hop music. We experiment with some different stuff. Like the "Come Together" cover we did over the Beatles. That's slightly different. I hope to start the set this year with a rendition of "War Pigs," that song by Black Sabbath. You know, which is obviously political in nature, but it's hip-hop over classic rock. [Laughs] Which is the kinda s*** that I like. Like, I think that's hot. That appeals to a different type of fan, right? The first impression that I'd like to make on those folks, is that, 'Look, this is hip-hop music, and this is how it's tied together with other genres of music.' Or, 'This is how the synergy of music works.' But at the end of the day, I really hope that the first impression is, 'Oh. That's hip-hop.' And, to me, it is. Like, people can argue all day long that they want more hood in their hip-hop. That's fine. You can find it. Maybe they want less cursing in their hip-hop. Fine, you can find that too. But, I think that the first impression on people who've never heard us before, is like, 'Ahh, yeah. That's what hip-hop is about.'
Check out Common Market on Saturday, September 1, during Bumbershoot this weekend. They'll be performing from 7:30-8:15 p.m. on the Fisher Green Stage. Single-day passes to Bumbershoot are $35. For more information, visit www.bumbershoot.org.
Central Area writer Josh Sabrowsky may be reached via editor@sdistrictjournal.com.[[In-content Ad]]
