The Philistines (US)
Palestinian-American Hip-Hop for the Masses--fresh beats and conscious, acrobatic lyricism. An underground hip-hop must-have!
Tell me about your history? How did you get where you are now?
The Philistines started thumping beats in their mothers' wombs. They came out rapping, and have been delivering hip-hop for the masses ever since.
The group formed when emcees B-Dub and Ragtop (Palestinian-American brothers who came up in East Tennessee) decided to stop messing around and put out an album. The result, the 17-track Self Defined, is an eclectic blend of beats and tight, conscious lyrics--inspired and informed by the harsh realities facing today's hip-hop community. Along for the ride are beatmestier B.Swisha and the Filipino Filistino, Flip (aka Cookie Jar).
Since the album dropped in October, 2003, the P has performed in shows and benefits from Guatemala to Jersey. The relocation of the group to L.A. and the addition of the infamous DJ Afterwords has sparked a slew of fresh tracks that continue the legacy begun in Self Defined. Strangely, when asked to comment on the album, Afterwords' only response is BUY THE D*MN THING!
Have you performed live in front of an audience? Any special memories?
Yeah, we do shows all over the place--lots of benefits for Palestine and other causes. Ragtop (emcee) once rocked a show in Xela, Guatemala accompanied by a local rock band...
Your musical influences
The Roots, Mos Def, Talib Kweli, Marvin Gaye, Fairuz, Miles Davis, Allman Brothers, Method Man, Madlib, Slum Village, D'Angelo, Common, Self Scientific, Zion I, P-Funk...hm let's see...Jay-Z, Nas, Biggie, Pac, Michael Jackson, the Beatles, Lhasa, 9th Wonder, MF Doom...
What equipment do you use?
Turntables and a microphone...
Anything else?
Our PCs. SoundForge, Vegas, Acid. Reason. Mixers, keyboards, bass guitars, electric guitars, claves, whatever we can bang on (except yo' mama).
