SKI
Back From Hiatus
The task of keeping a level head in every day society is a battle even the strong and mentally healthy struggle with. Pain, regret, and remorse are all part of the human experience; how you cope determines whether you conquer the mountain or get buried underneath it, whether you let life's trials strengthen or weaken you. SKI (aka Fatski) is one of those unique individuals who weathers the storm with utmost clarity, an artist who creates on his own terms while staying grounded through life's ups and downs. We here at Earwaks recently sat down with this underground legend, who addresses his struggles as an artist, and the state of Hip Hop in the Greater Toronto Area.
What is the significance of the video we're seeing here?
I guess I'll start out by saying RIP to my man Matic. Basically, me and my man we were supposed to do a joint, and a mutual friend of ours was like "you guys should smash something out". At that time, I was unaware that he had been battling an illness for two years, and when I found out it blew me away. Early that morning, I woke up, sat underneath a tree [smiles], and wrote that rhyme really thinking about him and the energy I wanted to bring to the song so that we could transfer it back and forth. A mutual friend of ours sent me a beat for us to do it on and I originally wrote the rhyme to it. At the time, I was working on a beat that was in the in-between stages, and my daughter came in the room and pressed a note on the keyboard. I don't know what happened, whether the key stuck or something, but the note just kept repeating and it sounded pretty fly. I sampled it, chopped it up, and recorded two versions -- one I had been working on which was what was going on in the atmosphere at the time, as well as recording to my man's beat which I originally wrote the song too. Sadly, my man did not get the opportunity to get on the beat, but really the whole rhyme was inspired by him.
Everybody involved in the hip hop scene in Toronto knows who you are and respects you for what you do. Why doesn't the rest of the world not know who you are yet?
Probably because I've been undertaking a somewhat self-imposed hiatus from performing for the last seven years. Also, compared to most artists, I don't have the same catalog of released material. Back in the day, it was really all about rocking, going places, battling, growing your rep, always putting it down where ever you were. I've been doing that since I was single digits going into double digits. There was a point where I was doing a lot of shows, then a combination of reasons made me fall back from performing. In a way it is flattering to come to the realization that people know who I am and remember me after not being out there for so long. Its amazing.
What happened in that seven years, why did you decide to take the hiatus?
Again, it was a combination of things. I released my first album around the same time as when my son was born. Naturally, having my first child and becoming a Father changed my whole Universe, so that was a contributing factor. It's not like I ever considered divorce from any sort of artistic endeavor, you have to exercise that portion of your brain regardless. I would never consider not rhyming or making music. Around that time we achieved a considerable success with the release of the Nautilus record. The folks that were around helped us achieve that success, but the machine kind of fell apart around me and really left me handicapped in a way. It took a while to regroup and become self-sufficient.
Do you think that made you stronger as an artist?
Of course, because ultimately I would of had to develop those skills, but at that time I really had no choice.
You recorded a track with Obie Trice what was that experience like?
It was cool man, it was a lot of fun. I got linked up with Obie through my man Moss. All of Obie's first records were produced by Moss. It was right after we had released our first record, so we talked to Moss and sent Obie the beat. Then, me, Naut, and Moss went out to the D and recorded the majority, did the touch-ups here. It was suppose to be the b-side to our second release, but then as I said the machine fell apart. A couple years later, my man Tweez was like "yo man, whatever happened to that track" and I gave it to him and he put it out on the Internet. I gave it to DJ Grouch and he put it on a mix tape. A lot of people had heard about it and not heard it, but it was out there in a limited capacity. "Chump" is what its called, and now a days with the Internet you can pretty much find anything, so its out there. It was a good experience.
In comparison between hip hop then and now, what do you personally feel the art form needs in this day and age?
Overall, I would say content, BUT part of being an MC is being a professional shit talker [laughs]. It's not what you say, but how you say it. One side is, just say it fly. The other side is that there are so many issues that can be discussed and thrown out into the stream of consciousness that aren't being addressed. Again, the other side is that not everyone can be at the same place at the same time. That's one of the main things for me, I feel like the variety of content or people expressing a more dynamic reality isn't there. Everybody's into different things, but we tend to project a one-dimensional reality in hip hop today. Maybe it's because people's attention spans are short, or because it's easier to digest, but life is dynamic. It takes a lot to get to that place where you're truly expressing yourself, being open and vulnerable, putting yourself in that position where you're under the scrutiny of others. I think that's what is required when rhyming or producing to really up the ante, you know what I mean.
Are there any artists in TO that are pushing those boundaries?
Of course. Vocally, you've got a Kamau or K-os, Theology 3, Promise. Don't get me wrong, there are a lot of artists pushing the limits. All across the board, the overall spectrum of artists pushing the boundaries -- whether its production, lyrics, engineering, videos -- the bar is being set higher and higher. People might look at that as over saturation, but I think its a good thing. I would prefer people spending their time pursuing artistic endeavors just on the basis of exercising the right side of their brain. We live in a society where there is a large imbalance; we live in a society where we have to deal with a one dimensional left-brain thinking. They're cutting the arts in the school system and as such, kids don't even have music class anymore. Whether you paint, sculpt, make music, or rap, everything's an art. The way you walk down the street is an art. When it comes to what we identify as the Arts in this day and age, as long as people are exercising that portion of their brain, I think that's a good thing.
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