We Speak to Hip Hop Veterans The Pharcyde

PUBLISHED July 1st, 2015 04:00 pm | UPDATED March 27th, 2016 03:01 pm

Starting off as a dance group in South Central Los Angeles in the 1980s, the Pharcyde became one of the influential groups in the ‘Golden Age’ of Hip Hop. With former members Fatlip and Slimkid3 having gone solo, still-standing members Bootie Brown and Imani are still going strong with The Pharcyde brand of music. With a one-gig only performance at the Kilo Lounge in Singas recently, we were psyched to have caught up with Bootie Brown and Imani to chat about the Lion City, their performance philosophy, and their plans after this Asian tour.

“Hip hop is a state of mind”, said Imani, when we asked for his thoughts on his musical career. Released in 1993, Bizarre Ride II the Pharcyde is the group’s first album and remains one of the most influential alternative hip hop albums of that decade. A wide-smiled Imani looks over at Brown and continues, “Hip Hop has been very good to me” as Brown agrees with a nod. The duo also shared some of their favorite artists at the moment, “D’Angelo has some cool stuff, we listen to him a lot and Mona Lisa, well, she’s a staple of hip hop in L.A.”

Their live performance was a mix of their classics and fresh tracks. Passin’ Me By was definetely a crowd favourite as the crowd sang along to the lyrics comedically recounting boyhood crushes. It was clear to anyone at the performance that Imani and Bootie Brown really were in ‘the hip hop state of mind’ as their delivery was flawless and their dance moves were totally in sync with the lyrics. “It’s about everyone having a good time. Enjoying themselves, that’s what we want”, said Brown with regards to performing.

When asked about their impression of Singapore, Imani shared, “I like it; it’s different from what I thought. It’s like Tokyo meets Florida. It has the heat of Miami”. The duo also enjoyed a meal at Kilo Kitchen which they described as delicious, specifically referring to the Squid Ink Rice, a sumptious rice dish complete with baby squid, salmon roe and garlic aoili. As for plans after their Asian tour (they’ve also performed in Bali, Tokyo, and Seoul), Brown and Imani chimed in together, ‘Studio life. We have inspiration and we will formulate when we get home.’

Met with great enthusiasm (Kilo Lounge was packed to the rafters!), The Pharcyde’s high-energy performance paired with awesome visuals featuring clips of their music videos – such as ‘Drop’ directed by the legendary Spike Jonze – just goes to show that Imani and Bootie Brown have still got it.

All images are from Kilo Lounge.