Run the Jewels is the foster child of two veteran hip-hop artists, combining the literary flows of the underground scenes of New York and Atlanta. The group consists of two members, El-P, a rapper and producer based out of Brooklyn, and Killer Mike, an Atlanta artist, and actor. It all began when the two first met in 2011 and began collaborating on each other's solo projects, which in turn led to touring together and ultimately creating Run the Jewels, also known as RTJ. Soon after, in 2013, they released their self-titled album, RTJ, and then three more albums to follow in 2014, 2016, and 2020 titled RTJ2, RTJ3, and RTJ4 respectively (Very Creative). The two have grown their cult following their music, soundtrack appearances in movies and video games, as well as their signature fist and gun hand signals.
Since the group's cultivation, there has been a prominent anti-oppressive, revolutionary, apocalyptic thematic atmosphere surrounding the two artists and their works. However, this led to them being labeled as a political rap group, which they disagreed with. In response, Killer Mike has stated that they do not care about your political affiliation or what will come in the political future, they only care that “socially every one of you [knows that] you are absolutely born free and nothing has a right to interrupt that freedom”
In a 2014 interview done with Fast Company, the two discussed how they were greatly motivated by their similar 80s and 90s upbringing, with the rebellion and wild nature of hip-hop. They also work to challenge one another, in order to put out the best and most powerful music they can, creating an ‘emotional arc’ with every album. Their creative process often starts with the sampling of older records, which quickly turns into chopping up the sound, turning it on its head, picking it apart, and reassembling it. The sampled sound shifts into a new malleable sound that respects its origins, but has a new purpose and meaning. This has allowed them to push their philosophy further and given them the confidence to go record saying that their album would be the best hip-hop album to be released that year.
The two are very intrinsically motivated by their creativity. They truly love making music and are passionate about pushing the envelope of what they can do with their talents. They are also motivated to bring back humor into rap and hip-hop, which I believe is what inspired a possible future project of them, where they want to redo their album, RTJ1, with only cat sounds and noises, titled Meow the Jewels. Furthermore, within the Person-Product-Culture model, RTJ has found a seemingly perfect balance between their relationship and process to make the product, as well as their relationship with the domain that surrounds the hip-hop scene; this is through their overarching philosophy and rebellious ideology that engulfs their music and effects their fans and listeners.
Sources:
https://runthejewels.com/pages/about-us-long-form
https://www.oregonlive.com/music/2014/11/run_the_jewels_killer_mike_giv.html
I have know about RTJ and their music since their third album, but have never known the motivation or meaning behind their music. The idea of them being a rebellious group really does make a lot of their music make more sense to me. I also love the idea of Meow the Jewels, because that sounds hilarious.
ReplyDeleteWhile they may not intentionally be a “political” rap duo, I think much of what RTJ stands for and what their message is is very much so political. To write and perform with an agenda that is meant to be anti-oppressive through the lens of rebellion and revolution, and to say that they support the social freedom of the individual, has heavy political connotations in my opinion. Additionally, I think RTJ4 (and maybe all of their music) is free to listen to/stream. This is not only a move against the capitalist nature of streaming services like Apple Music, but it’s also a way to apply that anti-oppressive philosophy found in their music to actual practice by taking action against corporations that seek to exploit both listeners and talent.
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