24 HOURS IN MOSCOW

On PE’s 47th tour my cats take pride in filling up their passports. Often there are different motivations for each and every show, varied situations pump us up for different reasons. Here the reason is simply going to a place we’ve never performed before, RUSSIA. I heard that RUN-DMC performed there a couple years back and ripped it. Well in MOSCOW only my worldly god-brother, ICE T, tripped thru here with BODY COUNT. Other than that there has been a waiting hip hop audience here for the past 15 years since we seriously broke Europe in 87. The wall fell in 89 and it’s been a slow spread rap-wise thru the eastern block. The gear is sold, copied, fashioned out on the heads and bodies of headz. ROCAWEAR, PHAT FARM, even KARL KANI adorn the participants. The attitude is straight hardcore fanatic, and the eastern block of EUROPE is hip hop crazy and we’re gonna take it to em.

Flying in right after playing a packed energetic gig in Helsinki the night before, we overlooked a very green terrain down below. I figured although Finland was a bit chilly heading south to Moscow wouldn’t be much different. I was wrong, it was straight brick outside upon landing at the MOSCOW Airport. I thought that doing this in JUNE we would avoid my past imagined recollections of RUSSIA, like in the ROCKY 3 flick where everything was covered in snow. Well looking out the window I could see where winter battered its mark. The airport grass and grounds reminded me of some rural Florida or Texas airport, or perhaps one of the Caribbean Islands or South America. Grass and old concrete shared the same space much of the taxi. Older AEROFLOT planes loaded up next to us, aircraft that I swore I wasn’t getting on before the tour. Getting in the building we were led to the passport control where the line was very long indeed. Inside this old terminal building hung a new SAMSUNG screen showing VH1 as corporations were blasting into the wil, wil, east. Still they were not letting anybody thru easy. We had to go thru 2 weeks of visa submission for this gig. Hardcore grills are still in effect among the airport officials, even if they’re on younger MTVish faces. The old terminal was packed and chaotic, I chatted with a girl named OLGA who was mad she couldn¹t go to the concert but also couldn’t wait to get to where she was going, out. Peeps were hustling their ass off. Taxi drivers yelling over everything. There anybody can be a taxi driver, all they need is a whip.

Getting out of the airport, we got hit by 35 degrees and it snowed on the other side of town on this June 3rd 2003. Found out that we’d be doing the show without GRIFF, because of a visa technicality. The promoters got us into the city, a 25 minute ride in 2 vans and 3 cars. Alongside the road a lotta people walked. No sidewalks. High rise real project type buildings, traffic, and people catching mass transit on weather beaten buses and stops. It definitely reminded me of a South American city, a place that the rich bailed out on and robbed all wealth from the people. McDonalds, the food superpower, was in Russian letters almost every mile, and although I couldn¹t read it the big M and yellow and red colors made me recognize it just like a 23 year old that can’t read yet. In RUSSIA the lanes, driving- wise, are paid little attention to. The bigger your car the righter of way.

We got there at 6:00 pm so no hotel, we had to go straight to the venue. The former main theater back in the day was now a building of poor upkeep. Surrounding the building were Russian b-boys who bought their tickets were dressed in winter gear and they were also surprised by this cold. (This weather was rare. The last time it snowed in Moscow at this time was in 1963, so don’t get it twisted. They’d just had a 73 degree day the week before.) We loaded up to the dressing room and I could see that 50-60 years back this building was the sh*t. The security looked like cats who used to be in the old Soviet army and they definitely were trying to prove that point. Older cats. Serious. As I came back outside to sign autographs one guy took a picture. They thought it was a breech and proceeded to issue a Russian beatdown. I and a few others asked them to stop it, that it was only a picture but this cat wanted to give out an old school I’m pissed at this new thing whipping like he was trying to impress. Outside I was greeted by two cats named BROKEN SOUND, a hip hop group I’d played on my internet radio show Bring The Noise When The Sh*t Hits The Fans a few years back. I invited them in as well.

The gig itself was the usual three hours in this hall. Banners hung with their radio station 100fm ultra and others. The music is everything here, it is hope, it brings pictures of dreams and connection of human understanding. After hearing about PE for 16 years, the gig was a bit surreal for them. Three hours wore them out, but they had no other barometer. Some people cried that this was a miracle. The hip hop old schoolers were in shock, getting their props. Hearing about us, getting black market cassettes and records when they were still the USSR, and after 1989 the bootlegs CDs (here everything is bootleg, like in Africa, and South America people pay $3.00 max for them.) It was a fufillment. I remember getting my laces constantly untied by reaching fans, but also getting them retied by some teenager’s mother who was up front. This kid kept giving me his ring. I refused and gave him a signed shirt but he kept insisting. After the show, the magazine 100% HIP HOP represented and gave us an interview. I couldn’t read it of course, for years I was perplexed by the spellings and characters of the language, but another interviewer KATRINA who is an arts theater teacher here from the states simply told me it’s derived from Greek. Instantly I was clarified on this similarity.

Afterwards we signed more autographs as we headed to the hotel and a night ride thru the city of Moscow. Katrina was our guide and we were told that the city and country was going thru much physical change and planning. We tripped down to RED SQUARE where PAUL McCARTNEY had just played albeit with larger fanfare. FLAV and I took some shots in front of the KREMLIN and then we all went to this American styled 1950ish diner smack dab in the middle of town and got the best milkshakes, pancakes and omelets in EUROPE. I was leaving with two other members at 4am so it was up all night. In closing, 24 hours is too short to gather the full vibe of any country, much less a formerly suppressed hip hop one. This was to build a road, yet another one for rap artists to hike. It was our purpose to unite the global hip hop nation, as we learned from AFRIKA BAMBAATAA and the ZULU NATION. Surely we’d have been here in our prime if we were allowed. Now the future is for many to hit these roads, for it is as rewarding to the soul as any artist and fan could ever want. Son of a Bush is doing a rally speech over this way in QUTAR. Well I never thought I’d see the new whirl odor dupe the earth on militarism disguised as this global war on terror. So who at the end of this world witch hunt lands on top of the pile? Was this Bush senior’s master plan? The real truth of the matter is that the few still rule the masses. There are massive poor across the planet. And they’re still looking for weapons of mass-disappearance, while rendering the existence of the UNITED NATIONS damn near meaningless.

Black music month 2003, RUBEN STODDARD wins American Idol at the same time that BARRY WHITE and LUTHER VANDROSS take ill. As we hope for those great singers recovery, we would hope the natural order of the creativity granted by the creator is also granted by the record business. If they’re smart enough to see how to make this young man get a chance to be just as legendary. In the past weeks ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY with JAY Z and 50 CENT on the cover two profound statements were said in a great interview. JAY Z said the music business is OK, the record business is in trouble. 50 said when you broke and on the curb a BENZ looks like a spaceship. On point brilliance.

So STEVIE Wonder JOBS gets this credit for making downloadable music work like he cooked it up. Ok in reading FORTUNE magazine he gets DR DRE and the king of rap JIMMIODINE to vouch for this 99 cent thing. Well all along we knew that the first company to get approval from the 5 majors at the same time would be ahead of the game. NAPSTER has just been purchased by ROXIO, the burner crew. The iTUNES store is cool for me because I’m a mac-cat I can’t get KAAZA on it. And I definitely ain’t taking anything away from JOB’S genius. But it’s amazing to see these cats get credit just by waiting around. Somebody give SHAWN FANNING his props and $$$, beyond his new ROXIO position please...

DEAD PREZ getting dropped from SONY - increasingly the fact of conscious political rap music being recorded on everything but major labels is never more evident, thus new ideas must be set in place to spread the music - internet, bootlegging, DVD, and thus more international visits in the name of hip hop...

We just finished headlining the CHICAGO BLUES FEST at the end of MAY. Headed up by saxman, legendary producer/arranger at CHESS RECORDS in the 60s and a bit at STAX in the 70s, GENE Daddy G BARGE, assembled the players on the MUDDY WATERS ELECTRIC MUD psychedelic album in 1968 for the set in GRANT PARK off the lake. Bassist LUI SATTERFIELD, guitarists PHIL UPCHURCH and PETE COSEY, drummer MORRIS JENNINGS, along with current OJAY keyboardist MATT ROSE, along with DJ JOHNNY JUICE and KYLE JASON and yours truly ripped thru a set including these cuts..

1. SUGAR SWEET / Kyle Jason 2. GOT MY MOJO WORKIN / Kyle Jason and Gene Barge 3. I WANNA MAKE LOVE TO YOU / Gene Barge 4. STILL A FOOL / Lui Lui Satterfield 5. MANNISH BOY / Electric Mudcats

GENE BARGE is amazing. At 76 years young, he soared thru that set, and later headlined his own event at the HOUSE OF BLUES. Kyle Jason got up on stage with him and blew the night away.

The first show, a festival in MADRID played with AUDIOSLAVE and TOM MORELLO, BRAD WILK, TIMBOB, and lead singer CHRIS CORNELL put it down very hard and precise. Tom has to be the most humble superstar in the business. It is always a pleasure hooking up with him. AUDIOSLAVE invited myself, Griff and Flav on stage and it was mighty, always good to rock with them. Chris is a pretty big dude and holds his own in front of the crowd, I know its wonderful to be finally getting down like this again for the cats, all of them.

I predicted somewhere in the past t-domes that A TRIBE CALLED QUEST would be back in 2003 and thank god here they are. They were inspired to do so especially after JMJ’s murder. That’s when a group cannot be reformed, when a member passes. NWA can’t do it either so it is best to always keep your thing going. I still don’t know where the rumor started about PE breaking up. It never did. I guess it’s a rumor like the enemy board thought I was sick. No truth in it. I definitely wouldn’t be doing this tour if I was.

So LYOR COHEN getting sued by STEVE GOTTLIEB of TVT – it’s scary that someone can get a judgment against you for 150 million or some figure like that. Also Lyor is doing the Jupiter Communications keynote speech this JULY in NYC. As the head of ISLAND-DEF JAM he is quick to come to grips with the redefinition of digital distribution. I’ve never had this conversation with him but I’m dying to know what he thinks. As with VIVENDI I’m sure they’re not pleased about this suit. As they’re trying to sell the burning plane, this along with the feds investigating MURDER INC doesn’t bode well with the stockholders I would think.

I would like to thank NAS from afar for inviting me to appear with him at summer jam in NY. I dig this brother’s attitude and forwardness the past two years, as he is shaped to be hip hop’s true leader. However being anointed that position requires massive touring around the planet. He and his fiancé KELIS should consider touring the world for a year. I would also like to thank those awarding me the HIP HOP APPRECIATION Award 2003 for efforts beyond the course of duty. It was in ATL, and I couldn’t be there, however I diverted my shine towards NAS where I wonder why a record like I CAN is not the number one record in the nation, if hip hop is from and for the youth? All the radio stations should be blasting this song for G.P.

Just did a quick video cameo for HENRY ROLLINS and his WEST MEMPHIS THREE project and as always HR is such an inspiration for his commitment for all of us.

This month I will be writing twice a month for urban weekly paper ROLLING OUT.

Lastly I’m finishing up when I get back the title theme to the ESPY Awards in LA. We are assembling a rap theme as well as video titled LETS GET LOUD (Everybody Get Up) featuring PHIFE, BUSTA RHYMES, MC LYTE, yours truly as well as possibly nailing NELLY, AL granpa munster LEWIS, FLAV, and peeps like AEROSMITH, SHAQ etc. I am planning for it to be an arena anthem, plus it’s simply about a fans love for the game of sport.

I’m out PEACE Mistachuck@rapstation.com In Greece That rhymes