Q&A: Kardinal Offishall

by Toshitaka Kondo

 

Kardinal Offishall is quite the paradox. He's been a heavyweight with music industry insiders for years but he remained largely unknown to the masses despite minor hits like “Bakardi Slang” and “Ol’ Time Killin’” from his 2001 debut, Quest for Fire: Firestarter. The Toronto native’s bellowing voice and unique style of spittin’ in English and Jamaican patois made fans of producers he’s worked with like Pharrell and Timbaland, and superstars that tried to ink him like Jay-Z and Akon, whose Konvict Music he eventually signed with. Kardinal was finally catapulted into the spotlight when he dropped the Akon-assisted 2008 summer anthem “Dangerous,” which reached the top five on the Billboard Hot 100. With his sophomore album, Not 4 Sale, about to drop, Rhapsody caught up with Kardinal to talk about what “Dangerous” has meant to his career, the difficulties he faces as a Canadian rapper, and the circumstances under which suing can be ill-advised.

In a behind-the-scenes clip from the “Dangerous” video shoot,  you said it was the most important video of your career. Why do you feel that way?
I think it was the most important because with that song and the timing of everything, there was a lot riding on “Dangerous.” It's one of the most flawless songs that I have. If this video does not turn out to be one of the best videos that I’ve ever made, and it doesn’t penetrate as much ground as we need it to, I might have to rethink what my future career is gonna be.

So, you really felt like it was your last shot to make a big impact?
Yes sir. Since the success of that, there’s been so many different emcees that have reached out. The other day when I was in New York, me and Jay-Z, we have a basketball relationship because I’m always on him telling him that his Nets are a piece of sh*t and that the Raptors are gonna smash his Nets. He was in the studio around the corner recording his Blueprint 3. He was like, "Yo, congratulations, because right now it seems like the world is yours." So anybody from a Jay-Z to Pooh from Little Brother hit me up. Busta. I never understood what it was to have a hit record before I had “Dangerous.” People were like, "Yo, people wait a whole lifetime for a song like 'Dangerous.'" It’s bugged out because literally my fanbase with “Dangerous” ranges from 3-years-old to literally 60-year-old women who have been like, "Oh my god, I love that song."

How do you feel about those that say you sold out with “Dangerous” just to blow up?
Did they say the same thing about Biggie when he did “Party and Bullsh*t” and then did “One More Chance”? We are always on some bullsh*t. Especially hip-hop n*gg*s. Everybody wants you to be f*ck*d up and ashy with them. But anybody that’s been a real Kardinal fan knows that I’ve never limited myself. I can’t just exist in the world of Jansport. Sometimes I hate that sh*t about hip-hop. The title of my album is Not 4 Sale. I am not that dude doing songs just to blow up. I’m doing songs because I think it’s a great f*ck*ng song. When Gang Starr did their joint with K-Ci & Jo-Jo, they were selling out? I’m trying to expand this to the rest of the world. I was in Spain where 200,000 people don’t speak English were singing “Dangerous” a cappella with no music. That’s what I’m in this for.

Moving on, you originally got on the Clipse’s “Grindin (Remix)” because of your relationship with Pharrell, right?
I don’t believe in flukes, but how we even met in the first place was random. Around the time, I had just signed with MCA and we had released “Bakardi Slang” and “Ol’ Time Killin'.” I had some time off so I was in Toronto, and a friend of mine told me to check him out at this club, the Courthouse. We were walking up to V.I.P. and the door opened up and Pharrell was coming out. He was in town promoting his N.E.R.D. album and I was like, “Yo, your boys, the Clipse. That ‘Grindin'' sh*t? I’m a real fan of theirs. That’s my number one joint right now.” And this was before it had blew up crazy. He was like, “Yo, that sh*t you have, ‘Ol’ Time Killin',’ that’s my sh*t.” That’s just how we met. Expressing a mutual respect each other’s project. He was like, “I wanna get you on the ‘Grindin’ (Remix).’” And I was like, “Whatever.” ‘Cause one thing that you know about a lot of people in the industry, we always talk that sh*t. "Oh, we should work. We should do joints together." Literally, the next week, he made it happen and we smashed out the “Grindin’ (Remix).” That’s how I ended up being cool with the Clipse and Pharrell and the rest of them of cats.

One thing I find interesting is that you make a lot of songs spitting straight dancehall. Can you talk about that a little?
Ever since I did my first installations, if you want to call it that, that’s just always been my vibe. Put a little bit of my culture in my music. Certain producers and selectors gravitated towards me because they loved the fact that I was doing hip-hop but didn’t turn my back on who I am as a person. Big ups a 1000 percent and R.I.P. to Notorious B.I.G., but when you listen to Ms. Wallace talk, people are like, "Oh, damn, I didn’t know Biggie was Jamaican." People ask, dead or alive, who would you have loved to collaborate with? I would’ve loved to collaborate with B.I.G. just because he’s from Brooklyn and I’m from Toronto, but we both have the similar heritage and West Indian parents that raised us.  I would’ve loved to bring it out in him a little bit. Same way when we did “Ol’ Time Killin',” and Busta jumped on the remix, he’s also of Jamaican descent. So he was smashing it out with the patois. You’d be surprised to find out the heritage of your favorite hip-hop artist out there. Pete Rock’s family is Jamaican. His sister and them is up in Toronto. Heavy D was putting it down since ’87 letting them know.

You had your little controversy with K-OS. He thought you were dissing him because you smashed a guitar on-stage at the 2005 Getting Up Festival in Toronto, but you said you were just expressing your frustrations because you felt like Canada’s infrastructure only allows for one big hip-hop artist at a time. Do you still feel it’s that way?
It’s pretty much always been that way. We still don’t have the infrastructure to support more than one person at one point in time. In Canada, it’s like, "We let one n*gg*r in. Can’t let too many of them n*gg*rs in." The whole thing was K-OS, it was never any problems because we actually used to be under the same management and part of the same family for a while there. In Canada, sometimes it feels like you gotta pick up a guitar and do some hip-hop fused with rock 'n' roll before you’re accepted. Outside of Toronto and a couple other major urban centers, the country ain’t ready for that real hard-hitting stuff. You play that real thumping hip-hop, and they’re running for their lives. I’ve always represented Toronto and Canada to the fullest with everything I did. It does get frustrating sometimes when you’re trying to kick down the doors and they’re like, "Sorr, there’s already one black guy in here.You gotta wait until he’s done."

Do you feel like getting all this love in America is getting you more love in Canada?
Unfortunately that’s what it is all day. But that’s not just limited to hip-hop. If you look at the Barenaked Ladies, it’s the same thing with them. Not necessarily Celine Dion, but Nelly Furtado blew up in the States first. Avril Lavigne, when she was on her way to blowing up in the States, all of a sudden, they jumped on her jock, too. Even with the actors, if you look at anyone from Michael J. Fox to Jim Carrey, it’s definitely when you get love outside of the country, all of a sudden they’re like, "Oh, that’s our shining star. We’ve been supporting him from day one." Whenm in fact, that’s a pile of bullsh*t. I’m talking about radio and the ability to tour and successfully support yourself. So many emcees that I know definitely have day jobs. I had a day job up until my first year of college and then I said, "F*ck it." But the difference with me is that I never really depended on Canada. We were going all over the place. There’s a good couple years that the U.K. held me down thoroughly, ‘cause if I had to depend on Canada alone, I would’ve given up a long time ago.

Given that you’re a real lyrical dude, have you ever been intimidated to get in the studio with anyone?
I’m actually looking forward to being intimidated in the studio as far as lyrics go. Somebody like an André 3000, you might see me a little damp underneath the fitted. He’s just been a monster. What’s dope is everybody is catching on to what he’s been doing now. I don’t ever recall him spitting a wack verse. I’ve been a fan ever since Southernplayalistic. If Lauryn Hill was still rapping, she would definitely be someone who might intimidate me a little bit in the studio. But when Akon was first talking about signing me, that was part of the thing that really impressed him about what I was doing. He was like, “Yo, you spanking everybody you get on the joint with.” I was like, “That’s my job. To search and destroy.” So for me, it’s just fun. You know what, let me back it up. There was a joint, “Hurt You,” with Pharoahe Monch. He flew into Toronto to do it at my house. That was a little intimidating ‘cause that’s motherf*ck*ng Pharoahe Monch. That was probably the closest to being intimidated. Lyrically, with the flows, Pharoahe is disgusting. But I managed to hold my own on that joint.

Lastly, I’m sure you heard about DJ Vlad suing Rick Ross after allegedly getting beat down by some of his associates at the Ozone Awards. What do you think of taking legal action after physical altercations?
[Laughs.] If we’re talking about street sh*t, I think it’s kind of gay. If your ass gets beat down, where we come from, if, heaven forbid, something were to happen to me or any of my people, you gather up the troops. I ain’t suing nobody. We gonna see you. I can’t really speak on that. I don’t know what their situation was in particular so I can’t comment on that one. That’s the one thing about me, I’ve never been that type of person. I really believe what you put out in the universe, comes back to you. I don’t have to worry about what people are trying to do to me, because if you know me, I’m a good-hearted dude who likes to enjoy himself and have fun. Life is too short to get caught up in all these high-school antics that a lot of these entertainers deal with. It’s funny to me. Sometimes the hip-hop game is definitely like high school. And me, personally, I couldn’t wait to get out of high school because I’m grown as sh*t.

Comments

[Banana Man]

Big up Kardinal everytime, your ting sell off, nah tell no lie, straight.

[Gooch]

Good interview. Kardi been grinding for a minute, so much respect to him for finally getting that big record under his belt. He deserves it