by Jeffrey Niblack
On Wednesday February 15 rapper Kool A.D.joins jazz trumpeter Ambrose Akinmusire for their latest project, Origami Harvest, at Amsterdam Bar & Hall in Saint Paul, commissioned by the SPCO's Liquid Music and Kaufman Music Center's Ecstatic Music Festival. Origami Harvest features Mivos Quartet alongside pianist Sam Harris and drummer Marcus Gilmore. For more information on the project, read an interview with Ambrose Akinmusire about the project on The Liquid Music blog, available here.
Rapper Kool A.D. is not one to rest on his laurels. Perhaps most famous for his participation in the indie hip hop group Das Racist, he set forth on a solo career soon after that group disbanded in 2012. In 2016, he released 10 albums, two of which featured 100 tracks. Much as Origami Harvest promises a melding of genres, Kool A.D. has played with genre and form across his recordings. His rhymes veer sharply between the hilarious, the political, and the formally audacious.
In addition to his music projects, Kool A.D. is a visual artist, author (a novel and a children's book were published in 2016), and voluminous tweeter.
Kool A.D. graciously answered a few questions via e-mail in advance of the premiere of Origami Harvest.
You've known Ambrose for quite awhile. What was exciting about working with him on this? How did this collaboration begin? How has the process of developing the piece worked?
We've had a few friends in common since high school but didn't really kick it 'til later. We've both been doing music since we were kids though, so after some time kicking it, I guess it was inevitable to end up working together.
What about the development of the project surprised you? Is it different than how you first envisioned it?
We still don't really know what it is yet [laughs]. I know Ambrose isn't big on describing his process anyway, so I won't spoil it.
"Origami Harvest" is described as a convergence of genres, colors, and patterns. How has it been working with multiple styles and genres on this project?
I work across genre regardless but I guess maybe one of the more significant points where we converge is improvisation.
You had an exceedingly prolific 2016. Will you keep up the pace in 2017? What will be next for you after "Origami Harvest"?
I got a couple other shows on calendar now, maybe a little tour in the summer, but more immediately, a reading for my novel at the Center for Fiction in New York on February 22nd, an art show called Total Relevance at Idio Gallery in Brooklyn opening February 23rd, another project [redacted for contractual reasons] I guess I'm not allowed to talk about still [laughs] and some more recording projects. I've got a few other books I'm working on but not sure if I'm publishing any this year... maybe an art book, I don't know. Basically, I'm just chillin', living life, plugging away at my little ideas for whatever they're worth, trying to carve out some peace for me and mine. Eventually I want to get into organic, sustainable farming? I don't know... I probably won't do that for a few more years at least.
The world premiere of Ambrose Akinmusire's Origami Harvest is Wednesday, February 15, 7:30pm at the Amsterdam Bar and Hall. Co-commissioned by The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra's Liquid Music and Kaufman Music Center's Ecstatic Music Festival.
Information and tickets can be found at: http://www.liquidmusicseries.org/akinmusire/
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