Rebel Without a Pause

West Philadelphia style - AG. and Ahmir

Nike Air Force 1 - ?uesto golden ticket edition

"I got so much trouble on my mind...refuse to lose. Here's your ticket...hear the drummer get wicked!"

Chuck D - Welcome to the Terrordome

I was born, not raised in West Philadelphia. I have always claimed West Philly even though I didn't grow up there. When The Fresh Prince of Bel Air debuted on NBC in 1990, the main thing that mesmerized me was the song in the opening credits, as Will Smith would proclaim his West Philadelphia roots. Aside from the theme music, Will and Jazz provided me with hope, and the aspiration to make it in the entertainment industry. I didn't want to rap, DJ or anything like that, the only thing that mattered was becoming an actor, or an analyst for ABC's Wide World of Sports.

My mother attended West Philadelphia High School and I wanted to go there as well. My father and his siblings were and are still very well known there, so when we moved, I didn't realize that we had left the neighborhood...having settled in the somewhat friendlier surroundings of East Oak Lane. We were still in the city, but it was a stark contrast to the Wild West.

To make this anecdote a little more interesting I also call Brooklyn, NY home, however that is another story. All in all, its a matter of pride, and in my professional career, I look forward to taking my place among the great people of my hometown...from Wilt Chamberlain, Patti LaBelle, Kobe Bryant, and Tammy Montgomery, to Guion S. Bluford Jr., as well as Ahmir Thompson.

Yesterday I began things as I normally would...brushing my teeth, checking facebook, and watching ESPN. Somewhere within the 9 o'clock hour, I received two phones from friends saying that I was quoted in the newspaper about the new ?uestlove Nike Air Force 1. By midday the text messages started to pour in asking if I could secure a few pairs of the shoe. A little while later, I decided to make a trip to UBIQ, where the sneaker would release, not only to see what the fuss was about, but to more importantly support ?uestlove, and interview him.

I arrived around 5:30pm and I made my way through the traffic of people to the DJ table. I leaned over and asked ?uesto if I could get a few minutes in between sets, and he agreed. During my wait, I enjoyed the scene, and caught up with friends. As the night began to cover the sky, like red wine seeps into the soul..I noticed Marsha Ambrosius, and that's when my gears starting turning. Not only could I get my one interview, but I could also speak extemporaneously with Marsha. It's moments like these that remind me why I choose a path in journalism and mass media.

Here is the score on my conversation with ?uestlove:

Talk about Hip-Hop as your first love:

"I love all music, however things changed when Public Enemy dropped It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold us Back. I walked from 52nd and Osage [avenue] to 52nd and Market, to the local Mom and Pop record store. I got the cassette at 9:30 AM, and I walked 25 blocks to work. I was utterly obsessed with all the tracks, but it was Show’em what you got that really did it for me. And then I went on the biggest decision of my life…I went on my lunch break and I never came back.”

This question is from DJ Dai*Light in Japan...with CD mixers and computer programs replacing turntables, as well as Internet radio, mixtape sites, and personal music pages helping artists break their own music, what standards do new DJ's set?

"It [new technology] helps me. No one ever asks the question of my authenticity because the whole world knows that I have a large record collection, and whenever I go on tour...I take my records with me, and one of them always manages to break. So for me, its like I always dreamed of carrying 20,000 records in my pocket, you know what I'm sayin'? So pretty much for me, I see it as a new evolution. Some people are afraid of change, some people view the serato and are more terrified of it, than they are of a black man running the country."

Talk about the art of collecting records and sneakers:

"Pretty much, I'm on another level with record collecting. I have brokers. I don't do the normal...now I dig...I usually go to the Salvation Army, but my time is limited, so I just cut to the chase. I have brokers, and they call and say 'a widow wants to sell her husband's jazz collection, or 'a mother needs to raise money for her son in jail, so I have the brokers that handle all that for me. But yeah, anything goes, I'll collect anything. I like going to new countries and seeing things that they have to offer. This is the information age, and people can reach you on myspace and they'll say, 'yo when you come to Brazil, I'm going to take you diggin'. So I'm on a different level with my diggin' game. With sneakers...I'm pretty much in with Nike so all I have to do is call the company, and say 'I'll take 8 of those. But I still buy sneakers, even when I have 'em coming to me, I still get extra pair to keep on ice. I purchased 10 pair of my own sneakers, and I would have actually bought every pair."

Watch the video below for more on ?uestlove: