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BIOGRAPHY | BEEFS | INTERVIEWS | ARTICLES
THE HORSEMEN | CLOAK 'N DAGGA
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As soon as you hear "2000 B.C."'s loud, eerie air-raid sirens over the haunting Damien-like chanting of "he's a demon, he's a demon, a demon, a demon," you know you're in for something. But you're not exactly sure what's about to follow. Then you hear a gruff, familiar voice. Rocking with a vengeance. Bringing back memories of dope MCs from yesteryear. Kicking in a way you haven't heard in a while. You remember the days when a rapper had to have skills to make a record.
This wordplay comes from that metaphor matador, the mic-nificent one. That's right, boys and girls, it's the return of the lyrical terrorist, the original battle cat, Canibus. The last of the blue-collar MCs. "I'll battle you on the Net/ I'll battle you in the flesh/ I'll battle you over the phone/ You can call me collect!" That's how Canibus's sophomore album, 2000 B.C., begins, as his flyest verse ever runs back and forth, overlapping the S.W.A.T. TV theme music, an old-school MC favorite.
Some time ago, Canibus was known in the underground for the kick-ass take-no-prisoners way in which he attacked a microphone. But with his 1998 debut, Can-I-Bus?, his handlers tried to turn the underground MC into a radio-friendly rapper. His core audience didn't like it, and Canibus realized he had to stay true to himself. So he returned home to the underground, and one listen to 2000 B.C will have fans saying, "Welcome back."
"You mad at the last album/ I apologize for it/ Yo, I can't call it/ Motherfucking Wyclef spoiled it." This line from the new album's title track refers to the condemnation that Can-I-Bus? received from critics, who had eagerly anticipated the album but expressed disappointment with its overall production once they heard it. "2000 B.C." is not a song meant for those with weak hearts, but it'll make fans wear out their stereos' rewind buttons as they try to catch Canibus's every word.
"My debut album," Canibus says, "didn't do what it was expected to do by the people. To me, a gold plaque on my wall is not a bad thing. I enjoyed getting up in the morning and seeing my plaque on the wall." Yet the MC, obviously still bitter, faults his former mentor, executive producer, and Fugee member Wyclef Jean, for the album's overall critical failure. "Clef is lost in my world," he declares. "He got a funny order of operation. He probably look at me the same way. When it came time to do the album, it was a rush job. His network was a different network. He could get me on David Letterman or Conan O'Brien, but he couldn't get me on Video Music Box, and that bugged me out. I didn't see how broad a difference the network was, like you gotta log off and log back on to a whole new number."
Those unfamiliar with Canibus or his background will probably question his anger when they hear 2000 B.C.. But he has reason to be hostile. Everything he's done to this point has helped other artists' careers, not his own. This rap terrorist's guest appearances on other rappers' albums have helped pad their pockets, sell their albums. "I didn't know it then," he laments, "but everything I did in 1996, '97, and '98 was beneficial to everybody but me." Now it's time for the Charles Oakley of hip-hop the man who takes out the garbage, the man who scars himself night after night diving for the loose ball, the blue-collar MC to get his due.
In a way, 2000 B.C. seems like Canibus's real debut, because he still has something to prove to the world. This time around, he finally had the opportunity to hand-pick the producers he wanted, like JuJu from the Beatnuts, DJ Clue, and Irv Gotti, and he was able to personally choose which MCs he wanted to make guest appearances on his songs, like Rakim, Kurupt, Ras Kass, and Killah Priest.
Every time Canibus blesses a mic, he acts like it might be his last time. He considers having a contract to make records a privilege, not a right. He's just happy to be doing what he enjoys, and would probably be doing it even if he weren't getting paid. But from a business perspective, this time, he wants to get his due.
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