Sage Francis

Explicit content warning

05/31/21 • 49 min

In this episode I’m joined by Sage Francis, a rapper who was independent before claiming indie was cool. A veteran of the underground battle scene in which he won the Scribble Jam emcee battle in 2000, Sage was early in adopting a tour-heavy business model that found him relentlessly doing shows and hitting smaller markets in the 2000s. From the jump, Sage has never been afraid to occupy his own unique space in the landscape of rap music, incorporating influences from different genres of music, a rotating cast of collaborators, and a writing style that ranges from the fiercely political to the vulnerably personal. He was the first hip hop artist signed to legendary punk rock label Epitaph, and he would later go on to launch his own Strange Famous Records, where he continues to release his own projects as well as the works of other artists. Songs discussed:

"Jah Didn't Kill Johnny" ('A Healthy Distrust', 2005)

"Grace" ('Copper Gone,' 2014)

"Doomage" feat. Brother Ali and Slug (prod. MF DOOM) (Non-Prophets "Damage" single, 2004)

"Whoremonger" ('Still Sickly Business,' 2005)

"Underground For Dummies" ('Human the Death Dance', 2007)

Sage Francis:

strangefamousrecords.com

cantknocktheshuffle.com

questionshiphop.com

instagram.com/seandammit

twitter.com/seandammit

Email: [email protected]

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

"Jah Didn't Kill Johnny" ('A Healthy Distrust', 2005)

"Grace" ('Copper Gone,' 2014)

"Doomage" feat. Brother Ali and Slug (prod. MF DOOM) (Non-Prophets "Damage" single, 2004)

"Whoremonger" ('Still Sickly Business,' 2005)

"Underground For Dummies" ('Human the Death Dance', 2007)

Sage Francis:

strangefamousrecords.com

cantknocktheshuffle.com

questionshiphop.com

instagram.com/seandammit

twitter.com/seandammit

Email: [email protected]

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Previous Episode

Slimkid3

Simply put, Tre Hardson aka Slimkid3 is a legend. Hip hop was forever changed in 1992 when his group the Pharcyde emerged onto the scene with their classic debut album 'Bizarre Ride II The Pharcyde.' The group brought a decidedly animated and imaginative element to their songwriting and presence on the microphone – and Tre definitely stood out with his distinct melodic voice; you could really even say that a lot of these rappers who sing owe a bit to Slimkid3. The Pharcyde’s second album Labcabincalifornia sported a darker sound (and early contributions from the great Jay Dee aka Jay Dilla) that reflected the frustration the group was going through with both the industry – and internally. Tre did one last album with the group (2000’s Plain Rap) before embarking on a solo career that also has seen him team up with DJ Nu-Mark from Jurassic 5, Ozomatli, and occasional reunions with various members of his Pharcyde brethren. Here are the songs we break down in this episode:

"Groupie Therapy" (Pharcyde 'Labcabincalifornia', 1995)

"Trust" (Pharcyde 'Plain Rap', 2000)

"King" feat Diamond D and K-Natural ('Slimkid3 & Nu-Mark', 2016)

"Life is Love" ('Liberation', 2002)

"Pick It Up" feat Dillon Cooper (TRDMRK, 2019)

"4 Better or 4 Worse" (Pharcyde 'Bizarre Ride II the Pharcyde', 1992)

Slimkid3:

slimkid3.com

cantknocktheshuffle.com

questionshiphop.com

instagram.com/seandammit

twitter.com/seandammit

Email: [email protected]

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Next Episode

El Da Sensei

As a member of the Newark, New Jersey group Artifacts alongside Tame One and DJ Kaos, El Da Sensei is responsible for some bona fide 90s hip hop classics, including "C'mon with the Git Down” and "Wrong Side of da Tracks," the group’s homage to the art of graffiti. After Artifacts split up following their second album 'That’s Them' in 1997, El went on to have a prolific solo career, releasing nearly a dozen projects and consistently touring the globe on his own as well as with Polish hip hop duo The Returners. El’s a true working class emcee, and his dedication to his craft as a writer and as an independent artist has granted him a pretty unique experience that we uncover throughout this conversation. We also talk a little bit about the impromptu Artifacts reunion in 2009 that brought El and Tame together and set the stage for their upcoming third Artifacts album, produced entirely by Buckwild and carrying the torch for DJ Kaos, who unfortunately passed away in 2019 ; the album is scheduled to be released later this year. In this episode, we discuss:

"Speakin'" ('Relax, Relate, Release', 2003)

"Live Noise" feat. Akrobatik (w/ The Returners, 'GT2: Nu World', 2010)

"Wrong Side of Da Tracks" (Artifacts, 'Between a Rock and a Hard Place', 1994)

"It Takes Two" (w/ Sadat X, 'XL,' 2018)

"Money" feat Roc Marciano and Reef the Lost Cause ('The Money EP', 2009)

"Got Fire" (w/ The Returners, 'Global Takeover', 2008)

"31 Bumrush" (Artifacts, 'That's Them,' 1997)

El Da Sensei:

instagram.com/senseifromnj

cantknocktheshuffle.com

questionshiphop.com

instagram.com/seandammit