The Trill OG tells it like it is.
Earlier this week we were fortunate enough to sit down and talk with one half of the legendary rap group UGK, Bun B, about his participation in the Gumball 3000, his views on homosexuality in the the hip-hop culture and rap music, and the amazing explanation his granddaughter Taylor gave him for why she is famous.
GUMBALL 3000
BOSSIP: How did you come to learn about the Gumball 3000?
Bun: “Well, I had seen “Jackass” had done it before. So I had seen it, but I didn’t really understand what it was that they were doing. In 2010, my guy Mike Malbon, he owns Frank’s Chop Shop in New York City. He called me and said he had an open slot for someone to join him on the Gumball 3000. He explained to me that we would be driving around countries, city to city, partying and having fun, but I still didn’t really understand it. He told me to call DJ Muggs from Cypress Hill, and Muggs said it was the best isht ever. So off the strength of his co-sign they got me a one way ticket to London and the rest is history.
BOSSIP: Do you encounter a lot of other black people who are participating in the Gumball 3000?
Bun: More and more every year. It’s mainly a European thing, it’s not like black people are excluded, but there’s not a lot of black people in Europe period. But there are black people on the Gumball, the founder and creator of Gumball Maximillion Cooper is literally getting married to Eve. Of course black people are interested, but this isn’t cheap. This is going to exclude people of all races, this ain’t about your race, this is about your tax bracket more than anything. It’s very evenly distributed, of course you see a lot of what we in America call “white people”, but some are British, some are Scottish, some are Italian. It’s a very eclectic mix of people from every walk of life. This year I think there’s 125-130 cars, that will probably represent at least 40 different countries.
BOSSIP: Sounds like the world’s biggest frat party on wheels:
Bun: Max’s dad describes it as “A Rock festival on wheels”. That’s the best description I’ve heard so far.
MUSIC
BOSSIP: There was a lil’ controversy surrounding your comparison of Lil’ Boosie to Nelson Mandela. Do you feel like rappers today still have the power to push people and motivate them to be more conscious?
Bun: Absolutely. Hip-Hop has always been that voice. We’ve always been the people to bring certain things to light and bring attention certain situations. We’re just not concentrating on the right situations as a whole right now. But there are still plenty of people who represent the struggle. I think Boosie, right now, is the number 1 individual in Black America who voices the struggle of poor people trying to make it in the hood right now.
BOSSIP: Do black artists need to take more responsibility in speaking a more conscious message or are fans less willing to accept and listen to the message being communicated?
Bun: We can have a bunch of people talkin’ about a bunch of different isht, but people are only listening to certain artists for certain things. That’s why with UGK we pretty much stuck to the same things and represented the struggle for people. There’s a lot of crazy isht going on in the hood. It’s important that certain people speak about certain things. There are only a handful of people who’s opinion others care about anyway. Those people have to come together in a unified front and stand up about certain things.
On the following page Bun shares his thoughts on homosexuality in hip-hop and the online fame of his granddaughter Taylor.
Image via Gumball 3000
HOMOSEXUALITY IN HIP-HOP
BOSSIP: Is Hip-Hop ready to accept openly gay rappers?
Bun: Well you have to real about America. America hasn’t fully accepted “regular” hip-hop much less gay hip-hop. The isht that 2 Live Crew did and Nelly “Tip Drill”, that still isn’t accepted by regular society. Everything in those videos is considered “normal Christian sex” and it’s STILL too much for the average person. So the gay sex is an even harder bridge to cross for some people. Most people in life don’t want sex out in front of them like that, they don’t want people’s sexual tendencies in front of them straight or gay. Hip-Hop is built on masculinity and machismo and it’s about being a man and representing where you’re from, but hip-hop also represents different things for different people. I think because gay hip-hop is so early in its process, we don’t know enough about gay people, we have to get to know them as individuals and the culture before we get into anything else. There’s probably gay people who have a problem with that song (Fly Young Red’s “Throw That Boy P”).
GRANDDAUGHTER’S INSTAGRAM FAME
BOSSIP: What do you think of your granddaughter Taylor’s newfound celebrity status?
Bun: I think it’s very interesting what SHE thinks about her “celebrity”. She sat me and my wife down and she said she thinks she’s famous. She said “Pa pa, I think i’m famous”. I said “Why do you think you’re famous?”. She says “Well, none of my other friends have an Instagram page, Drake came to my birthday party, and you’re my pa pa. That’s why I’m famous. People come up to me at the mall and say hi to me because they know me.”
BOSSIP: How did you react to that explanation?
Bun: This child has a level of understand unlike anything I’ve ever seen from anyone in that age group. The children of today are far more advanced than we were as children by a long shot. We as grown ups have to constantly be in a position of educating ourselves as much as possible because these kids are learning things at an earlier and faster rate. We are educated about yesterday, they’re educated about today and tomorrow. The only way we can monitor our children is to be educated about the things that they are educating themselves on. It’s much easier to do that than to block content.
As expected, Bun B kept it 100. If you’re in the Atlanta area today he will be performing downtown at Centennial Olympic Park alongside DJ Drama, Xzibit, and Trinidad James. Show starts at 6pm. Come enjoy some music and turn up!
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