Lyrics Born

by JAMES WOODARD
Hokubei Mainichi

The Bay Area has always been a vortex for talented musicians, producers and entrepreneurs. Those savvy enough might be able to land a hit on the local charts. If you play your cards right, maybe more.

But local rapper/producer/musician Lyrics Born has had numerous hits, not only on Bay Area hip-hop stations, but on Live 105 as well. Heﾕs had his likeness included in video games, and has produced and performed with numerous Bay Area musicians.

His new album, "Everywhere at Once," which hit the shelves April 22, moves in a new direction for the the 35-year-old El Cerrito rapper as he talks about his heritage, the War on Terror, and, of course, himself. Born Tom Shimada in Tokyo, he has been reluctant to call himself an Asian rapper to avoid being pigeonholed into one role.

"Early on in my career, I didn't want to be the Asian rapper," he said. Born wanted to get a hold of the music market on his own merits, without using the "Asian angle."

"Now that I've done that, now that I've laid the groundwork and made a name for myself, now I can talk about it on my terms," he said. "I can do it in a way that's constructive, that's relative."

Born used an analogy from ground-breaking rap group Public Enemy and director Spike Lee to describe his approach to establishing himself in the music world.

"When you hear Public Enemy's first album, it wasn't political at all. There was no real, serious social commentary on that first album. But obviously, we all know them from their later work, which was what really defined them. The same thing goes for Spike Lee. You know 'Malcolm X' was not his first movie. 'She's Gotta Have It' was. That's how he got his foot in the door. That's the pattern that I chose."

In "Everywhere at Once," Born talks about his mixed Japanese American heritage and identity, with music styles that range from funky dance riffs, to spastic New-Wave inspired beats.

"I want to be able to have a dialogue that is constructive, where we could talk about these things in a way that you were going to hear my side of the story. But you got to understand, I've been called a billion things since I started, yet I never changed," Born told the Hokubei. "I think it was just time for me to talk about my experience on that level. And especially with this album, I just talk about my experience on a whole variety of levels."

His new album is just part of his reflection on the path that led him to where he is today.

"A lot of this album is about me just exploring and reflecting on who I am, and the road that I had to take to get here," Born said. "And the fact that I'm still inspired and I'm still excited about making music, and I still look forward to change, that's what this album is about."

Born tours and performs with a live band, which also performs on the new sample-free album.

"My day job is, I'm a rapper, okay? But my life's mission is to be inspiring. I can't be inspiring if I myself am not inspired," he said of his use of live musicians. "And the way that I stay inspired is by continually challenging myself to achieve different things in life.

"I had made many albums in the past using just a sampler, and that's great. But I've done that for years," Born said. "So my new challenge for this record is to evolve as a producer, to evolve as an artist, to evolve as a musician, by doing it with a band."

"It's almost like using a different part of your brain. There are strengths and weaknesses to both methods, so I use both methods, I used my knowledge of both methods to make the best album I could."

Lyrics Born plays the The Independent, 628 Divisadero St. in San Francisco, Friday May 2, at 8 p.m. Tickets are available at www.theindependentsf.com or by calling (415) 771-1420. The minimum age for entry is 18.

For more on Lyrics Born, visit www.lyricsborn.com.