EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: Five Eighty
November 10th, 2008
MC lyricist Five Eighty, whose real name is Amir Abdul-Shakur, has been busting into the hip hop scene with lyrics that contain a message and music that has meaning.
Above: Amir Abdul-Shakur who goes by the stage name Five Eighty.
Five Eighty says ever since he was a child rap and hip hop played a big roll in his life.
“Growing up I had an older sister who played old school records, you know like Rob Base and MC Hammer and I just got fascinated with it.”
Five Eighty says around the age of nine he began writing poetry.
“I started dibbling and dabbling thinking I wanted to be a rapper.”
That’s when Five Eighty says he started to write down the lyrics of his favorite MC’s like Big Daddy Kane.
“I would go around and recite these lyrics, I thought it was the coolest thing in the world.”
Soon after, he started writing his own material. Five Eighty says his poems soon turned into hip hop.
“I just remember this fascination with word play and ways to connect words. As far as being serious about it, I didn’t really get serious until high school.”
Five Eighty, now 25 years old, says he sees his writing fall under the hip hop genre.
“I don’t want to put it as Muslim hip hop or spiritual hip hop, it’s just good hip hop music. Because I’m Muslim it’s going to come from the perspective of a Muslim, someone who converted to Islam. All those experiences have morphed into my music.”
With many Muslim artists attempting to make a living by catering to Muslim youth, Five Eighty seems to take a different perspective. His music is aimed at both Muslims and non-Muslims and his lyrics are very general, making it more appealing to a broader audience.
But what makes him different from mainstream Muslim artists such as Q-Tip or Mos Def?
“The one thing I kind of pride myself on, is that my music is clean. That’s what separates me from mainstream Muslim artists. A lot of them use profanity. I’m not knocking it. But for me, I decided that was the route I wasn’t going to take to get my message across.”
The music industry is a powerful force, so is he ready to tackle it by promoting a new kind of art that prides itself on being clean? Five Eighty says his response has been pretty positive.
“I think with hip hop there’s room for it. Basically with mainstream artists of course they want that edge, But hip hop is taking a one-eighty spin where positive lyrics and clean lyrics is what’s needed and demanded. So there is a market for the music. It is a different time in hip hop history where maybe ten years ago you could not come out with a record being clean and even artists like Will Smith who came out with that were denounced. But now hip hop is ready for clean responsible music.”
So where did he come up with his stage name? The name Five Eighty comes from a freeway in the Bay Area.
“I grew up in Oakland, California and the 580 freeway will take you to where I grew up in East Oakland. When I was trying to come up with a name I was thinking of what it was that really represents me other than this freeway that can take me home. I said it to the guys I was in a group with at the time and they really like it. I tried to change it later to 8th Wonder, but Five Eighty really stuck so I kept it.”
The audiences that come out to see Five Eighty perform are a mix between Muslims and non-Muslims.
Although Muslims crave entertainment that they can claim as their own in order to forge an identity, they often are the hardest to please.
“It’s pretty weird because Muslims don’t know how to respond to a hip hop performance. It really depends on the culture, but a lot of people are told not to clap. Some people are told you can’t really participate. But it makes it really difficult. With the African-American Muslim community it’s different, but there’s still a kind of uneasiness about it. But non-Muslims it’s just completely free and open and you don’t go through the same challenges that you do with the Muslims.”
Above: Five Eighty and his wife Nancy.
A recent performance in Chicago at an Islamic conference baffled Five Eighty who says he was surprised by the rules put into place where the audience was separated with women on one side and men on one side.
“I went to the women’s side not to high-five or do fist jabs with folks but to go hype up that side and I couldn’t even go in front of the women even though I was in the same room. And it was the most awkward feeling. I had this sister telling me as I’m performing “Go back to the brother’s side” and I’m trying to ignore it because I don’t want it to affect my performance.”
Being an artist can be tough especially while juggling a full time job and family. So how does he make it work?
Five Eighty credits his wife Nancy who has been there to support his career from day one.
“Throughout my career she’s been supportive of everything I’ve done. From being at all my shows, to answering emails for me, to taking pictures. I really have a supportive wife who’s basically allowed for me to do this within our marriage.”
So what’s next for the talented hip hop artist?
He says he’s getting ready to debut his album Dream and hopes to eventually be able to take his music career full time.
For more information on Five Eighty and to hear his music check out his website.
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