Paris "The Black Panther of Hip Hop" speaks Knowledge with Joe Clair
Paris "
The Black Panther of
Hip Hop" speaks
Knowledge with
Joe Clair
Paris on
Rap City with Joe Clair.
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Paris is an
American rapper from
San Francisco, California, known for his highly charged political and socially conscious lyrics. Influenced by the
Black Panthers, he was once a member of the
Nation of Islam, but now is agnostic. He was catapulted onto the national scene in
1990 with his hit single "
The Devil Made Me Do It" and
album of the same name, after earning a bachelor's degree in economics from
UC Davis.[1]
Originally released on
Tommy Boy Records, his first single was banned by
MTV.[2] Since then his stance on political issues and social commentary have both aided and hindered his quest to bring his music and messages to the masses.
When his second album,
Sleeping with the Enemy, was ready for release in
1992, Paris was dropped from now-defunct Tommy Boy Records (since rechristened
Tommy Boy Entertainment in
2002) and distributor
Warner Bros. Records, owned by
Time Warner, when the parent company discovered its incendiary content, which included fantasy revenge killings of then-President
Bush and racist police officers. Also problematic was the album's insert, which featured the artist waiting behind a tree, holding a
Tec 9, as the president was waving to the crowd. Paris eventually released the LP himself on his newly formed
Scarface Records. Also in 1992, Paris contributed to industrial music band
Consolidated's 1992 album
Play More Music with the track "
Guerrillas in the
Mist."Paris signed a major artist and distribution deal with
Priority Records for himself and Scarface Records in
1993 and released his third LP,
Guerrilla Funk, and several then up-and-coming groups, most notably the
Conscious Daughters. Paris and
Priority formally severed their business relationship due to creative differences in
1995, and in
1997, Paris signed a one-off deal with now-defunct Whirling
Records (distributed by Rykodisc) for the release of his 4th LP,
Unleashed, which was released in small numbers with little promotion. The album contained some very explicitly violent and racially charged verses, and while less overtly political as earlier efforts, the lyrics explicitly describe racial violence when confronted with the same.In
2003, Paris appeared on
Anybody Killa's
Hatchet Warrior album and returned with the album,
Sonic Jihad. The album continued his tradition of controversial cover art, evoking images of the
September 11, 2001 attacks, it depicts a plane flying toward the
White House. The content is equally radical and speaks on many topics, including the war on terror, the war in
Iraq, police brutality, black-on-black violence, conditions in inner-city communities, the
Illuminati, and state sponsored terrorism. Other politically minded hip hop artists were featured on the album, including Kam, dead prez, and
Public Enemy. Sonic Jihad was the catalyst for the creation of Paris' new label and web site, Guerrilla Funk
Recordings, a home for projects and material of such notable acts as dead prez and Public Enemy.
Paris not only writes and produces songs, but also publishes information about how to help the black community grow. One example of this is an article about how to manage your personal money. He explains about how you can build a better future for yourself and your children by handling your money more consciously in 5 steps and a final re-investment step.
He has recently appeared as himself in music documentary
Sounds Like a Revolution.
In
2011, Paris performed at the
Gathering of the Juggalos and appeared on
Insane Clown Posse's
Featuring Freshness.[5] He also performed Saturday, 30 July, in
Amsterdam on the Amsterdam Hiphopfestival.
The album was also released in
Europe with a different track list, featuring songs from
1994,
1996 and
1998, some of which were more in the style of his earlier releases.
Becoming increasingly dissatisfied with the music industry, Paris retired from recording and worked as a stockbroker, cementing his personal wealth allowing him to independently finance the next stage of his musical endeavors.