Marco Polo
Marco Polo’s been anointed the flagship artist of Rawkus Records rejuvantion; only there’s one problem, he’s not on Rawkus Records, he’s on Soulspazm. Irregardless his album “Port Authority” is neck-snapping. Nice work for a producer-explorer from Toronto.
When were you born?
December 26th 1979.
What are some main differences between Toronto and NYC?
For music or overall?
Overall.
New York is a hundred times bigger than Toronto. You could pretty much sum up the Toronto city in 15 to 20 blocks whereas NYC is 150. Toronto has less people, less noise and is much cleaner–that’s probably the biggest difference.
Who was the first rap artist that turned you into a fan?
I guess hearing Tribe. Hearing Tip and Phife.
You weren’t a fan of their production too?
I loved their production.
What’s your favorite Tribe song?
Tough question. I can’t really say I have a favorite Tribe song, but it’s probably off Midnight Marauders. It could be either “Electric Relaxation” or “Lyrics to Go.” Between those two.
If you’re a Tribe fan, that shouldn’t be that hard a question.
That’s true, but there’s just so many songs. I remember my Dad bought their first album because of “Bonita Applebaum.” I mean my Father bought that shit because he liked it.
He heard it on the radio?
Yup. But I guess I’ll go with “Electric Relaxation,” cause I did a cover of it for my album, “Port Authority.” It’s a re-make with a female vocalist from a group called J. Davey. She sang over it. It came out pretty dope It’s a bonus cut on my album.
It’s not a hidden track, is it?
No, it’s there.
How did you get into producing?
I was always a fan of music growing up. My pops played a lot of stuff around the house, whether it was Soul or Rock. And then I started buying my own records and my own CD’s and getting into Hip Hop. It got to the point where I wanted to start making beats. Listening and being a fan wasn’t enough. I wanted to contribute something. I signed up for an audio engineering school in Toronto and I got a student loan and with that money I bought my first MPC. It’s the same one I use today actually.
So that was the first piece of equipment you were using?
The first and still to this day I’m using the same one.
How come you haven’t branched off into other things like computer programs?
I kind of stick to what works for me. The MPC, the 2000xl, is everything I need in one machine. I don’t really stray far from that when it comes to production. I got Pro Tools in my studio, to record beats and track vocals, but I don’t really use any of that stuff, not that I’m against it, it’s just that I stick with the MP, I get what I need out of it.
And what is it that you need out of it?
Out of the MPC? It’s easy to use. I’m used to the way it reacts to what I’m thinking. Anything I have in my head I can make happen on the MPC really quickly. It’s really user-friendly. The amount of sampling time I have, the pads, and the whole feel of it is dope. I’ve tried making beats on a SP and I give it up to all the old school dudes who used the SP and did the tracks they did because it forces you to be a bit more creative. You’ve got 12 seconds to sample and you think about beats like “T.R.O.Y.” that Pete Rock made on the SP and it kind of wows you. We’re spoiled these days with all the sampling time we have, and it’s just gotten easier to make beats.
Living in Toronto what was your opinion of the Rawkus Roster?
The original one? To me it was classic. That whole era was amazing. I remember buying “Funcrusher Plus” by Company Flow and being messed up in a good way, listening to that record over and over again. I never heard anything like it. And that kind of sparked my whole interest in [Rawkus] and really following what they were doing. It kind of made me go get Sounbombing 1 and I was like “Man I gotta go get these twelve-inches–they’re crazy. I gotta hear the B-sides.” And I loved it. When Mos [Def] came out and then Reflection Eternal, I was a fan. It was a whole movement that I thought was great for Hip Hop. I actually miss that time.
But when you moved to NYC that era was pretty much done.
It was coming towards the end. I remember hanging out with Ayatollah a lot and it was right about the time when Quality by [Talib] Kweli and Soundbombing 3–the worst one. That was the end of their movement. Things started to change [at Rawkus] I remember going to sessions with Ayatollah and getting to see it, but I also worked at The Cutting Room and Rawkus was a client so I got to see a lot of the Kweli stuff get mixed. It was a crazy time. It was like watching a train wreck.
There was that wreck then, but how did you get on Rawkus now?
That was a long time ago. I guess they stopped putting music out after awhile and they were in a transitional period. I didn’t really sign a deal directly with Rawkus. I’m signed to Soulspazm who has a joint venture with Rawkus, and then that’s how they got involved. I put out the Pumpkinhead album that we did, “Orange Moon Over Brooklyn” with Soulspazm. When Soulspazm lost their distribution, they partnered up with Rawkus to carry their catalog. When I was in negotiations for my album, it was directly with Soulspazm and part of the whole deal was that Rawkus was going to be involved on the distribution, marketing and promotional tip. When I brought them my record it turned into a bit more than that. They got more involved to the point that they’re calling it a Rawkus release, but it’s actually like a 50-50 with Soulspazm. I got down with Rawkus through Soulspazm.
It’s coming off as you’re the rejuvanation of Rawkus.
I know. It’s interesting how that happened and that’s cool. They’re [advertising] it as the first Rawkus release this year, and it is, it’s definitely on Rawkus Records, but Soulspazm’s involved with it too.They’re the ones that brought the project to them and once [Rawkus] heard it, it became “Okay we’re definitely going to put this out.”
Was your album done before you negotiated that deal?
My album was done, really. I was always in talks with Jim at Soulspazm while I was making it and we always planned on making something happen. But by the time I started negotiating, the album was done. The features were done. I had to get a couple last verses from Ju Ju and AG. Besides that, it was done. I got no help from [Soulspazm] I did all myself. Any appearances I had to pay for, I paid for myself and the rest was me just hustling and doing trades with people. I basically brought them a finished product.
When I started making it, I had Pete Rock’s “Soul Survivor I” in mind because I love that album. I was like, “I gotta do something like that,”minus the rapping of course because I stick to the beats, that’s how I communicate. I did “Do it Man” on Masta Ace’s “A Long Hot Summer” and he had no budget left. He was like “Yo, I wanna use a joint, but I can’t pay you, can we work something out?” and I was like, “Yeah, no doubt. Just record a track for me, that I can use.” Nostalgia” ended up being the first song towards “Port Authority.” “From there I was like let me see what I can come up with. I started planning everything out to-a-T, like picking out certain beats for certain artists, and three years later I finished the project.
Which song on the album are you most proud of?
I’m proud of the whole thing, but standout tracks have to be “Radar” featuring Large Professor, with DJ Revolution on the cuts. The Kool G Rap one called “Hood Tales.” Those two definitely stand out, but so do all of them. Working with OC, working with Ed OG, having a song with Sadat X, AG and Ju Ju all on one track. I’m a fan so it’s humbling to be working with these dudes.
How did you come up with the track “Low Budget All Stars?”
I’ve been a fan of Kev Brown and that whole crew. Kev is someone I check for, being a producer. I try to listen to everybody’s style because it helps me evolve when I hear a new sound. Kev’s always wowed me with his basslines. Then I heard him rap and I though he was dope. Hearing him got me into his whole camp and I started checking for them. They’ve never been on a track together. They’re a crew and all of them on a track has never happened so I said “I gotta make that happen for my album.” I’ve always been a fan of posse cuts, that’s one thing “Soul Survivor” had, was crazy posse cuts.
If there was one artist you could sample without paying for any clearances, who would that be?
I never even pay for sample clearance. I don’t even think about that shit. UG rap, brother–it’s not that serious yet. Hopefully one day it becomes a problem. Let’s just say Issac Hayes.
Anyone you wanna shoutout?
My DJ Linx and my man Shylow. This album wouldn’t be the way it is, if it weren’t for them. And I want to shoutout anyone that’s checking for my music and say “Thank you, I appreciate it.”
How did you come up with your name?
My government name is Marco and I used to have a wack name which I will never reveal, but when I was hanging out with Ayatollah [in Toronto] before I moved to NY he was calling me Marco Polo as a joke. Meanwhile I was trying to make beats and it stuck with me so I rocked with it.
The title “Port Authority” has nothing to do with exploration?
It absolutely does. It’s part of the reason I named it that. Marco Polo was one of the biggest explorers known in the history books and an authority on exploration–that was one of the reasons. But the second one is Port Authority is a known landmark in NYC and that Bus Terminal is grimey. When you come to New York for the first time and you’re not flying, you’re taking the bus or a train, you’re going to end up there and that kind of defines my story coming from Toronto.
So your album is a soundtrack to Port Authority?
Yea, it’s some New York shit, but through the eyes of someone not from here.