“Don’t say cool, that’s a bad word” – Jeru The Damaja Interview (1996)

I received a request for a ’96 Jay-Z interview, which I have somewhere in around the house but I haven’t managed to work out where exactly. While searching for that tape, I came across a Westwood interview with Jeru The Damaja from the same year. This is back when he just dropped his second album with DJ Premier still in tow. Things were looking up for the Original Dirty Rotten, as between radio spots for Squeezer Orange Juice, pissing off the Bad Boy crew and a little back and forth with The FuGees, Jeru was all set for a healthy future in the rap game. Years later, having out-grown his weed habit and now self-producing his own music, Jeru is still doing his thing. Will he ever return to the level of quality displayed on “Brooklyn Took It” and “Come Clean”? And if so, will anyone be listening?

As for this interview, it’s yet another slob-job from Tim, as a clearly zooted Jeru fields questions with the blunted dexterity of a drunken monk…in other words, dude is pretty spaced.

Jeru The Damaja radio interview (Tim Westwood’s Radio 1 Rap Show, 1996).

Also, check out fellow rap-encyclopedia Kevin Beacham‘s return to radio:

Redefinition Radio
Hosted by Kevin Beacham
89.3 FM KCMP The Current (Twin Cities, MN)
11 pm until Midnight Saturday Nites
Live Webstream and Archive @ www.mpr.org or www.kcmp.org

“Playing a varied selection of Hip Hop from the Old to the New and that
which inspired it!”

Also, Combat Jack is putting in some excellent work over at the always worthy Mindset of a Champion. His first-hand accounts of shit that’s happened to Tragedy, Pete Rock and Positive K is top notch.