[rise of the knowmads]

“Rise”

by J. M. Galindo

at

The Production

SEATTLE, WA- The Northwest, and Seattle in particular, is widely known for two things: its underground music scene and smoking weed. And while the former may be the more acceptable of the two, they are equally relatable to many of the people here.

So when I heard there was a group that seemed to have a familiar understanding of both of these staples, I figured it was worth taking a look.

For months since this past summer, I had noticed an increasing interest in a Seattle rap group called the KnowMads. Clever name, I thought.

Their music would be at parties or in cars, people inquiring who it was that was playing. Some kids sitting in their classes would mumble the lines from their tracks, their heads bobbing up and down, as if in approval of what they were hearing.

Any band that makes an impact like this is worth a listen, so I went on iTunes and bought their “Seattle” album and immediately was struck by a subtle difference in how they sounded- not just in the lyrics, which used Eminem-esque internal rhyme and 3/6 accents on the up-beat, but also in the retro beat that many of their songs employ, reminding me closely of something straight out of Philadelphia.

These things combined to make a sound that seemed to actually capture the cold rain, bad traffic, and looming clouds of the city we both called home. This being no small feat, I wanted to look up more info on them and some lyrics to their songs.

But when I went to do this, I found nearly nothing about them. Beyond a myspace page and some YouTube videos, there was little evidence they existed on the vast expanse of the internet. Even my English teacher has a Wikipedia page- but these guys had virtually nothing.

Wanting to know more and seeing that I had to find it out for myself, I decided to try and line-up and interview with the group. I contacted KnowMads frontman Tom Pepe on facebook (not so shocking in this day and age) and got in touch with their manager.

I told her I was a writer who wanted to do a piece on them, and we immediately set the interview up. The following Monday, my friend Tony and I drive down to Seattle through the typical rain and clouds, and arrive at the address, decorated for Christmas with lights hanging and a mini-tree on the porch.

The door opens and we are greeted by a five-foot-four blonde who invites us in and introduces herself as Camilla Koon, the KnowMads’ manager. We say hello and wander into the house as she goes off to try to find Tom Wilson, whose house we were apparently at.

It is a bachelor pad, through and through, with somewhat futile attempts at creative decoration and aesthetics mixed with male essentials like the X-box 360, a flat screen TV, and a pack of juice-boxes on the ground next to the couch.

We take a seat, and in walks Tom Wilson wearing stained basketball shorts, a hoodie, and a Santa hat. He takes a seat. Then comes Tom Pepe, in a Seattle Mariners hat and sweatpants. Classic.

We say hi to them both, and they sit tensely down. Nobody really knows how to act yet, and I am probably the most nervous one there. So I take a deep breath, and start.

“Ok, so this all is going to be super informal. I’ll kind of ask you guys some questions, just to kind of intro the conversation, but then you can just go from there”.

They immediately look more relaxed and kind of laugh, apparently relieved that they could just be normal, and do what they wanted. Tom Pepe looks at me.

“So informal that I could… smoke weed?”

 I smile.

“That’s fine. Just do whatever you guys want- that’s what I’m here to write about.”

He goes and gets a bong from the back room and lights up, beginning to cough and wheez as I get my notes together. I get their names and ages, as well as the absent ex-member of the group. Tom “Pepe” Pepe and Tom “Cheef” Wilson are both 20 years old. The other member’s name is Jesse “Jester” Judd but he officially left the group about eighteen months before.

Camilla curls up on the couch a seat away from me with her laptop. Working, I assume.

I ask them if they have any shows planned as of yet, and they say they don’t but they hope to have one sometime in February.

Turns out they’re doing a show at the Nectar Lounge on the 4^th of February, opening for Scribes with an all-ages show.

I make a note to get some tickets to that, and take a couple more notes as Pepe hits the bong again.

They start to go into the history of how they all met and when they started rapping together, giving some background to the two men before me.

Their experiences were fairly different, especially from one another. Wilson had different priorities than academics in high school, and used rapping at places like football games as a creative outlet. Pepe was more successful academically, getting good grades but being something of a social critic at school. This changed when he discovered rap.

They both had known each other since high school, but didn’t really begin to get closer until sophomore year when Judd introduced them and they battled for the first time.

Pepe- “I tried to find a path that went outside of the expectations of my parents and school. I wanted make a positive impact on the world, so I started taking the road less travelled and rapping about my life.”

He takes another hit out of the bong and the smoke curls out of the corners of his mouth and around the back of his neck. Wilson chuckles.

They tell me about how they started rapping just for fun- as a way to express what they were seeing and feeling about the world. After a while, however, they knew it was more.

Pepe- “We knew it was something long-term, and it became central to our lives and dreams.”

They talk about some of the recent shows and awards they have received, including 2^nd place at the 2007 Soundoff at EMP. They also just found out that they had won the Supernova Battle of the Bands for December this year, this decision being based, apparently, off hype for the KnowMads specifically and the turnout they encouraged at the event. I asked them about this show.

Pepe- “It wasn’t one of the cleanest shows…but we thought we was gonna get a 30 minute set…but we got like an hour and a half”

They both start to laugh a little about the show.

Pepe- “Sometimes it gets crazy, but this was just…nuts. Most of the kids knew all the words to our songs and some of them were younger and getting wilder than us. Honestly, we f***** up some of our lyrics and had to freestyle. Our fans were dope though.”

 Wilson- “But we were also able to see how dedicated our fans were, I signed like 20 pairs of shoes and gave away all the CDs we brought; it was all gravy.”

They seem to have a positive attitude about the show, but still see some ways that it could have been better or will be better in the future- both good skills for performers.

After Pepe taking another pull from the bong, we move onto another subject. I ask them about how all of this history had affected their music and lyrics. Up to this point, Wilson has been relatively quiet, commenting in every once in a while with a minor correction in terms or clarifying remark. On this subject though, he seems to have a bit to say.

Wilson- “Even back in high school we were never tryn’a rap about bulls***, there was a conscious message behind all the weed and alcohol that came into our lives. Sometimes that gets misinterpreted, as if all we rap about is drugs and weed and getting drunker than a lumberjack."

Pepe- “Yeah, I mean after our SEATTLE album we found that kids were taking ecstasy or smoking bud and connecting that to our music. I would never want to influence someone to use drugs, that was just part of my path. So it came out in our music. But still kids are drawn to the fact that we tell the truth of what it’s really like to be a kid growing up in Seattle. So maybe kids relate since they smoke as much bud as us.”

They laughed a little bit. He continues.

“We got hella support in this city right now. I mean, influence is power; the power is in the people, ya know?”

Pepe wheezes from the weed once more.

Wilson- “But, on the other hand, we’re not, like, wanting to negatively affect people, ya know? Like, that’s not even the point, like drugs can be either a positive or a negative thing, depending on how you use them.”

They go on to clarify that they don’t have all the answers right now; that they constantly have to be questioning and critical of their own work and what they represent, even while feeling contradicted about practice vs. promotion.

Wilson- “You really do feel both ways sometimes. Sometimes we really do get too f***** up” (a reference to their song ‘FlipCup’ from their SEATTLE album).

They seem done with the subject, so I move on to another. I ask about their influences and who has inspired them throughout the years. They both lay out a short list of high-name Rap artists including 2Pac and Jay-Z.

Wilson- “Yeah, like Em said ‘don’t give a f***, which was the opposite of what everybody else was sayin’ at the time about ‘you gotta live the life’”.

Wilson continues on to say that Eminem’s whole story inspired him. The fact that he had repeatedly made it over barriers, over and over, helped him when things got tough.

Wilson- “Like, back when his s*** was first comin’ out, in like ’96 or ’97, it sounded different so it didn’t sell that well. But like, if it was released today, people would still appreciate, and like, still wanna listen ya know?”

Pepe- “There was something unreliable about what Em[inem] was telling me in his music though. He didn’t give a fuck about his own life or anything and that’s not how I feel at the end of the day, like you still have to care about life and try to make the most of it.”

Pepe sits up and sets down the bong and goes over to his computer and begins looking for something. He plays an old track from Eminem, and we all sit there in the living room listening for a few minutes, as I watch Pepe and Wilson bobbing their heads to the beat, and muttering the raps, more quietly sometimes but then stronger and louder on certain parts.

When the track is done, Pepe sits back down and I begin to wonder about what it’s like when they write their own raps. I ask them if they write them sober or high or both.

Pepe- “I write both ways, like, sometimes I’ll smoke weed or take adderall while I write, but not always. I’ve never really done drugs like Eminem did or anything like that.”

I notice him look at the bong, then look away, noticeably not taking it back up for another hit.

They talk about what they are trying to do more generally with their music, talking about the motives behind what they do (or don’t) say.

Wilson- “We’re trying to relate to the sound of the fans. Like, sometimes we can’t even define if how we relate impacts people in a positive or negative way, but at least we connected, like we’re still connected to people and that’s what matters”.

Pepe (laughing)- “Weed might be the most relatable topic that we write about. A lot of kids smoke weed and think in a way that connects them to our thoughts and ideas. And relating to the people you tryn’a have hear you, is the only way to succeed”.

I ask him how he would define success.

Pepe- “Success, to me, is just the music, ya know? Like, no matter what, the money can always be there. But success is just not worrying about anything but the music. When kids tell me they listen to my music to help them get through the day, that means I’ve already succeeded in my main goal with this hip hop… But I want to go national or global, impact the world- that’s my dream.”

I turn to Wilson, asking the same question.

Wilson- “My success was when I was first identified, as a rapper first, before, like, anything else. But it’s really just about making dope music. Even if there was no money in it, it’d still be worth it”.

Pepe nods and adds:

Pepe- “You gotta aim big to have people know who you are and take you seriously. You gotta believe in yourself if you want others to believe in you and carry you there”.

I look at my phone and it’s been just over an hour, just about the time I was aiming for. I’m satisfied with what I’ve got, so I ask them if they have any questions for me. They don’t really seem to, so Tony and I get up to leave.

Pepe to runs to go get some CD’s for us, and comes back with two for each of us, a copy of Seattle by KnowMads and CupaTea by Tom Pepe. They both sign both CD’s and I try to not make my excitement too apparent.

We thank them again, and I say thank you to Camilla Koon for the opportunity and tell her I’ll be in touch soon. She thanks me again and we walk out the door back into the light rain and head home through the traffic.

The KnowMads have something that is ultimately necessary for any musical artist who wants to succeed and leave their name in the ears and minds of their audience. They have a pure, unadulterated desire to do what makes them truly happy. And lucky for all of us, that happiness comes from making music.

From the first time you hear one of their tracks, you can tell that something significant has just struck you. Whether it comes from the incessantly pertinent and eclectic lyrical references, or the smooth, gripping beats that accompany them, the KnowMads will leave their mark. For them, it will not be a matter of being given the opportunity for success. They will make this opportunity for themselves. All that we need to do now is sit back, listen to the sound, and watch them rise to the fame that they deserve.

2.01.11

The Production

J.M. Galindo