Bishop Nehru was born in the late ‘90s, a time when the golden era of hip-hop had already passed, but somehow it was engrained in his DNA, and trickles down into everything he creates. It’s quite incredible to witness someone so young beam with pride when he speaks about his hip-hop heroes.
Still a teenager, the New York-bred emcee is dreading turning the big 2-0 this summer, which is happening in a matter of a few short months. The hip-hop prodigy, however, has made more strides in his career at 19 than most emcees have in their lifetimes, including a collaborative album with MF Doom, NehruvianDOOM, and a record deal with Mass Appeal Records (although that has come to an end).
While he hasn’t put out an official full-length album quite yet, his mixtape game is strong. In 2014, he released the BrILLiant Youth EP with Dizzy Wright and his latest, MAGIC:19, is brimming with flawless production work. Album highlights include the boom-bap of “It’s Whateva,” tongue-in-cheek offerings in “He The Man” and uplifting magic of “Highs and Lows,” which Nehru produced himself. Nehru had some time to talk about the MF Doom album, his stance on “partying” and why his music isn’t “trap.”
RAPstation (Kyle Eustice): I read when you were 7-years-old you discovered MF Doom from an episode of The Boondocks. Is there any truth to that?
Bishop Nehru: I don’t know if I was 7. I was really young though. It was around season two of The Boondocks. I just remember hearing this song in the back and thinking, ‘Yo, what is this song? It’s crazy.’ My cousin already knew what it was. He was the person who put me on the The Boondocks. He told me what it was and I looked him up, researched him, and found a bunch of new dope songs.
I saw him once and I felt pretty lucky because everyone said he would always send out imposters to perform. He’s dope.
I felt the same when I saw him in London.
Is it crazy that all of a sudden you’re working with somebody you’ve admired for so long?
Definitely. It was a lot at the time. I was really excited about it. It was something I wanted to make sure I did perfectly.
I love the “Darkness” track. I think you did a great job with that.
Thank you very much.
I read you aren’t into “partying.”
It’s not that I avoid parties or nothing, but usually when I go there, the stuff that goes down I’m not really into. Or there’s usually a fight that usually breaks out and someone gets stabbed. I usually avoid it all and not go to parties. I still go out places, but I don’t go to parties like that. And it’s just not my scene. People usually stand on the wall and just look at each other.
What are your thoughts on drugs and alcohol?
I’m not one of those squares that’s like, ‘Don’t do drugs.’ But don’t do heroin or anything like that. I don’t think anything’s wrong with marijuana. I don’t really care. Alcohol? I’ve never been drunk or anything.
Wow that’s crazy.
I’ve been thinking about drinking, too. That’s the thing. There’s so many opportunities for me to drink. You know how shows are. It’s always around me, but I just don’t.
Be careful. You could have one of those crazy addictive personalities. How are you feeling about the mixtape dropping in June? What’s it like the day before it comes out?
I just want it to drop already. The day before it comes out, I’m usually just on my laptop waiting to release it. That’s a good question. It’s hard to answer that.
Do you worry about people liking it?
I want people to like it, but I don’t think too much on that. There’s always going to be someone out there that doesn’t like it. You’re just setting yourself up for disaster if you think like that [laughs].
It’s cool you got such an early start with your career. I’m kind of jealous [laughs].
[Laughs]
When’s your birthday?
August 26.
So you’re almost 20?
Unfortunately.
20s are pretty rough.
I don’t want to turn 20.
What’s the most important thing you want your fans to take away from your music?
I guess the biggest message is everything I write and you listen to, it’s always true to me. It’s just a different perspective of where I am at that time. I've never written something I've never done or felt. I feel like everything I write is pure and it’s all me, and my emotions. That’s one thing I want everyone to know. I’ve never written anything just to write it or written anything because it sounded cool.
As long as you speak from the heart, people will feel it.
That’s what I want people to know. Everything I write comes from my heart. I make sure it’s something I’m going to feel or someone else is going to feel. There are times I might write a line because it sounds dope, but it’s still coming from a place where this is something I’m feeling right now. I would never write a full verse about something I’ve never experienced. I was reading something about “Sacred Visions” and they called it trap. I was like, ‘No.’ I didn’t say anything about trap in the whole song. I didn’t say anything about selling drugs or anything like that. That’s not my lifestyle.
That’s frustrating.
Yeah, it’s just weird. Do you hear any trap bars in the song [laughs]?
