A Hero to Most
How Public Enemy Influenced Sage Francis
By Kyle Eustice
When Providence, Rhode Island-based emcee Sage Francis was 12-years-old, he went to one of his most memorable concerts, which featured EPMD, LL Cool J, Fresh Prince and Public Enemy. Public Enemy and the words of Chuck D left a lasting imprint on the impressionable young Francis. In fact, he jokes about wanting to be his intern to this day. Since launching his career, Francis has collected plenty of accolades of his own along the way. Beginning with 2002'sPersonal Journals and culminating with 2014's Copper Gone, he's proven to be an extremely clever wordsmith unparalleled by most. The former spoken word champion is indeed one of this millennium's best emcees. Before he embarks on yet another leg of the Copper Gone tour, Francis had some time to talk Public Enemy and why Chuck D is still one of his heroes.
RAPstation (Kyle Eustice): I read somewhere that Chuck D is still one of your heroes and in fact, you'd do his laundry if he asked. What about Public Enemy resonated with you so loudly as a kid?
The same reason they resonated with everybody. They were group that even rock kids liked during an era where there were strict lines between hip-hop, rock and metal. There wasn't much integration as there is today with genres. They had so much working for them. It was the lyrics, the rage, the sounds; it was so fresh and brand new. The feeling was there something much bigger at work. It wasn't just the music. It was organization, it was strategy, messages, humor; they had so much happening, you could just study them. I was just so curious about what they were about so I'd have to research certain topics. This was during very formidable years for me. It was my early teens when music, at that point, is your whole life.
I was the same way. I didn't care about anything else as a teenager.
I don't know if it's still like that. I feel like kids have a lot more options for entertainment today. For my generation, we all based our lives around music. I do remember how big Public Enemy was. If somebody didn't have their albums it was weird [laughs]. Everybody had them.
Most 12-years-old weren't thinking about starting revolution. It seems like you were ahead of your time.
I think I alarmed my parents a bit with that. My school was not so happy with my approach to certain topics. Another reason Public Enemy was so important is because it was breaking me out of a homogeneous environment. I was really sick of the bland, white picket fence shit. They showed me there was more out there.
My first show on my own was The Beastie Boys, L7 and House of Pain during the Check Your Head tour.
See, it even took me awhile to get into the Beastie Boys because they were white.
Really?
That's how hard-lined I was at that time. My mom bought me their album because she knew I loved hip-hop and that's all I was listening to. When Beastie Boys broke out with "Fight for Your Right to Party," it sounded like rock and I didn't want to listen to white guys [laughs]. I was reluctant until one day I got bored and listened to it.
Ad-Rock's voice is hard to get used to at first.
[Laughs] I love his voice! Ad-Rock was one of my biggest inspirations. In fact, I have early recordings of myself where I try to rap just like him.
[Laughs] I wish I could hear those.
I could dig those up. I used to do to "Paul Revere."
I have that memorized if you want to do that now [laughs].
[Laughs] Run actually wrote that song. That's weird to realize that. I was lucky enough to write the forward for this book For Whom the Cow Bell Tolls. It's about Paul's Boutique. That was a big record for me. It was a huge honor to get to write that.
I took way too much liquid LSD and listened to Paul's Boutique.
[Laughs] I didn't need any drugs. That was the closest I got to drugs as a kid.
There's a reason I've been sober for almost 10 years. What are your top three Public Enemy songs?
My favorite P.E. albums are Yo! Bum Rush the Show and It Takes A Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back. This is hard one. I'm feeling the pressure. I would say "Can't Truss It," "Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos," and "Prophets of Rage."
A Hero to Most: How Public Enemy Influenced Sage Francis
A Hero to Most
How Public Enemy Influenced Sage Francis
By Kyle Eustice
When Providence, Rhode Island-based emcee Sage Francis was 12-years-old, he went to one of his most memorable concerts, which featured EPMD, LL Cool J, Fresh Prince and Public Enemy. Public Enemy and the words of Chuck D left a lasting imprint on the impressionable young Francis. In fact, he jokes about wanting to be his intern to this day. Since launching his career, Francis has collected plenty of accolades of his own along the way. Beginning with 2002'sPersonal Journals and culminating with 2014's Copper Gone, he's proven to be an extremely clever wordsmith unparalleled by most. The former spoken word champion is indeed one of this millennium's best emcees. Before he embarks on yet another leg of the Copper Gone tour, Francis had some time to talk Public Enemy and why Chuck D is still one of his heroes.
RAPstation (Kyle Eustice): I read somewhere that Chuck D is still one of your heroes and in fact, you'd do his laundry if he asked. What about Public Enemy resonated with you so loudly as a kid?
The same reason they resonated with everybody. They were group that even rock kids liked during an era where there were strict lines between hip-hop, rock and metal. There wasn't much integration as there is today with genres. They had so much working for them. It was the lyrics, the rage, the sounds; it was so fresh and brand new. The feeling was there something much bigger at work. It wasn't just the music. It was organization, it was strategy, messages, humor; they had so much happening, you could just study them. I was just so curious about what they were about so I'd have to research certain topics. This was during very formidable years for me. It was my early teens when music, at that point, is your whole life.
I was the same way. I didn't care about anything else as a teenager.
I don't know if it's still like that. I feel like kids have a lot more options for entertainment today. For my generation, we all based our lives around music. I do remember how big Public Enemy was. If somebody didn't have their albums it was weird [laughs]. Everybody had them.
Most 12-years-old weren't thinking about starting revolution. It seems like you were ahead of your time.
I think I alarmed my parents a bit with that. My school was not so happy with my approach to certain topics. Another reason Public Enemy was so important is because it was breaking me out of a homogeneous environment. I was really sick of the bland, white picket fence shit. They showed me there was more out there.
My first show on my own was The Beastie Boys, L7 and House of Pain during the Check Your Head tour.
See, it even took me awhile to get into the Beastie Boys because they were white.
Really?
That's how hard-lined I was at that time. My mom bought me their album because she knew I loved hip-hop and that's all I was listening to. When Beastie Boys broke out with "Fight for Your Right to Party," it sounded like rock and I didn't want to listen to white guys [laughs]. I was reluctant until one day I got bored and listened to it.
Ad-Rock's voice is hard to get used to at first.
[Laughs] I love his voice! Ad-Rock was one of my biggest inspirations. In fact, I have early recordings of myself where I try to rap just like him.
[Laughs] I wish I could hear those.
I could dig those up. I used to do to "Paul Revere."
I have that memorized if you want to do that now [laughs].
[Laughs] Run actually wrote that song. That's weird to realize that. I was lucky enough to write the forward for this book For Whom the Cow Bell Tolls. It's about Paul's Boutique. That was a big record for me. It was a huge honor to get to write that.
I took way too much liquid LSD and listened to Paul's Boutique.
[Laughs] I didn't need any drugs. That was the closest I got to drugs as a kid.
There's a reason I've been sober for almost 10 years. What are your top three Public Enemy songs?
My favorite P.E. albums are Yo! Bum Rush the Show and It Takes A Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back. This is hard one. I'm feeling the pressure. I would say "Can't Truss It," "Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos," and "Prophets of Rage."
