YES YES YALL!!! I'm back, and terribly late with this blog (As much as I love this, ya boy is a student and employee first lol). Its cool though, it is my personal pleasure to introduce you to this young, funky, unique duo, aptly named HUMUNI!!! Read, enjoy, they have several You Tube videos that I will post up, they have a free mixtape on datpiff.com and several other sites. Facebook, I think twitter, these young brothas are hustling with a drive and determination reminiscent of the old school era. ENJOY!!! And look out for more.
First off, who is HumUni?
Mega: A bunch of losers honestly. Never liked 'em.
No, but on a serious note, we are the Humble Understanding Moneymaking Uniquely New Individuals. We are the third generation of the Native Tongues, at least in my opinion. We just represent hip hop for what it is, expression.
Ish: I’ll humbly add we’re renaissance men. We are both multi-faceted in talents beyond the music. Mega does fashion design, I do film and graphic design. Simultaneously we’re both poets as well.
How did the idea come about?
Mega: Media project in high school. Ish wanted to do a track with me, a remix to "Dead Presidents". After I heard Ish's verse, this is before it was even recorded, I just fell in love with the potential. I could see myself having a great chemistry with him on record, one, he was my best friend even before that time, two, his baritone voice complimented my high pitch. It was an "ear" move so to say, I felt we sounded dope on one record and we should be a group.
Ish: After that more things started to thread together. We were affiliated with a lot of the same artists and non-profits (i.e. Urban Word NYC and Reelworks Teen Filmmaking). It’s become a Cosby/Poitier type of a bond, or any other dynamic duo you can name. We essentially grew together as artists, mainly bonded by the music. The logo came about from a project I had to do in art class. It was a clothing patch, and after an intense day of adding more symbols into the design, I knew it’d represent HumUni quite well.
When did you first realize that making music was your calling?
Mega: I recognized very young. Very, very young. Singing Michael Jackson songs and what not. Being young I could hit all those Jackson 5 high notes, matched with the fact I had a natural singing ability, I would have to perform for the family at every gathering,Moonwalk and all. As I got older, I just appreciated the music I was brought up on, Mom played the oldies, Dad played the reggae, and I kinda discovered rap by accident. The first "RAP" record I heard was "Homie Lover Friend" by R.Kelly, which is on the R.Kelly album, yeah the same one with "Bump N Grind", "My Body's Callin'", etc. So I didn't pay much attention to it.
Ish: For me music has been as essential as breathing. I treat it as a second religion. I realize now it may derive from genetics, haha. My father (who produces our original tracks) is an audio engineer and has been in the industry of entertainment since he was our age. I was always in the studio with him, when he had sessions with locals and to those who went to become big names. I didn’t realize it was my calling until I got out of my own head with it. Once I did that Dead Presidents remix with Mega, from that point I knew this was going to culminate into something really dope.
What influences your music?
Mega: The genius of life. There are so many moments of genius, of oneness in the world. I just like to draw from that.
Ish: Word to what Mega said. It’s also how the genius of life and the human experience converges with imagination. I feel that’s what living out your dreams equals; when you can’t seem to separate the two.
How much of an influence have other people (such as your pops, other artists, etc) had on your artistic development as well as the development of Humuni?
Mega: Verdery Knights, i think she's a bigger influence on HumUni than we can fathom. She was a student and a friend to us at Benjamin Banneker Academy. Such an artist, and just a beautiful human. Everytime we pray, we make sure to include her in our blessings. I mean, she just taught me to go hard at everything. In fact, my personal motto is "encompass everything". Carvens Lissaint, an amazing artist as well, also inspires me. Makes me love the process of being an artist, reminds me of the student aspect of it, he's always down to learn something, always open to the life-changing. I could tell you like my top five favorite rappers and how they influence me, but that would be doing the usual. I think the duality of things also helps the development of HumUni, like when Ish was a member of the UW Slam Team last year and did group pieces with other amazing poets, just learning how to balance your talents, how to shine and reflect, not shine and absorb, all that good stuff that makes a duo dynamic.
Ish: We’re backed by a community that is like family. The circle of artists we’re around, it’s a beautiful influence, and it continues to grow every day. The way I observe it now, it’s like the Black Arts Movement. It was a time where the musicians knew the painters who knew the politicians who knew the writers, all who collaborated and supported each other. That’s something we embrace in our circle unconsciously.
What can your fans expect from you guys in the future?
Mega: Expect us to put Brooklyn back where it needs to be. That's all I can say for now.
Ish: Constant development. We’re two youngbloods y’know? I hope the people we reach will watch us grow and simultaneously grow with us. We’re not pipeline artists, those types run out of battery. We function on the spirit, and the heart. So that’s what to expect from our futurecreations, really cool stuff from the heart. Oh yeah, and to be OH SO BROOKLYN WIT IT!!!
