Black Star arose from the underground movement of the late 1990s, which was in large part due to Rawkus Records, an independent record label stationed in New York City, NY, USA. They released their self titled debut album in 1998. Though the record achieved little commercial success, they (and other members of the Native Tongues Posse) helped shape underground alternative rap and helped bring it further into the mainstream eye. Both have gone on to greater commercial and critical success in separate solo careers.
A sample on the album from the film Chameleon Street has generated the often repeated and often misattributed quote, "I'm a victim brother. I'm a victim of 400 years of conditioning. The man has programmed my conditioning. Even my conditioning has been conditioned!"
Most recently Mos and Kweli appeared together in the movie Dave Chappelle's Block Party, alongside Jill Scott, Dead Prez and The Fugees, among others. They even contributed a new song, "Born & Raised", to the movie's soundtrack.
In November 2009, members and collaborators of Black Star released a collaboration album with the alt-blues/rock band, The Black Keys, under the title "The Blakroc Project." Project members included RZA, Jim Jones, Mos Def, Q-Tip, and others.
According to hip hop website TheSituation.co.uk, Kweli has said that a new Black Star album is "in the pipeline". On Talib Kweli's Myspace he posted up a video saying that "We're going to find Mos Def and put it on camera that there will be a second Black Star album. Black Star released their second album titled entitled No Fear of Time in 2022.
Discography
===========
Albums
Black Star (1998)
No Fear of Time (2022)
The Blakroc Project (2009) Collaborative album with The Black Keys
Singles
"Definition"(1998)
"Respiration" (1999)
Other collaborations
"Know That" from Mos Def's 1999 album, Black on Both Sides
"Joy" from Talib Kweli's 2002 album, Quality
"Supreme Supreme" from Talib Kweli's 2005 album, Right About Now
"Bright as the Stars" from Mos Def's 2005 single, "Ah Ha"
"What It Is" from Talib Kweli's 2005 mixtape, The Beautiful Mixtape Vol. 2
"Born & Raised" from the 2006 soundtrack, Dave Chappelle's Block Party
"This Means You", produced by DJ Hi-Tek on the album Train Of Thought
"What's Beef", live from Chappelle's Show
"Get By [remix]", from Kanye West's mixtape Freshman Adjustment 3
"Gitcha, Gitcha, Gitcha", from Talib Kweli's 2004 album The Beautiful Struggle
"Little Brother", The Hurricane
"History" from Mos Def's 2009 album The Ecstatic.
There is another band with the same name:
2) A dark rock band, formed in Jakarta, Indonesia (2000), based on the common taste of its members, Emir (vocal), Aloel (guitar), Yudi (guitar), Q-nos (bass), Ine (keyboard) and Roby (drum). They had always adored british bands such as Radiohead and Muse, and started playing to cover their music. The name "Black Star" itself was taken from a track in Radihead's album, The Bends.
In 2005, they started recording their own material. Swiftly they gained attention of indie music community and acquired got good reviews by the media, especially for their single "Schizofrenia". Their long-anticipated debut album has been released in March 2009. The first single from the album, Abnormal Aku, in collaboration with Cholil Mahmud from Efek Rumah Kaca, was a huge success in local indie scene. The album has a theme of diseases, from biological, social to psychological diseases. This shows the empathy from the band towards their surrounding envronment.
Their second album, titled "Luar Angkasa", was released on 14th February 2016 with Demajors Independent Music Industry (DIMI).
Free tracks can be downloaded at their offical website, http://www.blackstarid.com.
Buy their album at http://cdbaby.com/cd/blackstarpop
Children
Black Star Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
When people wore Adidas and lived life slow
When laws were stern and justice stood
And people was behaving like hip-hop was good
There lived a little boy who was misled
By a little Sha-tan and this is what he said
"Me and you kid we gonna make some cash
Jacking old beats and making the dash"
But son, he couldn't stop, it's like he had a disease
He jacked another and another, Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder
Set some R&B over the track for "Deep Cover" (187!)
The kid got wild, started acting erratic
He said "Yo, that presidential I got to have it"
With liquor in his belly son, he made up the track
But little did he know that his joints was wack
The shiny A&R said "Great new hit, G!"
"Whenever you need a loop, yo come get me"
The kid got amped and he starts to figure
"I'ma get dough like all of these other niggas!"
So, he's in the studio working round the clock
For pop radio, jacked the beat to 'Planet Rock'
Was out in the street when he met this sister
Who couldn't sing for shh but the mix would assist her
Hooked up the track and in excitation
He decided he'd head for the radio station
But (What?) he was running and he made a left
Was skeezing at top speed and ran into Mos Def
I slowed the young man down and I started: "Yo money
Yo, why you selling lies to our wives and children?"
He ran upstairs up to the top floor
Opened up the door then guess who he saw? (Who?)
Jane the chickenhead radio host
Who be yapping 'bout beef between east and west coast
He said "This one's a bullet, you got to give it run!"
The chicken said "Thanks" and spanked it #1
He went outside, was getting props all over
Then he dipped into his ride, the 4-point Rover
Raced up the block doing 83
Some cats with Hennessey saw him at a R-E-D
He winked his eye like his star status mattered
They rat-a-tat-tatted to make his blood splatter
"You rocking crazy ice and all you do is cling static
And rolling out in Brooklyn late night is problematic"
His eyes was bloody red, he hung on every word they said
They told the kid "Back down, that player shit is dead"
Deep in his heart, he knew he was gone
But he grabbed his .45 and decide to blaze on
With shades on founded had him astounded and
Before long the young man got surrounded
Those grabbed the guns, so goes the glory
And this is the way I got to end this story
He was out chasing cream and the American dream
Trying to pretend the ends justify the means
This ain't funny so don't you dare laugh
It's just what comes to pass when you sell your ass
Life is more than what your hands can grasp
Good night!
The Black Star song Children is a commentary on the negative influence of hip-hop culture on young people. The song describes a young boy who is led astray by an older individual into a life of crime, and eventually ends up being shot and killed. The lyrics suggest that the boy's desire for money and success, as well as his exposure to violent hip-hop themes, led to his undoing.
The song's opening lines set the scene by describing a time when hip-hop was seen as a positive cultural force, but then goes on to suggest that this has changed. The lyrics describe the boy's descent into criminal activity, including stealing beats and producing low-quality music. The song also criticizes radio stations for promoting violent and misogynistic themes, and suggests that hip-hop culture has become too focused on materialism and violence.
Line by Line Meaning
Once upon a time not long ago
Long ago, during a different time
When people wore Adidas and lived life slow
People lived a simple life, wearing Adidas shoes
When laws were stern and justice stood
Laws were strict and justice was important
And people was behaving like hip-hop was good
Hip-hop was popular culture and had an impact on people's behavior
There lived a little boy who was misled
There was a young boy who was deceived
By a little Sha-tan and this is what he said
Deceived by someone causing him harm
"Me and you kid we gonna make some cash
The deceiver made promises of making money
Jacking old beats and making the dash"
They stole music and tried to profit from it
They jacked the beats, money came with ease
They made money quickly from stealing music
But son, he couldn't stop, it's like he had a disease
He became addicted to stealing music
He jacked another and another, Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder
He continued stealing music from famous artists
Set some R&B over the track for "Deep Cover" (187!)
He added R&B music to a stolen song
The kid got wild, started acting erratic
He became reckless and unpredictable
He said "Yo, that presidential I got to have it"
He became greedy and wanted material possessions
With liquor in his belly son, he made up the track
He was under the influence of alcohol when he made his music
But little did he know that his joints was wack
He didn't realize that his music was not good
The shiny A&R said "Great new hit, G!"
A record label executive praised his stolen song
"Whenever you need a loop, yo come get me"
The executive offered to help him make more music
The kid got amped and he starts to figure
He got excited and started to plan
"I'mma get dough like all of these other niggas!"
He wanted to make money like other successful musicians
So, he's in the studio working round the clock
He worked long hours in the recording studio
For pop radio, jacked the beat to 'Planet Rock'
He stole music for the purpose of making pop music
Was out in the street when he met this sister
He met a woman while outside
Who couldn't sing for shh but the mix would assist her
She couldn't sing well, but her voice was improved in the music mix
Hooked up the track and in excitation
They worked together and were excited about the music
He decided he'd head for the radio station
He wanted to get his music on the radio
But (What?) he was running and he made a left
He took a left turn while running towards the radio station
Was skeezing at top speed and ran into Mos Def
He was running fast and collided with Mos Def
I slowed the young man down and I started: "Yo money
Mos Def intervened and started talking to him
Yo, why you selling lies to our wives and children?"
Mos Def questioned his music's impact on families
He ran upstairs up to the top floor
He ran upstairs to reach the top floor of the radio station
Opened up the door then guess who he saw? (Who?)
He opened the door and saw Jane, the radio host
Jane the chickenhead radio host
She was an uneducated, foolish radio host
Who be yapping 'bout beef between east and west coast
She was talking about conflict between the two coasts of America
He said "This one's a bullet, you got to give it run!"
He recommended that she play his new song
The chicken said "Thanks" and spanked it #1
She played his song and it became very popular
He went outside, was getting props all over
People were congratulating him and showing him respect
Then he dipped into his ride, the 4-point Rover
He drove his expensive car
Raced up the block doing 83
He drove very fast
Some cats with Hennessey saw him at a R-E-D
Other people noticed him driving fast with a bottle of Hennessey cognac
He winked his eye like his star status mattered
He thought he was important and showed off
They rat-a-tat-tatted to make his blood splatter
They shot him with a gun, causing him to bleed
"You rocking crazy ice and all you do is cling static
He wore expensive jewelry to prove his wealth, but didn't add anything new to music
And rolling out in Brooklyn late night is problematic
Driving in Brooklyn at night can be dangerous
His eyes was bloody red, he hung on every word they said
He was injured and listened intently to what they said
They told the kid "Back down, that player shit is dead"
They advised him to stop being greedy and arrogant
Deep in his heart, he knew he was gone
He knew he was going to die
But he grabbed his .45 and decide to blaze on
He took out his gun and decided to keep fighting
With shades on founded had him astounded and
He was surprised by someone wearing similar sunglasses
Before long the young man got surrounded
He was surrounded by people with guns
Those grabbed the guns, so goes the glory
The people with guns took control and won the power struggle
And this is the way I got to end this story
This is the conclusion of the story
He was out chasing cream and the American dream
He was pursuing wealth and success
Trying to pretend the ends justify the means
He believed that his actions were justified by his goals
This ain't funny so don't you dare laugh
The story is serious and not to be taken lightly
It's just what comes to pass when you sell your ass
This is what happens when you compromise your values for money
Life is more than what your hands can grasp
There is more to life than material possessions
Good night!
The story is over
Lyrics © THE ROYALTY NETWORK INC., Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Dante Smith, Shawn Mallory Jones
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind