Yasiin Bey offered his unfiltered critique of the current music industry, and he has some thoughts. In a new interview with The Guardian at Paris Fashion Week, the Brooklyn native reflected on his past and current relationship with the industry.
“I was so disillusioned,” the acclaimed lyricist explained. “You start out with idealism and passion, and then you encounter the kind of conduct and values George Orwell called ‘inanities.’ And they do this sh– to everybody, it’s not even personal, it’s systemic.”
He continued, “That sh*t is gross,” regarding the streaming model adding, “paying people part of a penny for their music. Those motherf**kers are cold-blooded, man like Scrooge McDuck, lickin’ his lips as he jumps into a pool of gold coins. The music industry of now makes the one I started out in seem charitable. It’s completely exploitative.”
Yasiin Bey attends “Freestyle Love Supreme” Opening Night event at Booth Theatre on October 02, 2019 in New York City.
Arturo Holmes/Getty Images
This outlook is reflected in Yasiin Bey’s upcoming musical releases. In December 2024, he announced his Christmas Money album would be released this March on Bandcamp. It will be the first solo release from the rapper formerly known as Mos Def since 2019’s sound installation Negus.
Yasiin Bey’s collaborative album with The Alchemist, FORENSICS, is also receiving an unconventional release. According to The Guardian, fans can access the project by purchasing lanyards and branded baseball caps containing digital “Bump tags,” which enable online access to FORENSICS when tapped against a user’s smartphone.
“It’s lo-fi, hi-tech high art,” Bey declared of the album.
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