It was way too hot at Montrealâs Osheaga festival for the cap and blazer Aloe Blacc wore on stage, but somehow, neither he nor his band seemed to be feeling the heat. Maybe theyâre just that cool. Since his breakout moment two years ago, thanks in part to HBOâs How to Make It in America using his âI Need a Dollarâ as its theme song, the manâs been all over the world performing his soul music. After his set at Osheaga, he dropped the blazer and the hat and talked to Complex about how heâs gotten to this point, his rap past, and his next album.
Interview by Brad Wete (@BradWete)
Your live show is great. How much work goes into putting it together with your band?
Weâve spent the last 18 months developing the show, doing over 250 performances. So we have a groove with the old material, and weâre trying to work in the new material. It feels good and I feel like itâs translating to the audience.
Your popularity blew up after the How to Make It America in America placement. Talk about your journey as an artist.
My beginningâs in hip-hop. In 1995, I started making music with DJ Exile. In about 2004, â05, I introduced Exile to Blu. Then I was like, âExileâs got an MC to work with, Iâm going to experiment on some singing." Stones Throw ended up signing me as a singer, and I started releasing music that was kind of a mix of different genres. In 2008, I traveled the world promoting Shine Through music and working on new stuff. Just being creative doing side projects here and there. And then Stones Throw said, âWhy donât you go to New York and do a record.â
It ended up being really good album. A few months after we finished the album, HBO was looking for the theme music for How to Make It in America. From hearing the whole album, they picked âI Need a Dollar.â DJ Green Lantern made a mixtape for the show with the music that was in the show. That went viral and âI Need a Dollarâ ended up being one of those tracks that everybody heard. It blew up in Europe. That went to the Germans and the Brits. Itâs been a great ride ever since.
I didnât know you rapped.
Iâm an MC. I started rapping ever since Beat Street. My favorite acts were A Tribe Called Quest, N.W.A., Nas, De La Soul, and Pharcyde. When hip-hop became violent and misogynistic, it really wasnât working for me and Iâm not going to make it on any level doing what Iâm doing because my sound was what was hot anymore. I went and toured in Europe with Oh No, Madlibâs younger brother. Heâs a really dope producer. I came home and recorded an album with him. We never released the album, but two of songs were ones I was singing on. Stones Throw ended up signing me off of one of them. And then we just started working out how Iâm going to be a vocalist.
Itâs crazy that singing was an afterthought for you. Now youâre killing it vocally.
Nah, I donât even have it. Iâm still developing my voice. Everybody believes it, so weâre going to keep running with it until theyâre like, âAh! Itâs like the Wizard of Oz! Ainât nothing going on behind the curtain.â
I finished another album with Exile already. We just need to mix and master it. Weâll probably release it independently to the fans for free. The live show is really where we make our mark. Itâs about the live show at this point.
Were you always a fan of soul singers, though?
I grew up playing the trumpet, so I listened to a lot of jazz and learned about jazz vocalists like Mel TormĂ© and current ones like Anita Baker. My parents are from Panama, so I grew up listening to a lot of meringue and salsa. Also calypso, soca, and reggae. But I grew up in the suburbs of Orange County. Most of my friends were white and their parents were listening to classic rock. I was learning about The Who and The Beatles and that kind of stuff. I loved singer-song-writers like Cat Stevens and James Taylor. I thought I could make songs like that, so I tried. Itâs worked out.
Is the new song you performed, âI Wanna Be With You,â your new single?
Itâs not out yet. Weâre testing it out on audiences to see if it works and then maybe itâll be the next single.
When do you think youâll release your next album?
Hopefully, before the end of the year. I think I have enough songs for it. I think I have the right ones for it. Itâs just a matter of producing them right. So Iâm testing them out on the road. I had time in June to write. When I finish this tour, Iâll have time to record a bit more.
Can you describe the sound on your next album? Will it be a departure from the old school sound or a continuation?
Itâll be a continuation. Itâll be soulful. Itâll be political and social with content. Itâll have a broad appeal. I like to make music as the greats of the past did. Al Greenâs âLetâs Stay Togetherâ is a soul song, but itâs a pop song. Same goes for Stevie Wonderâs âMy Cherie Amour.â Thatâs ultimately where Iâm going to make my mark.