Black History Month according to Madison hip hop artist Rob Dz

I am so happy to be joined today by Rob D's.

Now Rob is known as an artist, an educator, and an activist.

Thanks for joining me.

Oh man, thanks for reaching out.

How do you fulfill all of those roles,

artist, educator, activist?

It's really just about putting my best foot forward

in whatever it is.

I'm either in the context of just trying to be a light.

If there's some way that I can spark something

for someone else, whether it's through music

or if it's impacting the kids that I work with,

hopefully people can get something from what I've gone through

and kind of push it along and pay it forward

as I try to pay it forward.

So that requires a lot of faith and a lot of belief that

even when things ain't okay, things gonna be okay.

Hip hop for you is also a really big part of your life

as the artist portion, but you also use it to sort of help kids

learn more about the music and how to do it and why it matters.

Why is that important for you?

For me, it's important in understanding being a voice

for the voiceless.

Sometimes, you know what I'm saying?

Like especially for me, like being a child of hip hop,

understanding that your voice makes noise,

like your voice resonates, your story resonates.

What you come from and what you've gone through is

it's something that you hope that you could pass along

that others can gain from it.

And that's the same way that I feel like with the babies

that I work with, shorties, the youngins and that, you know,

like to give them the understand that they have a story

that's important.

But yeah, I mean, like to really be able to get kids

to understand and in a lot of ways where like arts programming

is getting cut.

The importance of sharing stories is something

that needs to connect us all.

At least for me, trying to get kids to really understand

that their story is important.

Their struggle is important.

I've often heard that the word inspiration associated

with what I do, but like my biggest hope of inspiration

is to inspire other.

That's the thing.

And I feel like these babies out of future.

So we got to inspire them.

So when you see the light bulb go on above their head,

they're getting what you're talking about.

What does that feel like?

I taught a class this morning and it's an alternate

educational program that I'm working with.

So these are kids that have basically been expelled

or taken out of other programs.

I won't go into the name of the program.

But on the first day to see them buy into what we're talking about,

like you can see when you talk about the light bulb going off,

it's probably a light bulb that nobody's ever really gotten

to get them to open up.

There's a certain responsibility so that there's a joy

that comes from it.

But it's like, okay, man, let's roll up our sleeves.

Now let's get to it.

So the hope is to get them to see that their story has just

as much relevance as their song.

So in seeing that, it's always encouraging.

And it's always heartwarming.

At least for me, it always encourages me to continue to try

to be mindful and do that and share that connectedness.

Like hopefully that kids understand my life path.

And what I've kind of gone through and sharing that with them

helps them to be able to share their truth.

So it's a dope feeling.

I enjoyed it.

What is important to you in specific about celebrating Black History Month?

For me, especially now, the understanding that we are here

and it gives you a certain sense of pride of the history

that we have contributed to this place.

And with the hopes that as we continue going forward,

we as a country can understand the contributions

that African-Americans have made to this and not forget

to try to move forward together.

It's very important for me to honor that and to respect that.

And furthermore, I'll say to you,

like for me, it's always a responsibility

to be Black History every day.

I appreciate the month and I'm going to celebrate it to the fullest.

But it's also an importance to be Black History every day.

How are we doing?

What are we missing in our discussions about, you know,

whether we want to talk about Black History or Black Future?

Probably going to be weird to say it.

But I think we're missing the humanity of it all.

And that goes very deep.

But I think it not just having humanity be a check-off point, you know,

but having actually be an actual action to really care about common man

and who we are in our experiences.

And being able to appreciate the humanity of it all,

I think that will help the progress has been avoided.

And this is just my opinion, but sometimes I feel like, you know,

more about checking the box as we grow more through the times

that we are living in.

I think we should really start looking at appreciating the humanity

and letting that guide our forward motion.

Let me turn back now to music because your creativity,

it's landed you in some really great company.

And the one I'm really interested in is the National Museum

of African American History and Culture.

Tell me about this.

First of all, I was the, obviously, as none of the,

I was the community recipient for the National Medal of Honor

for Library and Museum Services on behalf of the Madison Public Library.

As a result of that, there was several interviews to have.

One of the interviews that happens will story corpse.

One of the things about being interviewed from them,

it put me in the Smithsonian.

And it just so happens that in the Library of Congress,

this interview is now housed in both of these places

and the Library of Congress and the Smithsonian.

That's how I weirdly got to be in the Smithsonian.

It's not alive. It's the actual truth.

You go to the Library of Congress,

are you going to the Smithsonian Museum for African American Studies?

You can go in here and sit down and listen to it.

Your story will live on forever that way.

Yeah.

You kind of lead this mad lit program.

I know it's been going on for a little while,

but how is it?

Where is it at in its growth process at this point?

We're answering year five.

And honestly, when this started,

I had no clue where we would be a year or five,

but here we are.

So excited about that.

The whole premises being at the top of stage street

to just share in the humanity of it all.

Understanding that people come from different backgrounds

and we still need to co-exist together to make things happen.

That's the celebration of that.

We have musicians.

We have visual artists.

We have small business vendors.

They don't necessarily get a chance to interact in the downtown area.

So we come and we actually move towards a better understanding

and existence for ourselves.

Where can we get more information?

So I would say the biggest thing is part of the project

that I work with,

the Greater Madison Music City Project,

which is basically a project designed to build

a music ecosystem in our town, you know,

understanding and really kind of the same thing

and realizing and kind of pluck people

into the end of the system.

And so where people are all being able to get an experience

from our music.

So that website is our GMMC.org.

So that's WWW, O-U-R-G,

Amazon Mary, Amazon Mary.

C is in city.org.

And when does Madlet get going again?

I believe we're starting in late June this year.

We actually moved up a week.

So something to look forward to for sure.

Yeah.

Well, I want to end this with your song Composure.

Tell me about this song.

I love it.

I think with the times that we live in,

Composure is required.

And it's kind of what I talk about,

just, you know, keeping your composure.

Even in being recognized in the town

and the interactions,

the weird interactions that I encounter,

even, you know,

the responsibility of being an African-American

and a predominantly white place, you know.

You know, even the composure of the climate

that our country is in.

All these things kind of require

a certain amount of composure.

And that's kind of where this song came from.

My homegirl,

Rocca,

Alimonde,

did the chorus on it.

Obviously, we played together in weapons of master function.

So it was an easy-ass,

and I appreciate her.

And yeah,

it was, it's funny because I,

I haven't released any music in a while

because I've,

I was doing a lot of other things.

So it was kind of me just kind of throwing something up there

and saying, hey, here it is.

That's it.

Thank you again for joining me.

Rob D's the artist.

Let's take a listen

to his song composure.

I'm a blue collar baby,

I'm a T-Cut Dad.

Something and I might need because I speak in facts.

Rob D's the same blue,

because I was speaking in facts.

Walking my ability,

these words and my debris.

How to keep composure through all of this greed.

Some throw jazz for us to fall off.

That day,

the only spot for us to fall off.

Work on old visions,

make sure they saw off.

Drew out of date,

point plays I call off.

This is for those separate organizations.

Tell my soul,

smack on these equal generations.

For the real,

we the people type situations.

Must've seen things before the trailblaze.

You come up at times,

we fail,

and give the joy at times,

we fail.

You just spread your wings,

and say, hey,

you just keep composure,

you're composure.

Time to get composure,

go for my demons.

See, that's the only way

to bust through the glass sips.

You can't trip 90 days,

so we'll be able to keep calm.

And now I'm tapped in my deeper feelings.

Things fall apart, man.

Now I get it.

But I know I'm back excellence.

It's often expected.

Staying clean,

when it's time to sort heck it.

The bull jazz and marches won't stop.

I don't sweat it.

Falling for the whole lust.

Now I'm batting,

and come up short.

And the way I come batting.

That was a decision with no time to trip.

Come on, soul on the line.

Word of words, ask let me.

It's money.

Managed to pray,

then your tension.

Now I just pray,

people give my intentions.

No matter the hurt,

which happens,

it's gonna get better.

Stay close.

To come up,

then time to be bailed.

And give the joy,

then time to be bailed.

You just spread your wings,

then sail,

and you just keep your composure,

and your composure.

It seemed like the y'all are going through it.

Cooler heads,

but bail composes.

How to do it?

Y'all got demons,

and excuse how fools me

was shaped up a story.

No one could have knew it.

Last name,

Franklin,

but I ain't no son.

In the word,

snowfall,

when he said you came.

And black and white,

sconsum required strength.

And I go for what I know,

shoot, think I ain't.

For seven,

and for less,

not part of my debate.

It's because I'm gonna be love

in the world for the hate.

You ain't put the pain,

then I know you came your late.

And you be just talking,

and I'll be like,

I'm straight,

plenty of fools,

put the care about you.

Be the loudest ones,

popin' how they got you.

You ain't never saw a partner

that's the part that hurt.

Keep my composure,

while they scream out loud.

Circle group to the point,

I had to cut it down,

photos different than mine,

then I got to shut it down.

What's where they go?

I just go when I hear it.

I ain't sayin' folks wrong.

I'm schoolin',

but what's fibbing?

You come up,

and times we are.

In the short,

and times we are.

You just spread your wings,

and say,

and you just,

keep your composure,

away your composure.

Oh, don't filter,

away your composure.