Vid Pick: Conscious – 3:33

Long before he became one of Brooklyn’s great entrepreneurs, and community leaders, Conscious was a hip-hop renaissance man – part emcee, part producer, part poet, and even occasional singer. A true artistic visionary, he released a visual album over a full year before Beyonce.

With a late night posting of a new song titled “3:33,” Conscious reminded everyone that the artist inside him is still alive and well. I caught up with him to get the story behind “3:33,” as well as the video he released for it, and find out what’s been inspiring him of late.

Clocking in at just under 1:45, “3:33” is in the tradition of much of your work, embracing quality over quantity. What inspired the content of the song, and why did you want to get this particular message out right now?

I believe one night a few lines came to me while listening to (Jay-Z’s) 4:44. I think after that I sought out an instrumental version, found it, and continued to write.

Initially it was just a verse to upload to Bandcamp. Of course, I couldn’t leave it at just that. I decided to create the video, and the selection of this particular clip suited it so well.

Lyrically this is in line with my general life message of #SelfWorkMatters. (I was) expressing some feelings and ideas that were floating in my mind at the time.

The present is always a good time to advocate for #selflove.

I personally enjoyed, and was moved by, the 4:44 record, as well the original song the sample is borrowed from. I feel all three creations present a depth of emotion, introspection, and communicate human experiences that are familiar, though perhaps not discussed regularly as candidly, and matter of factly.

Sometimes my delivery mirrors Jay's as it can seemingly lack emotion while clearly speaking of matters of emotion. 

Where was the video shot, and what spoke to you about this location?

A good friend of mine shared some video from a visit back home, (and) I asked if I could use it for something in the future. (I had) no idea that I'd be writing “3:33” shortly after.

(The location) is called the Babbacombe Cliff Railway. Babbacombe is the name of an area/beach in Torquay, in the English county of Devon. 

There is just an energy. I can't articulate it. It makes sense. 

Is there any hidden meaning to the panning out, and/or the video being shot sideways?

No hidden meaning. Not from me. But from feedback, the motion of this video, and the movement of objects in the environment, had a definite impact on viewers. That I purposefully played with. I mean, I felt it as I created it in the wee hours of the morning.

The video is one continuous shot captured by an iPhone, so it was (originally) vertical, and I actually for the first time considered letting it go as that, totally against my feelings about the proper way to hold a phone to shoot, and as an exercise to be less ridged about the way things have to be done. But when I dropped it into my editing program it appeared horizontally, and honestly it ended up lending much to the mood and presentation.

The video was just a few seconds longer than the musical recording, and I wanted to make sure I used it all without truncating. I sped it up slightly to match, and present space for a more dramatic display of the title card at the end.

Timing is so important. When you don't have much (time), it's even more critical when combining visual and sound elements to capture a mood, and round out your piece in theatric fashion, even when it's video on a mobile device. If I can capture attention in that space like one would on a giant screen, then that's a win.

Other than being a play on Jay-Z’s 4:44, why did you name the track “3:33?”

Three is the number of completion. Beginning, middle, and end.

What are you working on for the rest of 2017?

Monday, Wednesday, and Friday mornings I’m on the air doing TK in The AM on Bondfire Radio. I’m continuing to build the station, doing #selfwork, of course, and developing Geturshirt and HoodMarket101.

To quote the late Dr. Wayne Dyer, “You are where you focus,” so I'm focused on self study, success in business, and leading with love.