The Source

The Source is an American hip hop and entertainment website and magazine, first founded as a newsletter in 1988 by David Mays. American rapper Lupe Fiasco appeared in their May 2006 issue, where they discussed his signing to a major label, relationship with Jay-Z, and his company 1st & 15th Entertainment.Triviño, Jesús (May 2006). The Source. They also interviewed The Boy Illinois in 2013, who was an opener for Fiasco's Tetsuo & Youth Preview Tour."Exclusive Interview: Lupe Fiasco's Tour Opening Act The Boy Illinois". The Source. December 15, 2013.
== Interviews ==
=== 2006 ===
Sitting in Manhattan's Brooklyn Diner, Lupe Fiasco's youthful exuberance takes over as he contemplates his near signing with Roc-A-Fella Records. Three years ago, the 21-year-old Chi-town native lyrically mesmerized Jay-Z over the phone. The two have kept in touch ever since, meeting up to listen to each other's unreleased lab work.
"The whole time, Jay was on the radio saying, 'Yo, Chi-town, I got one of your n*ggas from the West Side,'" says Fiasco, whose government name is Wafalu Muhammad Jaco. "We always had that relationship. But signing to the Roc, it just didn't pan out. The situation wasn't there." Still, thanks to Jay's statements, major labels like Bad Boy came calling. In the end, Arista's L.A. Reid snatched the young rhyme slayer through his production company 1st & 15th. "I just love his wordplay," says Jay-Z. "Everyone is stale right now, so he's refreshing to me."
Fiasco's singing with Arista was his official introduction to the game, giving his whole fam at 1st & 15th the opportunity to get their movement jumping. Not only is Fiasco the production company's premier artist, he also works as president and co-owner while his manager, Chilly, is CEO. Comprised of a stable of MCs, R&B artists and songwriters, 1st & 15th's roster also includes producers Bryce Wilson (formerly of Groove Theory) and Boogz and Pro, who nourished most of Fiasco's debut Food & Liquor.
Being a leader comes naturally to the rhyming Muslim. Lupe's been a black belt in several martial arts since his youth, and though he later succumbed to street life, he's given up the hustle for good. Today, he watches his fries get cold as he waits for two guest spots from Jay-Z.
=== 2012 ===
The Source 	Alright, I have my first question. Chicago has seen over three hundred murders just alone in this summer.
Lupe Fiasco	Yeah.
The Source 	I mean, what is your take on it?
Lupe Fiasco	It's terrible. Terrible and-and it's crazy, 'cause New Orleans is the murder capital. So how many have they seen, and then Baltimore, you know. In D.C., and Oakland? It's a terrible, terrible thing. Urban youth violence is definitely something that's out of hand, um. And specifically for me, because my cousin's out there, my nephew's out there in the streets, you know. So it's kind of like extra kind of sensitive to them.
The Source 	Why do you think there is so much violence in Chicago?
Lupe Fiasco	Well, I don't know. I mean, there's a few—and it's in Philly, it's different places, so there's a lot of people thinking on it. So there's things coming up where people are doing research and they saying that. The main core factors have to do with like aggression, sexuality, and materialism. You know, are the main kind of three main causes of it, why kids are killing each other, getting into each other over a girl. Um, you know. Over some type of possession, over some shoes or something petty. And it's even beyond gang violence and beyond drugs. They're like, a lot of the drugs are gone. I know real drug from inner cities no more, simply because it's dried up, you know. So, and all of the gangs are kind of. They're there, but it's still not enough to kind of why this is happening at this rate. So it's a real social things, you know, that needs to be tackled on a whole other level now.
The Source 	I agree. How do you think we can begin to solve the issues in Chicago and in other places?
Lupe Fiasco	Well, you need a think tank and you need to, you need to. The first thing is you got to figure out how to get these kids to value themselves and value their life. Because you got kids who just like, you know, I ain't going. It's like it's 1929 or it's the 1800s and it's like I'm not going to live past 17. You know what I'm saying? It's like, my man you can live to be a hundred years older these days if you take care of yourself right. But, I say that to say that there's a lack of value in yourself. And a lack of value, and they don't have nobody themselves, they don't value their [?]
The Source 	Okay, um. Do you think more Chicago rappers should step up to the media?
Lupe Fiasco	Yeah, a lot of them are. You know what I'm saying, like. You got, you got Rhymefest specifically and I know-I know he's down to do this. They're doing a peace fest coming up real soon in the city. I'm gonna try and be able to involved that as well, in whatever I can. But you got, you got people who know that it's there. Um, but it's such a weird situation, you know. Because a lot of people, they promoted that.
The Source 	Right.
Lupe Fiasco	So now that it's at your front door. What do you say now, you know? So it's-it's people in the city trying to do their part doing the best they can. I know my man GLC is really, really down, doing a lot of good stuff. When I was speaking at [?] in high school, it was all types of crazy. We're doing the best we can.
The Source 	Okay, um. Your Chicago Sun-Times article I thought was amazing. But, um. Do you feel like—you said you feel like you thought you were gonna feel like an outcast. Do you feel like an outcast in the industry?
Lupe Fiasco	Yeah, indeed. I feel like an outcast everywhere I go. You know, because I was raised up in all these different worlds, you know. So I can retreat to each one. And when you retreat to one, you look crazy in another kind of thing, you know. So I always feel a little bit, you know, on-on the fence, you know. Wherever I am, you know.
The Source 	Okay, all right. So of course you made a comment about not particularly liking 2 Chainz and Kanye West's new song. Um, I don't want to ask you about that but what I do want to ask you. What artists are you listening to, and what songs are you listening to? What is it for you?
Lupe Fiasco	Um, in hip hop?
The Source 	In hip hop, yeah.
Lupe Fiasco	In hip hop I listen to like. I listen to Kendrick Lamar. I'm still bumping Nas and Damien Marley album, you know what I'm saying, um. Danny, Danny Brown, I just got the Life Is Good today, I'm still kind of going through it. Uh, Danny Brown, even Watch the Throne, you know what I'm saying? For the sake of, you know? Um. So I'm still there.
The Source 	But you still do listen to Kanye?
Lupe Fiasco	Yeah, I listen to Kanye. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I just, me—I rarely listen to hip hop now so when I do it has to be like a thing. But I rock Future. I play Future in my DJ sets, same damn time. I like it, you know. That's honest, you know? That's what it is.
The Source 	Definitely bumps. Okay, um. Food & Liquor II. Give me something, who are you working with?
Lupe Fiasco	Not really too many features, Bilal is on there, as of right now. Um, everything else is more just on the producer side. I got my man, I got my man. I got my man Soundtrakk on there, you know. He's been with me like forever. Uh, working my home is The Fifteen Hundreds, my old band. Um, you know. I worked with The Runners, you know. Not too nothing extravagant, you know what I'm saying? Not like oh, I got Swizz Beatz and I brought back the Trackmasters. It's like nah, it's just kind of just the homies.
The Source 	Why did you keep it simple?
Lupe Fiasco	Because it's simpler, it's easier. Beats ain't 100 grand, you know what I'm sayin'?
The Source 	Uh, speaking of the Pete Rock situation.
Lupe Fiasco	Uh huh.
The Source 	How do you think it could've been handled differently? From the beginning.
Lupe Fiasco	Pete shouldn't have been wildin' out, you know what I'm saying? You know, he should've reacted a little bit more civilly, you know. Because all of. Everything. When people speculating that we didn't reach out and all that, none of that's true, you know. So, it could have went, it could have went a lot more smoother if it was just kind of like. You could just say "yo, I don't like, I don't particularly like the record," that's it. But to go on the whole thing, and the tirade, is kind of like come on man, you know. So that was, that was a funky piece. On our end, it was just like. The only thing I regret is like we should've let Pete should've heard the record before it came out. That's it, you know. And whether he liked it or not, then I was still putting it out, you know what I'm saying?
The Source 	Yeah. Way to go, man. I like it.
Lupe Fiasco	You know what I'm saying? What up, this Lupe Fiasco, just letting you know that peace is a lifestyle, ya heard? Shout-out to the source and shout out to the life camp you heard? Stay tuned.
The Source 	Thanks man, 'ppreciate—
== Gallery ==
File:The Source May 2006.jpg|May 2006 cover
File:Lupe Fiasco - The Source 2006.jpg
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== References ==
Category:2006 interviews
Category:2012 interviews
Category:Magazines
Category:Websites