A Brother’s Oath
Def Poet, Oveous Maximus, has owned almost every spoken word stage from New York to LA; now he's trying to make his mark with his first passion ... hip hop. Oveous sat down with me to talk about his roots and his "Future Intentions."
Every artist has his driving force, something that creates and fuels their needs to create. For Ove Salcedo, it was the loss of his brother, Carlos “Ziiinc Blue” Salcedo, to suicide, “When my brother passed away, I was like I want to get back into rapping ... I thought that spoken word, that poetry would be the avenue for me. The words are more important to me I don’t need the beat ... yet.“ Oveous Maximus made a name for himself at Nuyorican Poets’ Cafe and other slams with poems such as “Salcedo’s Breakdown” and “Dulce de Leche,“ winning amateur night at the Apollo so many times that, according to Mos Def, they had to ask him to stop. Oveous describes himself as just a kid from New York who took an oath to carry on his brother’s legacy, and “just to be what hip hop needs, not just a positive voice but, just a real voice.“
This year Oveous Maximus released Future Intentions, his debut album that stemmed from the passion he and his brother shared. ‘“He was a brilliant mind. He was like a Ghostface and a Tupac mashed together.“ Carlos inspired the track “Want to be Happy,“ produced by Thosh Collins, whom he met through a Yoruba Records label-mate. “When I heard that beat it just evoked so many emotions ... I had my brother’s portrait behind me; I just looked over at it and was like ‘I’m going to make this song about you’... That’s how I felt when I made the song. And I wrote it for people just like him that are searching for something - searching for happiness.“ Most of the songs on Future Intentions were recorded in Oveous’s home studio, “Recording Intentions was really intense. I don’t think I would be able to record some of those songs in a big studio.“
Arguably the most powerful track on “Intentions,“ is “Oscar, Grant Me ...,“ inspired by killing of Oscar Grant, the unarmed 23-year-old shot in the back by a Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) police officer on New Year’s Day 2009. The track is the first of two powerful pieces he’s written about the incident; the second piece is a poem that he intends to present to Oscar Grant’s mother once it’s finished. Oveous honored me with a preview of a stanza from the unfinished poem. Let’s just say, he came with the same resounding power and reverence that he does in “Oscar, Grant Me…“:
“Colder than ice. Colder than steel - that took your life, and stole your wife. Oscar, Grant us a brand new life. Grant me the whispers of slaves in chains, Grant me a statue with all their names. Grant me the bullets that made your fame. Grant them a moment of silence. Or grant us a moment of violence ....“
Oveous is fresh off a performance at the Hip Hop Howl! mixtape showcase at the Howl! Festival, as well as his first headlining show at New York hot spot SOBs. Dressed in all black with white kicks and bow-tie, Oveous rocked ManChildBlack’s monthly showcase. He’d been going to shows at SOBs for a while, each time telling the bouncer, “You’re going to see my face on these walls one day.“ That prediction came true on August 29th when Oveous, backed by a band and in front of a packed house, manned the stage and performed songs from the album, including “Want to be Happy” and “Strobelights,“ the song whose hook “I fell love on the dancefloor…“ is a universal love story, “Everybody’s been in a spot somewhere and been like I have such a crush on ....“
What’s next for Oveous? He’s putting together a benefit show for suicide prevention that should go down in the next few months, and he’s also got a few concept albums in the works, as well as a Oveous/J. Dilla mixtape to be called “Ovilla.“ He also hopes to celebrate his three-year partnership with Scion with a show that will mix poetry and music, similar to the One Love concert series featuring Common and Erykah Badu. The experience promises to be inspiring, “It’s an amazing experience when people are moved by what you do. I want leave something behind of substance.“ As if sent from the universe, while we spoke, Oveous was approached by Tiffany, “It [your work] doesn’t go unnoticed, believe me. I just wanted to say hi and thank you, and that I appreciate your…BLAH!!!“ In continuing his brother’s legacy, and memory, that’s what it’s all about, inspired souls inspiring souls.
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