Jackson Free Press

Also read the JFP "Tough Questions for David Banner" interview here

David Banner called me at work the other day from his tour bus. He'll hit 60 cities in a month and a half. On their way to New Orleans they pulled the bus to the shoulder so he could make the call on his cell phone. This interview is important to Banner. He's gotten very little coverage in Jackson for someone on the cover of national magazines and a video on BET, and soon MTV as well (shot at Battlefield Park earlier this spring).
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For those not in the know (including me until two weeks ago) David Banner is a former member of the rap duo Crooked Lettaz and owner of b.i.G. f.a.c.e. Entertainment. The label has recently been sold to the Steve Rifkind Company (SRC)/Universal Records for a cool $10 million. Rifkind said of the union, "He truly has a vision from A to Z—a whole complete package. Plus, he is a great businessman and one of the most talented people that I have ever met—and I have met a lot of talented people." Banner is a platinum-selling producer/rapper who has worked with such names as Trick Daddy, Pastor Troy, Snoop Dogg and Lil Flip. His sophomore solo effort, "Mississippi: The Album," is garnering rave reviews nationally. He says of the album "I honestly think it's like the blues." He shows the hardships that he's endured through his music all the while proclaiming, "I've been blessed."

So why isn't this story told here? Banner graduated from Provine: He's a hometown guy done good—$10 million dollars good. When asked about this, Banner said only the negative elements of the black community get exposure by the media. "If I had killed somebody, people would be in my yard, digging through my trash. They'd be at my momma's house." He talks about his video they shot here. Thousands of people showed up to watch. He says national magazines from New York and L.A. were there and national camera crews, but only one local television station and one newspaper reporter. "It's not what I think I deserve, but what I know I would get if it were a negative event," he says.

Banner has a lot to say about his hometown and state. He loves both. "My album is named 'Mississippi', the movie I'm making is called Mississippi and my daughter (if I ever have one) will be named Mississippi." He says he named the album 'Mississippi' for a couple of reasons. "Firstly, it would force people to say the name Mississippi; therefore, they would have to remember us and not continue to count us out. And second in our society Mississippi seems to be a synonym for the people that are down and out, the underdogs. Hopefully with this album's success we'll be able to change the way people think about us," he says. He's always photographed wearing t-shirts, jerseys, caps, and sweatshirts with "Mississippi" on them. But, he knows we still have problems. He's not going to be one of those rich-and-famous Mississippians who forgets his roots. He is appearing before a group of Boys and Girls Clubs the first week of May. "Everybody isn't as fortunate as I am," he says. He also says that it's his responsibility "as a man" to talk to these kids—to show them that if he can make it, so can they.

I had heard rumors about him burning the Mississippi state flag at shows. "I've done it several times. I hate the flag," he says. I asked him what he thought about the importance of voting. He said that nothing will change until we all vote, use our voices. On the flag vote he gets agitated, responding that Mississippi is not just one group ideology. "Don't make me have to fly it because it represents your history," he says.

One of Banner's first major appearances in his hometown will be at this year's Jubilee Jam, where he will perform on Saturday. He laments that he's been passed over for so many years but anticipates the show. "It's one of the most important music events in the area where I'm from," he says. He's very interested in accumulating the kind of hometown acceptance that musical greats normally receive in Mississippi. But, it is still hard to get respect in certain places for rap or hip-hop as a musical genre.

Apparently, acceptance has been a lifelong struggle. Although his mother, whom Banner calls "a walking angel," has always been behind him (she cooked for the 2,000 people attending the picnic after the video shoot), not everyone was. And Banner knows that most mothers don't get to see their children excel the way he has.

As we are finishing with the interview, Banner wants me to make sure I tell his 12th grade English teacher something. She never allowed him to bring his rap books to class. "She shouldn't have never told me I wouldn't make it rapping," he says.

David's Mama

I went to Brookhaven in search of David Banner's mother, the one he calls a "walking angel." It took me a bit to find the woman who raised her son, now a famous rapper, by all accounts well. Carolyn Crump lives in an unassuming house off the interstate, through a four-way stop or two, and past a couple of Shell stations. I got there about 9:15 on a Saturday night in search of a photo of the Mama and her boy, and hopefully a quote or two about what it was like to raise David Banner, a rapper who doesn't mince words about his opinions.

She answered the door in satiny, light-blue pajamas and waved me into a room surrounded by family pictures. So, what was—is—it like being David's Mom?

"Being his mother is an adventure in itself," she says, shaking her head and laughing. For one, she had to keep up with him. "As a little boy, he ran to do everything. He's real special. He was a good kid, but so hyper. He would breakdance. He was so active, but real loveable." Her son has always been incredibly polite and helpful, opening doors for women and such. "He's a good guy, nothing phony. He's truthful and honest."

Even as she ran to keep up with him, Mama says she and Banner had a good relationship, based on mutual respect and understanding. "We've always been friends," she says, adding that such communication is the key to raising good kids, in her book. "Just be supportive, understanding, talk to them. We talked all the time. He'd say things to me, anything." His friends would be shocked at how honest he was with his mother. "'You say that in front of your mother'" they'd ask. But that way, the mother could keep up with what her boy was into. "A lot of parents don't even know their child," she says. "He's always known me."

David's mother also laments that, too often, parents don't take time to understand their kids' popular culture. "A lot of parents hate their music and won't listen," she says. "That's a big mistake."

And her son's music can be shocking at times. It's real rap, reflecting the pain of the streets and the blues of a young black generation. "Some of it is really deep and meaningful," she says. "It's about hearing what these young people are thinking. It's not that different, really. I grew up in the 1960s with the Black Power thing going on. You'd still bleed if you were struck. It was just expressed different then. Adults hated Elvis Presley. It was the same script, different players, that's all."

Food and family help bring this mother's brood—Banner has one brother—together regularly. They have a huge dinner at least once a month, and her famous son is there as often as possible. Crump, who used to do catering and recently fed everybody at Banner's video shoot in Jackson, loves to cook, and admits that she probably feeds father and sons too much, but that's OK. "The one thing that really pleases my guys is good food. I like to see everyone overeat because I know they really like it," she says.
—Donna Ladd

Previous Comments

ID

63585

Comment

i was born and raised in jackson. david banner is correct in saying the comment he said. the only time someone said anything about blacks in mississippi it has something to do with drugs or violence.Frank milton is one who grows richier by putting black faces on poster board.. saying this man sells drugs..you mean to tell me only black people sell drugs.. let have i seen a whites faces ..i guess will fly the plane too.frank and most mississipians are racist who would like nothing more than to sterotype young blackmen and put us all in jail.

Author

donatus okhomina

Date

2003-05-02T01:15:39-06:00