He comes in many forms and many incarnations, but his style is distinctly his own. Just as there's no mistaking his smooth lyrical delivery and searing hip-hop prose with its underlying edgy beats, there's no denying the incredible force of power that is Kool Keith. Whether as a founding member of the legendary Ultramagnetic MCs, or in the guises of his renegade rap personas that include Dr. Octagon and Dr. Dooom, Keith has established himself as an innovative lyricist whose erudite raps stretch the envelope to the limit while exciting and entertaining the listener. With the release of his long overdue solo project, the provocatively-titled Black Elvis/Lost In Space, Kool Keith sheds his previous personae to reveal the real MC behind the myth. "I wanted to take a musical direction that's different from what people expect of me," Keith explains. "What you hear is Kool Keith. You can hear that I've matured in my music. Matured from the music I used to do." Known worldwide as a rapper's rapper, Keith sonically shaped his Ruffhouse debut. Deploying the same disciplined attention he gives to his lyrics, Keith focused an intense amount of energy on the music for he uses on his lyrics, Keith focused energy on the music for Black Elvis/Lost In Space. Now flying solo, he gave himself free reign to develop a sound that best suited his rap ethics. However, Keith believes Black Elvis/Lost In Space will stir up some controversy within the hip-hop industry. "Everyone's doing a certain style, but I prefer to take a different route," he says. "I'm about going in my own direction and not following. I don't believe in going with genres or trends. I think people are going to be mad that I went my own way. Don't ask me why, I just think they will be, but I was determined not to make a trendy record. I'm offering you a change musically, an advancement. My music is not the same as what you'll be accustomed to hearing. Everyone uses the same notes, the same samples.... My stuff is built from the ground up, not sampled."
Kool Keith, nee Keith Thornton, first emerged as part of the legendary New York crew, the Ultramagnetic MCs, back in 1987. At a time when rap was slowly making the transition from B-Boy braggadocio to a more aggressive, politicized stance, the group quickly established themselves as lyrical innovators with such classics albums as Critical Beatdown, Funk Your Head Up, and the Four Horsemen. Though the group received global critical acclaim, it never translated into major sales. Much to the dismay of hip-hop fans, the group eventually disbanded. After the Ultramagnetics' demise, Kool Keith re-emerged helming various hip-hop groupings with artists including DJ Q-Bert. He also released the long player Dr. Octagonecologyst under the moniker Dr. Octagon. Through his various releases Keith explored his many sides, from the playful to the downright carnal, releasing such independent records as Kool Keith's Sex Style and Dr. Dooom's First Come, First Served. In addition to his many rap outings, Keith proved he was not averse to cross-genre experimentation and even collaborated with the electronica outfit Hardkiss on "Abandon Ship" (Sharks & Mermaids mix) on the Astralwerks imprint; in fact, Kool Keith appears on the Prodigy album Fat Of The Land as the voice of "Smack My Bitch Up" and on the track "Diesel Power." On a recent commercial tip, Kool Keith appears as Dr. Ultra, the lead character in a series of nationally-broadcast television ads for Sprite.
Looking back at his vast eclectic body of work, Keith admits some of his decisions during the post-Ultramagnetic years were probably a little misguided. "I regretted doing that Dr. Octagon album a lot," he confesses. "I didn't come out as funky as I wanted to be and as funky as I knew I could be. But I'm not about nostalgia, I'm not about looking back. If I made a hit, I moved on and never looked back.... the future is what I should be dwelling on right now."
Armed with the knowledge that he could surpass his former achievements and grow as an artist, Keith went back to the drawing board. The result is Black Elvis/Lost In Space and it's an impressive testament to the talent of an MC who can more than hold his own against rap's new players. Keith has released an album that is multi-layered, full of richness and texture. Musically, he continually takes chances, meshing smooth rhythms and hyperactive funk. By his own admission, Keith has channeled years of frustration and aggression into this album and the freshness and energy is evident. "I never got a chance to produce and work for myself," says Keith. "I'd always collaborated with artists, either with the Ultramagnetic MCs or other artists. I'd collaborate and have to share the credit with others. I never got to do Kool Keith's music. Now this is a 100% Kool Keith project. I just came up with the idea to do some tracks and started working on them."
The raps on Black Elvis/Lost In Space are incendiary as Kool Keith takes swipes at his peers on the "Intro," a laid-back cut that swaggers while it thumbs its nose at the competition. He flexes his MCing muscles on such tracks as "Lost in Space"; conjuring up a space-age ambiance with his ultra-funky production, his clever rhymes swing as he literally spits them like venom. "Master of the Game," featuring Roger Troutman, meshes Keith's staccato-style raps over a slinky and atmospheric production. The album is rife with stand-out tracks such as "Fine Girls," the titillating "Supergalactic Lover" and the futuristic "Livin' Astro."
"I've seen producers adapt to suit the times, but I intend to stick with what I do," Keith admits. "I look to people like George Clinton and Roger Troutman; they're entertainers who influenced and changed the way people heard music. These are people that innovate. With Black Elvis/Lost In Space, I'm going back to that vibe. A Tribe Called Quest and DJ Premier of Gang Starr came out with their styles, created their own sound and innovated, and everyone followed. People have offered me tracks, thinking they know where I am, but at the end of the day, they're just a collage of all the other tracks out there. It doesn't match me and what I have done and will do."
On Black Elvis/Lost In Space, the many sides of Kool Keith have been amalgamated to reveal the whole being. Or at least, they reveal who Kool Keith is today: a multi-talented MC/producer who seems to have found his sense of being and purpose, a hip-hop powerhouse about to get his due. "With this album, I'm taking rap to a whole new perspective and I'm playing with it," Keith says. "I want to let know everyone what creativity is...."
