Saul Williams is one those renaissance type guys. He is an author, poet, poetry slammer and a professional actor. He first sprung to public attention with the movie Slam which he also wrote. Since then hes become a nationally known poet with several books to his credit. His latest is said the shotgun to the head which is the account of a man so ravished by a kiss that it distorts his highest and lowest frequencies of understanding into an incongruent mean of babble and brilliance.
Buy said the shotgun to the head
here.
Daniel Robert Epstein: I felt said the shotgun to the head was darker than your previous books.
Saul Williams: I think She is darker just because I know I was depressed when I wrote it. I think, said the shotgun to the head is optimistic primarily because if you look at the way the countdown occurs. It starts at ten and goes down to zero then back to one because there is no end, the end is always a beginning. Also on one hand its this thing that is saying the corporate world is destroying itself in its attempt to control the world but the world cannot be destroyed, the woman is here and love will prevail.
It is dark in that its an ode to the Hindu goddess Kali which is about destruction but she is also the goddess of creation. You realize that you have to destroy so that new things can be rebuilt. We allow the darkness to occur only because we know the light will prevail.
DRE: Do you prefer performing your stuff live or having people read the books?
SW: Personally my favorite thing is to perform. But I look at said the shotgun to the head as literary performance. I feel as if I am performing when someone reads the book.
DRE: Have people told you if they get different feelings from the live performances and reading the book?
SW: Oh yeah. People love to see the performance but they dont compare in the way that LA and New York dont compare. Not that either one is better.
DRE: You know New York is better.
SW: Well I live in LA now but I used to live in New York. I tell you I am here in sunshine and in the winter New York freezes. Also I dont have to smell piss daily. I wouldnt have wanted to start my career in LA but the level of comfortability you can maintain here is cool. In New York you have to deal with all sorts of reality but in LA you only deal with one reality. They are just different. Its the same with spoken word versus the books. They are different realities that I like for different reasons.
DRE: How do you do when you travel to the Midwest?
SW: Well they havent seen me live but theyve seen slams and Def Poetry Jam on TV. Theyve seen performances and heard rumors so thats a beautiful thing. I wish I could think of something to compare it to.
DRE: You are probably one of the few people who make their living from poetry slams. Have you ever gotten flack for that?
SW: No, who would give me flack? I guess the academic poets could but its up to me to write and create on a particular level. Its also my determination that decides that poetry should be a peripheral artform. I believe we should be there sharing it with everyone. Its not something that only people with college degrees should be hearing. I tour with rock bands or whoever because I believe that everyone could have fun and anyone that is open enough could accept it. I know when I was a kid if Public Enemy said Were only going to play our music for those that understand it then I probably never would have heard Public Enemy because I didnt come to an understanding of it until later. You cant afford to be hoity toity with your art; youve got to share it with people. There are beautiful poets out there and they should be recognized.
DRE: MTV is no longer about the common man in a way and now you are allowing them to publish your book.
SW: Or MTV is so dumbed down to being so common. My main reason for going with them is because they approached me and they didnt want to dumb me down because they want to put my work out there. They just want to be down with what I am doing because as long as I dont have to compromise my vision then why no. Especially if it will help me reach the demographic I want to reach. My album used to be on Island/Def Jam and the first time I visited the office one of the A & R women came up to me crying saying that she wanted to thank me for letting my album come through their office because the kind of stuff she usually has to deal with like drugs, violence and misogyny. That one experience right there justifies me being on that label.
DRE: Your introduction to said the shotgun to the head is a bit cryptic but I like it.
SW: Ive finding that people understand the introduction more than they understand the book.
DRE: How is the book a result of kiss?
SW: The book in many ways is this guy expressing how his life was changed upon kissing this woman. Its a point in real life where your past leads you to your present and future. If you stay focused on achieving that connotation it will happen. The book is about this man who has been ravished by a kiss. Think of the teenager who thinks wrongly of himself in that he says hes not cute but the guy he thinks is the prettiest girl in school kisses him. He has that feeling of never wanting to wash his face again, so multiply that by that girl being god and thats how that kiss feels.
DRE: Are there any pieces in the book you havent performed?
SW: Yeah, usually I recite the opening statements until she had eyes like two turntables. Other times I might read other sections but there are also sections that I dont believe should be read aloud.
DRE: When you are in episodes of Girlfriends or the movie K-Pax, is that work you do just for money?
SW: My background is in acting and I love it. I wish I could act more. But its the thing I love the most so Im very picky about it. I dont want to bastardize the artform. Last year I did a play, which hardly anyone saw, but I grew as an artist as a result of doing it.
DRE: Will you be writing another movie?
SW: Im working on that.
DRE: How did Slam change your life?
SW: You wouldnt be talking to me now if not for Slam. It was because of that film that I found I could affect change through creativity to push people to grow.
Buy said the shotgun to the head
here.
Daniel Robert Epstein: I felt said the shotgun to the head was darker than your previous books.
Saul Williams: I think She is darker just because I know I was depressed when I wrote it. I think, said the shotgun to the head is optimistic primarily because if you look at the way the countdown occurs. It starts at ten and goes down to zero then back to one because there is no end, the end is always a beginning. Also on one hand its this thing that is saying the corporate world is destroying itself in its attempt to control the world but the world cannot be destroyed, the woman is here and love will prevail.
It is dark in that its an ode to the Hindu goddess Kali which is about destruction but she is also the goddess of creation. You realize that you have to destroy so that new things can be rebuilt. We allow the darkness to occur only because we know the light will prevail.
DRE: Do you prefer performing your stuff live or having people read the books?
SW: Personally my favorite thing is to perform. But I look at said the shotgun to the head as literary performance. I feel as if I am performing when someone reads the book.
DRE: Have people told you if they get different feelings from the live performances and reading the book?
SW: Oh yeah. People love to see the performance but they dont compare in the way that LA and New York dont compare. Not that either one is better.
DRE: You know New York is better.
SW: Well I live in LA now but I used to live in New York. I tell you I am here in sunshine and in the winter New York freezes. Also I dont have to smell piss daily. I wouldnt have wanted to start my career in LA but the level of comfortability you can maintain here is cool. In New York you have to deal with all sorts of reality but in LA you only deal with one reality. They are just different. Its the same with spoken word versus the books. They are different realities that I like for different reasons.
DRE: How do you do when you travel to the Midwest?
SW: Well they havent seen me live but theyve seen slams and Def Poetry Jam on TV. Theyve seen performances and heard rumors so thats a beautiful thing. I wish I could think of something to compare it to.
DRE: You are probably one of the few people who make their living from poetry slams. Have you ever gotten flack for that?
SW: No, who would give me flack? I guess the academic poets could but its up to me to write and create on a particular level. Its also my determination that decides that poetry should be a peripheral artform. I believe we should be there sharing it with everyone. Its not something that only people with college degrees should be hearing. I tour with rock bands or whoever because I believe that everyone could have fun and anyone that is open enough could accept it. I know when I was a kid if Public Enemy said Were only going to play our music for those that understand it then I probably never would have heard Public Enemy because I didnt come to an understanding of it until later. You cant afford to be hoity toity with your art; youve got to share it with people. There are beautiful poets out there and they should be recognized.
DRE: MTV is no longer about the common man in a way and now you are allowing them to publish your book.
SW: Or MTV is so dumbed down to being so common. My main reason for going with them is because they approached me and they didnt want to dumb me down because they want to put my work out there. They just want to be down with what I am doing because as long as I dont have to compromise my vision then why no. Especially if it will help me reach the demographic I want to reach. My album used to be on Island/Def Jam and the first time I visited the office one of the A & R women came up to me crying saying that she wanted to thank me for letting my album come through their office because the kind of stuff she usually has to deal with like drugs, violence and misogyny. That one experience right there justifies me being on that label.
DRE: Your introduction to said the shotgun to the head is a bit cryptic but I like it.
SW: Ive finding that people understand the introduction more than they understand the book.
DRE: How is the book a result of kiss?
SW: The book in many ways is this guy expressing how his life was changed upon kissing this woman. Its a point in real life where your past leads you to your present and future. If you stay focused on achieving that connotation it will happen. The book is about this man who has been ravished by a kiss. Think of the teenager who thinks wrongly of himself in that he says hes not cute but the guy he thinks is the prettiest girl in school kisses him. He has that feeling of never wanting to wash his face again, so multiply that by that girl being god and thats how that kiss feels.
DRE: Are there any pieces in the book you havent performed?
SW: Yeah, usually I recite the opening statements until she had eyes like two turntables. Other times I might read other sections but there are also sections that I dont believe should be read aloud.
DRE: When you are in episodes of Girlfriends or the movie K-Pax, is that work you do just for money?
SW: My background is in acting and I love it. I wish I could act more. But its the thing I love the most so Im very picky about it. I dont want to bastardize the artform. Last year I did a play, which hardly anyone saw, but I grew as an artist as a result of doing it.
DRE: Will you be writing another movie?
SW: Im working on that.
DRE: How did Slam change your life?
SW: You wouldnt be talking to me now if not for Slam. It was because of that film that I found I could affect change through creativity to push people to grow.
VIEW 21 of 21 COMMENTS
'cuz God knows
and i know God personally!
in fact she lets me call her me!
sometimes she lets me call her me!"
i could hear that a million times and still be mesmerized by it.
I believe this bodes well for my enjoyment of the book. (as soon as I finish "Self-titled" by a different writer.)