9th Wonder Hits the books, Out of Little Brother?
Posted: Thu Feb 01, 2007 3:43 pm
Hip Hop Super producer and Little Brother member Pat “9th Wonder Douthit will be heading back to school this month. 9th Wonder, who has produced hits for artists such as Jay Z, Mary J. Blige, Lloyd Banks, Murs, and Erykah Badu will be heading back to Central University in Durham, N.C. to teach a class of the history of hip hop as well as take classes himself to earn his history degree.
“Nowadays you’ve got 18-year-olds walking around not knowing who Slick Rick is, Wonder explains. “And you’ve got people my age saying, ‘I’m too old, I don’t listen to rap anymore.’ In schools, you have 13-year-old kids listening to Young Jeezy and 50-year-old teachers who are into the Grateful Dead. So there’s a generation gap that has to be addressed. When I was growing up, I was influenced a lot by older cats. I want to do the same thing, be a mentor figure to kids.
Meanwhile, the other two members of Little Brother have been putting in work on their new album. The group’s 2005 major-label debut, “The Minstrel Show, was received well by critics but sold very poorly. According to reports, 9th Wonder’s contribution to the new album has been very minimal.
“They want to take it in a different direction, which is totally fine, Wonder says. “I’m always down for evolution, so let’s see if it works. But I’m still steadfast on the thing, and whatever happens between us I want to stay between us. Whether it be with Little Brother or myself or other groups, I really want to focus my time on making music. I want to try to get the message across.
“Nowadays you’ve got 18-year-olds walking around not knowing who Slick Rick is, Wonder explains. “And you’ve got people my age saying, ‘I’m too old, I don’t listen to rap anymore.’ In schools, you have 13-year-old kids listening to Young Jeezy and 50-year-old teachers who are into the Grateful Dead. So there’s a generation gap that has to be addressed. When I was growing up, I was influenced a lot by older cats. I want to do the same thing, be a mentor figure to kids.
Meanwhile, the other two members of Little Brother have been putting in work on their new album. The group’s 2005 major-label debut, “The Minstrel Show, was received well by critics but sold very poorly. According to reports, 9th Wonder’s contribution to the new album has been very minimal.
“They want to take it in a different direction, which is totally fine, Wonder says. “I’m always down for evolution, so let’s see if it works. But I’m still steadfast on the thing, and whatever happens between us I want to stay between us. Whether it be with Little Brother or myself or other groups, I really want to focus my time on making music. I want to try to get the message across.