Senior Producer Alex Simmons (left) interviewing Common
COMMON
For a lot of artists, talent carries them as far as they go, but for Common, it’s more than just his unrivaled ability that has gotten him to where he is today. Common is among the most respected rappers alive for several reasons. Of course you can’t ignore his raw talent and intellect, but beyond that, he works his ass off and is constantly hustling, but not just to get ahead. He works so hard to bring it for his fans and give them the music and the shows they deserve. (You don’t have to take our word for it—everyone from Pharrell to Will.I.Am to Mos Def takes the time to tell us how much they respect Common.)
Quite frankly, we lost track of how many cities Common hit on his way across the country promoting his latest album—even watching the footage we used of him moving from town to town to town was exhausting. Common didn’t complain at all, but he probably had a right to, according to co-producer Manoj Gopinanth.
“Always on the go from city to city, during his promo tour, he was pretty sick with the flu. This never stopped him from taking pictures with fans and radio station employees, talking to people who called his name out, and putting on a crazy show for his hometown Chicago in an old warehouse. Seriously, if I had the flu and tried to rock an hour long set, I’d probably be dead. I guess that’s why he has been a mainstay in Hip Hop since the early 90s. Passion and genuine love for the art of hip-hop definitely exist within Common’s soul.”
In addition to being extremely driven and gifted, Common’s about one of the nicest people you’ll meet. Whether you’re interviewing him for a TV show or if you’re a fan who approaches him on the street, Common will look you in the eye and sincerely speak to you as a friend. Senior producer Alex Simmons was struck by how much fans and other artists alike respected Common:
“’He is one of the coolest people I’ve ever met.’ That’s what Nate from Cold War Kids said when I mentioned we had been doing an episode of Embedded with Common. It turns out that Nate and rest of the guys in Cold War Kids had met Common at a festival a year or so back and he made a big impression on them. Nate went on to say that having a quick interaction with Common was kind of an epiphany for them, they realized that it is possible to be a rock star and be friendly and connect with the people you run across.
That is the impression that everyone gets when they meet Common. When shooting with him I’m constantly impressed by how he will have a real conversation with anybody that he meets, whether it’s a fan, a radio station employee or a fellow artist. He looks people in the eye, genuinely wants to know who they are what they are all about.
And without Val Vogt, who was Common’s assistant during the time of shooting and now runs his new media endeavors, none of this would have happened. Thankfully Val would often leave Current playing on Common’s TV and through that he became a fan of the network.”
LYKKE LI
Embedded executive producer Mark Rinehart helmed this Tour Stop segment, which started where most of our show does: asking the artist what they’d like to do. Lykke loves to shop, especially in used clothing stores like the one we hit up in San Francisco:
“She was a shopping machine. Vintage stores like Wasteland are huge overwhelming places to me. Lykke was completely oriented the whole time. Amidst the chaos, she had an ability to find great items quickly and efficiently. Oh and the Current umbrella that she was using was not intentional! It started pouring and it was the only umbrella I could find in my trunk. Glad we had it. She would have been soaking wet for her sound check if we didn’t have it.
My favorite interview response (that didn’t make the cut) was what she said when I asked her where she saw herself in 10 years. Without missing a beat she said, ‘I want to be in a long silky dress in a warm country with ten babies and I want to have a whisky voice.’ Loved that.”
Here’s the promo for this week’s episode:
Tune in Wednesday, November 4 at 11/10c.
UPDATE: Check out Common and Lykke Li on the full episode of Embedded.
