Client: Dazed Digital.
Around your fourth album, Remapping the Human Soul you used to say “No genre, just music”. What statement were you making about Korean hip hop?
Tablo: The perception of Korean hip hop was very out-dated and isolated. The perception of what was good or ‘legitimate’ hip hop was too narrow. I still think that now. I didn’t want to make safe hip hop. Hip hop’s the one genre where playing it safe makes you look like you’re not playing it safe, it’s ironic: most other musicians in genres can do things without too much stigma. Eventually hip hop evolves but when it does there’s a lot of fuss about it.
Taylor Glasby 