Somehow it seems unrealistic to envision the artist as existing in anything other than the dichotomy of the super star or the starving urban innovator. The underground/ “starving” artist who gets booked at your local club is someone accessible to his or her fan base, and while rarely swimming up to join the bigger fish in the mainstream, somehow manages to survive. Some are a flash in the pan with a banging summer 12” that’s quickly forgotten. On the other hand, there’s a whole group of independent Hip Hop artists who manage to come back year after year with live shows and consistent record releases. They are both “stars” and innovators in the realm of the underground. Enter J-Live. For about a decade, the Brooklyn raised, Philly based emcee has brought forth effort after effort of solid rhymes in the style of De La Soul, with college-bred witty, conversational flows. He entered onto the scene in the mid 90s while still in college, with break out singles like “Hush the Crowd” that soon garnered a steady fan base and a sought after “Unsigned Hype” write up in The Source. Since then he’s kept grindin’ despite your typical set backs including many record label woes. A glimpse into J-Live’s career and lifestyle humanizes what you might see as inaccessible: here you have an emcee with notable talent, a wife and kids, an exceedingly normal sized ego, and of course the exciting element of tours through Europe and Japan. Not to mention collabos with some major talents of rap, including the Roots and the three P’s of Hip Hop royalty (Pete Rock, Premier, Prince Paul). After 4 albums, his new release, “The Hear After” due out on August 30th, finds J-Live more mature, working with Dwele, James Poyser, Kola Rock, Soulive, and Hezekiah. I had the opportunity to connect with this hard working emcee on a busy evening. Booked with back-to-back phone interviews, J-Live managed to still have energy to engage in conversation and tend to a crying baby. A family man, emcee and college grad, he seems to have reached a very comfortable place in life, or at least he’s on is way there. This emcee seems almost too balanced to have been in the game for so long-but then again he hasn’t blown up yet.

So, how is this record going to be different from your past releases?

I did all of “Always will Be,” a third of “All of the Above,” and I did about half of this one production wise. I think it’s a little more advanced than “Always will Be.” I did most of [Always will be] at home in my apartment in Brooklyn whereas on “The Hear After” I built a studio to do it. So it came together a little bit better; it’s mixed better. It’s probably the best album I’ve done. The production is tight, it’s in a different direction than “All of the Above” it’s not as much of a jazz theme as it is a sort of funk thing going on, but still very musical.

How’d you hook up with (Philly based producer) Hezekiah?

Hezekiah I knew from before I came to Philly. After I moved to Philly (2003) I got to know him better. Ironically even though he’s from here and lives right down the block from me it was really Oddisee that put me on to his beats, he’s [Oddisee] part of a dope crew of producers called Low Budget that includes Kev Brown, and he made sure Hezekiah was on the album. So it was good to get that chance to work with both of them and also James Poyser’s on there; I’m a big fan of his music.

How is New York different than Philly artistically? Is the change in environment what pushed you toward a more soulful direction?

I had a connection to Philly before I came out here, musically. I moved out here, because my Earth’s going to school out here so it just came together naturally. I’ve always been a big Roots fan and they brought me on tour with them a couple years back. Getting down with people from Okay Player and Square Biz, it’s been a really good atmosphere, musically. When I moved out here, I was greeted with open arms.

What would you say is your secret to remaining in the game so consistently; making a living, remaining independent and not getting swallowed up by the music business?

I haven’t blown up yet-I’m trying to but that’s secretly the reason I’ve been able to do it for so long. If I were to go diamond on the next record it might take longer to put another one out. Right now I try to make a record a year and so far it’s been every three years so I’m just trying to tighten up the interval.

You think it’s possible to blow up without going pop?

I think to blow up by definition is going pop, but it’s just a matter of how does it affect your music. I’d like to be able to make my music popular without popularizing my music. I’d rather make the music I want to make and let that be successful. That’s the way I’ve been approaching things until now, if this album goes wood then maybe I’ll change and get better at it.

What was it like for you to generate such a buzz while you were still in college? Did any of it go to your head?

I got jerked doing the first record, but it was like whatever, I was still in school. I still had 20,000 people that knew my name that wanted to hear an album coming. So when the label fell apart, I had just graduated and I was about to work somewhere else. No big deal. It was like you’re developing this following touring, around the world and it’s all bonus. People ask me how come I’m not jaded or how did you last so long after all these setbacks. The setbacks happened when I was real young. Right now is the time where I can less afford to have things fall apart. But I’m also in a much better position experience wise, ability wise, and just wise- wise, it’s like I’ve already paid so many dues I can go collect them now.

Who would you like to work with in the future?

Jay Dee, Madlib, MF Doom, Dr. Dre, Kev Brown, Organized Noize, David Banner, a lot of cats.

What do you appreciate or listen for more now, production or rhymes?

I like the way songs come together. I like people from all walks of hip hop around the country. I like the way it’s going now where each city or each area has their own vibe. It reminds me of a time when even throughout New York there were so many different flavors; there was no one set way to do Hip Hop, and for all this trouble with different artists beefin’ with each other and different people not wanting to respect certain albums from certain areas- I feel like at the very least now, even in the commercial scene there’s some variety.

You are a member of the Five Percent nation. Seeing as how that philosophy used to have more of a pervasive influence in Hip Hop, via artists like Big Daddy Kane and Rakim, and people now may not see how things like hip hop slang are influenced by it, are there any misconceptions that people have of that philosophy?

I come across a lot of people that come across others that haven’t represented well and I show people that’s not what it’s about. In terms of stereotypes about five percenters, there aren’t as many stereotypes about that than there are about Black people in general. Some people try to see it as primarily a jail religion. It’s neither primarily jail nor a religion. This nation was developed in the inner cities as a means to get through to the youth and get them going in the right direction or change their direction from the wrong one. You got people that came up in rough environments, people that came up gangsta to survive and pretty much doing what they had to do. At the very least it gives them an option and the recognition that that is not what life is about, you should have more respect for your self, be more responsible for your fellow human beings, and put yourself on the path of being righteous. Especially in Hip Hop, this music puts your life out there, if you’re really real about what you’re talking about and your music and your artist name isn’t just a character; if your artist name is a reflection of who you are, then people get to watch you grow.

Going left field-Do you put any stock in the recent 9-11 theories that have come aout?

Let’s say for a second that the government attacked its own people to have a grip on its own people to start a war, let’s say for a second that’s the case. How much worse is that than foreign policies that oppress people around the world? We benefit from this system indirectly or directly whether we like it or not. Even if you take these theories and put them aside you still have nothing to be proud of. This whole thing of first world and third world is like, if you have the 1st and 2nd person having a conversation about the third person, and the 3rd person is not allowed in the conversation; The 3rd person is gonna butt in and have something to say.

Anything to say to the people?

Record comes out August 30th!