„Chocolate Bars“, the debut collaboration by Harlem, New York City raised, Ugandan born, award winning Hip Hop creative Emma Lee M.C. and decorated German producer Roccwell, is a potent offering of globally creative proportions. Merging her bold, flowful vocals and piercingly imaginary lyricism with his smooth, classic, world-renowned “Boom Bap” production over seven tracks, the two who met during a pandemic aimed to stifle their artistry have used the “new normals” as opportunity to create new energy, tell new stories and re-balance tastes in the culture. We had a chat with both on the album, the concept behind it, the production, lyical content and about how the features with Hip Hop legend Masta Ace and Bahamadia came together.
Congratulations on the release of “Chocolate Bars”! What was the creative process like for this project, and how did you two initially connect for this collaboration?
Roccwell: A mutual contact, ApRock from GoonPromotion, connected us during the COVID-19 pandemic. Emma was working with him fort the promo of her new single, and I was looking for dope emcees to collaborate with. At first, we only wanted to release a single together, but during the process more and more tracks just made sense to us. Emma came up with the concept of the album and I created either tailormade beats for certain ideas or provided her with beats from my archives that fit the idea. The creative process itself was very “globalized” – I made the beats in Germany, Emma wrote and recorded in New York, LP2 made the cuts in France, mixing happened in Germany again and mastering by Duncan Starbury in NYC again.
Emma Lee: Thank you very much! It seems like a dream or a blur of fate now though it was a simple connection of dots as Rocc said. Initially we worked on what became “Like It’s 93” and I thought that would be it. We were both very pleased with how it came out when Rocc suggested we do some more, and the rest is becoming history. Indeed a lot of moving parts came together from around the globe. Recording, producing and strategic creative planning also stretched across me moving from New York City to South Carolina and back again within a year. There’s been several versions of several elements of this project. I believe many in our positions and facing our challenges would have given up on it so I’m very proud of our dedication and commitment to quality.
The album blends modern production with a nostalgic vibe. How did you decide on the soundscape for Chocolate Bars, and was there a specific time period in Hip-Hop that influenced the album’s direction?
Roccwell: As we both love the classic, soulful and timeless boom bap sound that dominated the 90s era, there was no doubt about the general musical direction. For certain tracks, Emma had specific sounds in mind and I integrated those. The final product should sound state-of-the art, that was clear from the beginning.
Emma Lee: Starting with “Like It’s 93” definitely set a tone, and though I wanted to highlight both of our strengths with boom bap, it was important to me to stretch musically too. Just as we did metaphorically on that first single, I wanted the project to be a journey of some kind and not be one-note or one-dimensional. In every aspect including my cadence, the cuts, and the production. I wanted to stay true to an artistic homage to the essence, our version of a modern day “Illmatic,” yet also use the opportunity of it being my first body of work to make it clear we’re not cookie cutter creators and Hip-Hop still has a lot of freshness to offer.
“Like It’s ’93” features Masta Ace and includes clever references to 90s Hip-Hop classics. What inspired this track, and how was it working with such a Hip-Hop legend?
Roccwell: Emma came up with the concept – in this track she personifies hip hop by lyrically describing a dysfunctional but loving relationship mentioning over 40 classic rap album titles all released in the year 1993, with Masta Ace responding metaphorically in a classic rebuttal. The funny thing is, the title of the original instrumental I sent to Emma had the title “Like It´s 93” – and this inspired her.
Emma Lee: Haha…I almost forgot that was the demo title Rocc had on the track, that’s right! I really ran with that! I remember the day I wrote it, the couch I was sitting on and everything. I had multiple pages of paper out as I was jotting out lyrics and mapping out vocal arrangements. The track was so dreamy and sounded like when TV sitcom characters have flashbacks. It immediately made me think warm thoughts then simultaneously how tough the road can be. I had a few bars with song or album titles then was struck with the idea it should be a story and perspective of a relationship. I was only going to use a few titles when I discovered how many classics came out in that year. I felt a duty to honor as many as I could, even in the video we squeezed in more. I have so much respect for these artists, it was a pivotal time, and the culture would never be the same. Working with the legend Masta Ace was so good, he’s a true professional in every sense and a well-rounded artist. He was encouraging and receptive to my ideas. The fact that he cared and really listened was positively humbling. He got his role immediately and came to the video prepared to deliver.
What message or feeling do you hope listeners will take away from “Chocolate Bars”?
Roccwell: Listeners should hopefully have the feeling that the album is something of high quality, trustworthy, honest, authentic, helpful, inspiring, strong – something that shows of strong will, unbelievable lyrical skills and hope.
Emma Lee: Well said, Rocc. With so much going on in the world and movements away from human led consciousness, I hope people feel heart, imagination, real energy, and a sense of center from this piece. And in turn more of these things in themselves.
The title Chocolate Bars is unique. Can you tell us the story behind it and how it connects to the album’s theme?
Roccwell: Actually it´s Emma’s concept idea – so this is what she had in mind: creative through line of the album is highlighting the power of things we know, enjoy & often overlook/take for granted. as in chocolate, hip-hop itself, and the identities behind them. every track is exploring the making, light/dark & effect of things we love or are stimulated by. Also usually in a cypher or listening to hip-hop someone yells “bars!” about a hot line or tight piece of creative writing/rapping. here we pun “chocolate bars” as a playful acknowledgment that a black woman in hip-hop is getting the nod of coming hard lyrically & moving the crowd with energy. we are re-centering the significance of moving the crowd with a deep connection to culture.
Emma Lee: Word and thank you. I’m a big fan of battle rap and I fell in love with hip-hop in cyphers in New York, so the expression of the word “bars!” is very special to me. I really wanted to come into the scene embracing being different because for so long I let that discourage me and even change how I wrote, rhymed and performed. I also wanted to disarm the tendency for people to reduce a woman with the mic to a physical object, and re-spin a physical object to having power again. I know bars are one thing that sets emcees apart, the beats behind them are often lifetime memories, chocolate is actually a deep thing in this world, and something I get cat-called a lot.
You’ve worked with several notable collaborators on the album. How did you approach selecting artists to feature on the project, and what was the collaboration process like?
Roccwell: DJ LP2 from France, who realized all the cuts, is a long-time homie. Actually it was planned that he makes the cuts for the single with Ace – but as the amount of tracks grew, we approached him if he wants to do all the cuts on the album.
The idea to feature Bahamadia came from Emma, as she is a long-time fan – my idea was to feature Masta Ace, as he´s in my all time Top 5 emcees. Emma realized the feature with Bahamadia via DJ Eclipse (Non Phixion/Rap Is Outta Control Radio Show), who is her manager. Emma also contacted Ace directly. We are really happy about those features.
Emma Lee: I can’t say enough about how DJ LP2 took all the tracks he was on to another level. He was a pleasure to work with and though I had clear ideas which he welcomed, he also came back from his laboratory with things that pleasantly surprised me, like woah! I didn’t want to be feature heavy and was on a very tight budget as a new independent artist, but one thing I did have was a lot of connects behind the scenes. I asked a few what they thought about how to go about releasing an album in this climate and they suggested giving features a strong thought. At first I was dismayed that my voice alone wouldn’t be enough, but I saw the bigger picture and I’m so glad I listened!
With the blend of modern boom-bap and personal lyricism in Chocolate Bars, how do you both view the current state of Hip-Hop? Do you see a resurgence of this classic sound?
Roccwell: For me personally, there will always be a place for timeless quality music. So it´s all good.
Emma Lee: Well said! Several have commented that the push for A.I. and microwave music is only building the hunger for authenticity, quality craft and real human emotion/connection. I think we’re right on time and will always be with this one. I’m a firm believer in what the-then Mos Def said on his “Black on Both Sides” album which I quoted in the last track of our album. “Hip-Hop is the people.” The state of us is the state of it.
What’s your favorite track from the album and why?
Roccwell: “Like It’s 93” feat. Masta Ace – as I love the 90s boom bap sound, the soundscape is melancholic and reminds me of my youth when I was listening to all those albums Emma mentioned.
Emma Lee: Awww, great choice. That’s a hard question, I have a different favorite every day. I’m partial to “The Gifts” because it’s such a palate cleanser, motivator, and one big public prayer. But “Cravings & Withdrawals” is amazing because Bahamadia on a track with me is mind blowing and a divine full circle. I love how it wasn’t planned like this but sounds like a B-side to “True Honey Buns.” It really throws groove into the landscape of fast, digital, drill sounds. The subject matter is also very layered, so it has plenty of room and time to unfold as a piece of art for those who love it.