Common Interview, Street Kings

MoviesOnline sat down recently with Common at the Los Angeles press day for “Street Kings,” the new cop thriller directed by David Ayer (“Training Day,” “Harsh Times”) based on a story by acclaimed novelist James Ellroy.

Keanu Reeves plays Tom Ludlow, a veteran LAPD cop who finds life difficult to navigate after the death of his wife. When evidence implicates him in the execution of a fellow officer, he is forced to go up against the cop culture he’s been a part of his entire career, ultimately leading him to question the loyalties of everyone around him. Academy Award winner Forest Whitaker plays Captain Wander, Ludlow’s mentor and supervisor. The stellar cast also features Hugh Laurie, Chris Evans, Jay Mohr, John Corbett, Cedric the Entertainer, Amaury Nolasco, Terry Crews, Naomie Harris, Martha Higareda, Common and The Game.
In 2006, the Grammy Award winning Common made his big screen debut as a musical performer in Dave Chappelle’s Block Party. In January 2007, he made his acting debut co-starring opposite Jeremy Piven, Ben Affleck, Alicia Keys, and Ryan Reynolds in Smokin’ Aces for writer/director Joe Carnahan. In November 2007, he co-starred opposite Denzel Washington in American Gangster, directed by Ridley Scott. In 2008 he’ll be seen in Wanted with co-stars Morgan Freeman and Angelina Jolie.

Prior to acting, Common rose to prominence as one of hip-hop’s most poetic and respected lyricists, having recorded over six albums: Can I Borrow a Dollar?, Resurrection, One Day It’ll All Make Sense, Like Water For Chocolate, and Electric Circus. In 2004, he partnered with Chicago native and rap music mega-star Kanye West to produce BE, which went on to garner four Grammy Award nominations. In July 2006, his video for the single Testify was nominated for two MTV Video Awards including Best Hip Hop Video. On July 31, 2007, Common released his critically acclaimed seventh album, Finding Forever, which debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200 Album Chart and went on to earn a Grammy award.

Additionally, Common has written children’s books. The first one, entitled The Mirror and Me, teaches lessons of life, the human spirit, and human nature. His follow-up book I Like You But I Love Me was recently nominated for an NAACP Image Award, and his third book, M.E. (Mixed Emotions), will be out later this year. He also started The Common Ground Foundation, an organization dedicated to utilizing the cultural relevance of Hip-Hop to serve as an advocate for justice, education, to fight poverty, and to increase health awareness among youth in underserved communities throughout the United States.

Common is fabulous guy and we really appreciated his time. Here’s what he had to tell us:

MoviesOnline:  How did you get into this? How did you hear about the project?

COMMON: My agent told me about the script and I read the script and then he said I could go in on an audition. So I remember I went to audition at David Ayer’s office. I remember the lights went out that day. It was like the lights…some type of blackout. But anyway, I went in there and I just gave it my all. We got a good callback, say, ‘Hey, you got the part.’ So it was a great experience. I love the process of auditioning because it’s such a humbling experience. Yeah.

MoviesOnline: What’s your motivation for wanting to get into acting?

COMMON: I just wanted to express myself in a new way artistically, and it had to be something that I was passionate about. I took acting courses, like some classes, and I was like so enthused about it. I felt like, ‘Man, I can’t wait to go to the next acting class.’ I was discovering a lot of things about myself or I am discovering a lot of things through the process of acting. And I’ve since come to find out you discover a lot of things about other people as you take on these characters. You know, because you learn more about people. And also, you just learn more information. Like if you’re taking on a character of being a pastor, you’re going to have to learn about being in the pulpit, learn more about the Bible. You take on these things and you research it, and I love to learn so I think that helped me as far as being passionate about acting too.

MoviesOnline: You played a hitman in your last movie, so what are you learning about it?

COMMON: (Laughs) You know, that it’s fun. No, but I guess I learned that the things that you do don’t denote you being all bad. Meaning just because I played like in Smokin’ Aces I was Sir Ivy who was this right-hand man to a hustler, and he was a hustler himself, but he wasn’t just a bad person. I guess what I’m discovering is that everybody has good and bad in them. I could play a pastor and within that character still may be some lust going on. He still may be doing dirty things within the church, you know? There’s good and bad in all people and that’s what I’m discovering. Some people’s background and what they’ve been exposed to is the reasons why they end up being in those situations. Like even for this character, Coates, who’s in Street Kings, I went through LA, I went to Compton, I went to Watts and I discovered a new part of LA that I felt was necessary for me to know because I’d always been, when I come here, I’m around the Beverly Hills/West Hollywood area. I needed to see the grit and I needed to feel the ghetto and another soul of this city. It was important for me to see that. I think that research helps me in understanding people. Like I said, it allows you not to judge. When you see somebody doing something, you try to come into more of an understanding.

MoviesOnline: What do you get when you visit Compton or Watts for the first time?

COMMON: Like what’d you do? Basically I’m driving, pretty much. Some of the times I went, I drove through… One of the times it was a police assignment because I was learning more about being a police officer, being a deputy sheriff. It was funny. I was driving through and a lot of the cats are like, ‘Hey, that look like Common right there!’ I was hoping they didn’t think I was like a police informant or something (laughs). But anyway, it ended up pretty much you just go in and observe. You try not to make specimens out of the people because these are people, people that live this life. And, you know, I try to look at each aspect of the ghetto because the ghetto has beauty to it, too. There’s a certain village that’s there, the village atmosphere and it’s tribal, and it’s community still, so you look at those things and acknowledge the positives and the negatives. Pretty much that’s what I do. I didn’t actually like get an apartment in the projects. But I did go, just what I call touching down with the people there.

MoviesOnline: Did this set ever lighten up? There’s this violence and it’s intense. Between cuts did everybody just stay in character? Did you guys ever make jokes?

COMMON: I think definitely Cedric was the joker. He was the cat that would joke the most. I think it was a little dark on the set to me, to be honest. When I think about it, people’s energy – because there was a lot of different things going on that was heavy – and me personally, I’ve got to stay in that zone and in character. I remember Cedric looking at me like, ‘What is this fool doing?’ But I’m over there doing my thing, doing my thing just to stay in character, you know? So it was more of a dark atmosphere, I would say. There was so much going on, people getting shot. Even, honestly, after the first day of playing this role, we did so many scenes of shooting this guy, I just had to go home. I went home and tried to find the lightest movie I could see. I went and saw Fantastic Four: The Silver Surfer (laughs). Yeah, I guess I was supporting Chris [Evans] too (laughs). After I just shot him, I needed to go support him (laughs).

MoviesOnline: On screen you come off as this dark, badass cat, is this a character you liked playing?

COMMON: I was thinking about when I first began acting and started studying in class. I would tell my teacher that I wanted to…I said, ‘Man, I want to do some dark roles because I’m always viewed as the poet conscious loving guy.’ That’s who I am. That’s the core of me, but there’s some darker things that I felt could be expressed. And it would also give me an opportunity to be an actor, take on a role that was different from me. Because when you’re playing yourself, you don’t even get acknowledged for… I mean, for me as an artist, I feel there’s more challenge in it to be an actor who takes on roles and really becomes a character, and do things that are different from who I am. And you know I’ve done some of these dark characters. I’m looking forward to doing something like playing a priest or a banker or something different, because I have had guns in most of my films. This is the total opposite of Common.

MoviesOnline: Do most people know that you write children’s books?

COMMON: No, they don’t know.

MoviesOnline: Where did that come from in your life?

COMMON: You know, I have a daughter that’s 10 years-old. And also I love the affect that music and art can have on the children. I love the results of seeing children singing songs and knowing that it really influences them and really impacts their lives. So I was like, ‘Man, let me do these children’s books that I feel like could be in a language and could be something that they would be interested in.’ And I also felt even the children’s books could be lessons that adults can get. I was taking stories that could be adult stories, but putting them in children form. Meaning like, love lessons – lessons in love, not losing yourself in love. But I put it in a children’s story. That’s something that I’ve got to be reminded of as an adult sometimes.

MoviesOnline: What are you playing in Wanted as The Gunsmith?

COMMON: The Gunsmith actually is much as you know gun is in his name, he’s more of a peaceful, calm spirit. More of a Buddha-like type of person in a certain way. Though he’s in part of a fraternity that’s assassins, these assassins issue out fate. Like they get from what you call this weave… I forgot what they called it. Anyways, it’s something that issues out fate. Like they tell us who we’re supposed to go take out, and it’s the will of fate. It’s not like a bad thing that these assassins are doing. So The Gunsmith is the calm spirit of that team that actually trains everybody with their weapons.

MoviesOnline: Was he in the graphic novel because I know they’ve departed from it?

COMMON: No, he wasn’t in the graphic novel. It’s totally original.

MoviesOnline: That movie just looks wild. What sort of crazy stuff are you doing?

COMMON: Man, the movie, I’m really excited about that movie. It looks like something I’ve never seen before, from the storyline to the way it looks and the effects that they have and also even just the diversity in the cast. It’s like you hit every facet by getting Angelina Jolie, Morgan Freeman, James McAvoy, Common… All these different genres and it’s good taste to me, what they chose. If I can say humbly, I think they chose some good people to be a part of it. Man, I’ve only seen the first 20 minutes of the film and I’m like, ‘Man, I can’t believe I’m a part of this,’ so I’m excited about it. We just did some reshoots the other day and everybody seems excited. Even James was talking to me like, ‘Man, I really think it’s a good movie,’ and I can tell he’s critical about things (laughs).

MoviesOnline: What did they have to go back and pick up?

COMMON: Well, we picked up some scenes that really helped develop the story more and brought more of my character, Gunsmith, and Morgan Freeman’s character, Sloan, kind of developed them a little more, and also helped the story along. We were in Sloan’s office having a discussion.    

MoviesOnline: You’re working with a lot of Academy Award winners. What’s that like coming into this kind of like Act 2?

COMMON: That’s a great way to put it, Act 2. All I can do is smile. As you mention, me working with Oscar winners is kind of like a dream in a way, to sit across the table and be doing a scene with Denzel Washington or like to go and do a reshoot with Morgan Freeman. And it was funny. One of the scenes I was driving and he was in the backseat and so it was the reverse of like Driving Miss Daisy (laughs). I was driving Mr. Freeman. But I didn’t get to say it (laughs). I forgot. I’ll tell him sooner or later that I was driving. When we see the movie, it’ll be like Driving Mr Freeman. Yeah, so I mean, I’m just enthused to be amongst that. I want to surround myself with just that type of talent because I know that will help me to grow. That’s the pedigree of artists that I want to work with. I feel like as a musician, I set a certain tone and set a certain integrity of the way I want to put art out. I want to do the same thing as an actor.

MoviesOnline: Are you working on your next album?

COMMON: Yeah, yeah, I’m working on it. 

MoviesOnline: Any new shifts or collaborations?

COMMON: Oh yeah, some new shifts. Actually the new album is called Invincible Summer and it will be out in the later part of June. I guess the new shift is just the music sounds newer. It’s really developing. I’m really happy about it. It feels good. It’s not really heavy and it’s Pharrell from The Neptunes and The Neptunes are producing a lot of it. And also a producer named Mr. DJ who did a lot of work for OutKast, did Bombs Over Baghdad and Ms. Jackson. Anyway, these cats are really giving me some new, fresh sounds and I’m taking it somewhere vocally that I haven’t been before. I’m enthused. I’m really excited. I think it’ll be a great summer album, like for people to feel good. I want to make people smile and enjoy life. As much as I want to make them think, it’s important that they smile too.

MoviesOnline: There’s a few club tones in there too?

COMMON: I was just thinking like a big part of the catalyst was when I went out on the Kanye West tour, the Glow in the Dark tour in Europe, I was overseas and I got to see just people partying overseas. And hearing the music they party to, it just was a good feeling. I was like, ‘Wait, none of my songs are getting played over here.’ It’s like, ‘What am I missing in my music repertoire?’ I think that was some of it. Because as much as you need, and you’ll never hear me stray away from this, you always need music that’s uplifting, that’s conscious, but you also sometimes want to relax and party at a party. You may not want to hear those things at that time. You know what I mean? Unless it’s put in a real good way (laughs).  

MoviesOnline: You didn’t mention Kanye as a collaborator for your new project? Also I’d like to get your thoughts on so many rappers focused on ringtones and not really the creative but just the commercial aspect?

COMMON: Yeah, well Kanye, point-blank, I’m want good music, we always will collaborate whether if he’s not producing it, he’s going to sit there and like executive produce it and say, ‘You know, Rash, we need to do these things with it. We need to do this.’ So he always will be a part of it. Right now he’s been focusing on getting his tour together, the Glow in the Dark tour. I always go where things just flow wherever it flows. It’s like, ‘This is what I’m doing for this album. Next album Kanye and I will be working on it with some other new artists.’ But I think this will give it something fresh. It’ll give me more spice when Kanye and I get back together on something. But, who knows? He may do something for this album too because I’m not finished. I’m just in the mid of it.

For me, a lot of artists have come from places where they didn’t get to appreciate the art form. They didn’t get to feel hip hop when it was just so pure, when it was like a thing that was just fun and it wasn’t about business. So now they approach hip hop from a business perspective when it’s like it’s much more than that. Art is art. You’ve got to let the art be the art and let the business take care of that afterwards. Of course, I’m not one who supports approaching music and going in the studio and saying, ‘I’m going to make this just so it can be a corporate song, that’s going to make this person’s ringtone.’ I’m not really a supporter of that. But if a person chooses to do it, and that’s what they want their career to be, then that’s for them. I’m thinking more on a longer term of just being an artist and an actor.

MoviesOnline: Are you actually doing Justice League of America? 

COMMON: I can’t really talk about that situation, to be honest, so… I wish I could but I can’t, really.

MoviesOnline: Well, that sounds promising. It sounds like there’s a possibility if you can’t talk about it. You could say no if it’s no.

COMMON: There you go. You’re intelligent (laughs).

MoviesOnline: Can you talk about the Common Ground Foundation which is dedicated to utilizing the cultural relevance of hip hop?

COMMON: You know hip hop is definitely a very great communicative form of art meaning kids respond to hip hop. I respond to hip hop. Many nationalities just respond to hip hop all over the world. So we use hip hop. When you say hip hop, that’s not only music. Hip hop is a culture. We use all these attractive things about hip hop to educate the youth. And not only hip hop to educate them, but our premise is to empower them, teach them about health, about self-love, educating them academically.  And just also about community and entrepreneurship, and some of the ways we do it is through hip hop, like giving them a chance to create their own video, so that’s expressive ways for them to do it. My children’s books I think are a way of teaching through hip hop, too. I think actually some music that hip hop artists do are ways of teaching, because I’ve learned a lot through artists like KRS-1.

MoviesOnline: How do you even have time to make movies?

COMMON: I’ve really focused on the movie side, because the music – I love music. I feel like God willing I could do that for the rest of my life. We’d be able to be in a jazz club setting but it’d be hip hop and I’d be performing, you know? But movies is something that I focused on. I just look for the right next project and I keep working and auditioning and focus on that. And the music comes so naturally after that because it’s like when I’m working on something else, the music becomes freer. You know what I mean? I’m expressing myself artistically over here, so it allows me to not put as much pressure on the music. And it’s not my only source of income; it’s not my only creative outlet. I think that’s how the two work for me.

MoviesOnline: Is there a character or a person from history you’d like to play at some point?

COMMON: I would like to play like Gil Scott-Heron. I would love to play him. Honestly, like a good jazz musician like Thelonious Monk or something.

MoviesOnline: Thank you.

COMMON: Thanks y’all. Appreciate it.

“Street Kings” opens in theaters on April 11th.