Sundown & Enigma of Actual Proof

Du Bois

In a 1903 essay, W.E.B. Du Bois posited that 10 percent of the black population of the United States would become “exceptional men” through the attainment of education and the acquisition of knowledge. He believed this Talented Tenth would then “guide the mass away from contamination and death” and struggle for social justice and equality. Over a century later Dubois’ unfinished project has been remixed courtesy of Enigma, Sundown, and Amp the three members of the Hip-Hop group Actual Proof.

The project was released as a free digital download under 9th Wonder’s It’s A Wonderful World imprint. It has two sides, each dedicated to successors of Dubois’ legacy – The Dr. Martin Luther King Experience and The Malcolm X experience. On “Dream”, the King experience opener, Enigma and Sundown trade sharp, semi-autobiographical stanzas over a leisurely 9th Wonder track. Amp, the DJ (yes, you read right, DJ), uses the 1s and 2s to orchestrate a brilliant posthumous conversation between MLK and Biggie. Martin’s omnipresent “I have a dream” statement is rejoined by Biggie’s “It was all a dream. . .”.

“Peace Zulu” and “The March” are other highlights from the Martin experience. The Sinopsis produced “Peace Zulu” features soulful bass strums punctuated by stilted horn jabs. The result is a smooth listening experience. As the hook goes:

We say peace, and still talk them streets
Walk like a man, like ya pops tried to teach
Talk that slang, march like King
It’s the Zulu Nation

In “The March” Enigma and Sundown take on the perspective of non-violent protestors in a procession. “I march slow” is the mantra. Khrysis helms the boards on this one and concocts a melancholy mélange of guitar, piano, and flute samples that create the feeling that The March is a swan song. It lacks a rhythm section but maintains a vibrant heartbeat and allows the pair to showcase their acumen as lyricists. Enigma opens with:

They call me the peace dude
Say I walk a path that’s narrow
You know, eye on the sparrow, the black Pharoah, un-raddled
Been through more battles, seen more families shattered
Than the average man can handle
Ahead of my year, but young in age
My growing pains to better my peers, I weather these tears
I’m slowly drained, and so afraid
Marching with the souls of slaves

The Malcolm X Experience is packed with odes to golden era Boom Bapism. Amp produced four of the tracks on this side and with each he offers up a healthy serving of DJ Premier’s not-so-secret four-bars-of-sample and scratch-a-phrase recipe. Thankfully, this is skillfully done, as tracks like “Great Minds”, “All Basic”, and “Breath” feature bids for MC supremacy proclaimed over dope beats. If you’re around 30 years of age, you’ll at least appreciate the nostalgia.

“Detroit Red” is the strongest offering on the Malcolm side. Here, Actual Proof playfully channel Malcolm, the hair-conking pimp and Malcolm, the coke-sniffing hustler. The intro features Enigma yelling for Khrysis to pick up some “white bitches and some blow”. What ensues is a playful rendering of the film Malcolm X. The chance to debauch with impunity, under the guise of early Malcolm must have been irresistible for the young duo that so earnestly laid claim to the legacy of three giants of the black freedom struggle.

My main criticism of this side, and of the album overall, is that the Martin Experience was more fully realized than the Malcolm Experience. While the former had “Dream”, “The March”, and “Letta’ to Coretta”, the latter speaks only through a young, pre-literate Malcolm who has yet to undergo his first of many transformations. Predictably, the beats and rhymes are more aggressive, playing into an oversimplified Martin/Malcolm, peaceful/violent binary memory of the figures. Ideological nitpickary aside, The Talented Tenth is a thoughtful, cohesive, and mature work that could easily have been an official album. These cats are young, intelligent, and not the least bit modest about their skills. But now that they have laid down the gauntlet, we can only hope their future work continues to measure up to their lofty titles.

The Talented Tenth is available for free download at DJbooth.net.