Mention Chicago Hip Hop and a barrage of images come to mind. From Hyde Park to Humboldt Park, Chicago’s Hip Hop scene is a diverse place that has produced artists that cover the spectrum. Crucial Conflict, Common, Kanye West, Lupe Fiasco, The Cool Kids, Kid Sister, Twista, The Molemen, Rhymefest, the list goes on and on. Painting a true picture of Chicago Hip Hop is a tall order for any individual, unless of course, that individual is Konee Rok.

Merging a love for making movies, and a passion for B-Boying, Konee Rok took his grandparents video camera at age 12, chose Star Wars over school, gave up on sleep and rose out of Chicago’s scene as a talented and innovative filmmaker who has documented the Windy City’s Hip Hop movement for more than a decade…And he’s just getting warm...

“I look at MJ as someone who was naturally gifted, but also work ethically gifted,” Rok told me over lunch on a beautiful Saturday in late April. “When you have a natural talent and you work as hard as you can with that…Michael Jordan is an example of the ultimate specimen. I use that as a model, definitely.”

While Rok keeps his eyes on His Airness, others are starting to notice the upcoming filmmaker who’s work ethic is equal to his unmatched ability to fiercely bang out high quality projects in what he once jokingly labeled a passive-aggressive style. So, while Rok’s early reels could easily pass for a “Before They Were Stars: Chicago Hip Hop Edition,” its now Konee who is the one to watch.

Get the facts on Konee Rok in his own words, as he details his start in film, dropping out of school to chase his dreams, Chicago Hip Hop’s evolution, and much more…

“On Small Loose Leaf Sheets I Sketched A Big Plan.”

I started out drawing when I was a kid. I wanted to be a comic book artist. I made my own characters, but my goal was to be an artist for Amazing Spiderman. One day my grandparents got a video camera, and I stole my grand-parents video camera and started messing with it. Once I realized what I could do with that, I stopped drawing for comics.

“Told’em I Finished School and Started My Own Business…Oh you graduated? No, I decided I was finished.”

I had some issues with [Columbia College], I had arguments with the teachers. I remember going in one time and said, ‘you guys should be paying me to go to your school. You’re benefiting from me going here.’ I stuck it out, but I was doing stuff on my own all the time. I was making all these independent Hip Hop oriented projects and b-boy projects. I started to get a little following, and my name was starting to get known on the scene so I started my own business producing Hip Hop videos, breaking videos. I realized, ‘why the f**k am I spending all this money on school?’ I had to spend money on English, math, all that shit besides the film classes. It was so expensive I was just like, ‘fuck it, I’m going to drop out and put my money into my own stuff.’

I remember it was the day the first new Star Wars movie came out. We went to wait in line for the first tickets, we were waiting in line all night for our whole crew to go together. It came to a point where we waited in line for like 16 hours. It got to be our time to see the movie, but I had a final at school. I knew that if I didn’t go to the final I would fail. I didn’t know if I wanted to be in school, but I knew I wanted to see Star Wars at that time. What did I do? ‘Ahhhh, I think I’m going to go to Star Wars. That’s when I left, and never looked back.

“Not To Be Rude, I’m Just Hating On Your Rules.”

My name’s Konee Rok. My company’s logo is a cone that’s been knocked over. Cones represent restrictions, cones represent where you’re not supposed to go. So, if a cone represents where you’re not supposed to go, I’m like f**k it, go where ever you want.’ That’s what it means, it means being creative, being original, go whereever you want. That’s what the logo means. The logo stands for making your own path.

“It’s The High-Power Original, B-Boy Traditional.”

The B-Boy mentality is just insecurity. The B-Boy mentality is basically folding your arms and being tough. It’s defensive. It’s like, ‘I don’t feel comfortable with anybody that I don’t know. So if I don’t know you, I’m folding my arms and you can’t come in.’ The B-boy mentality is one that’s about being down with yourself and your family, and that’s it until further notice. It commands respect. ‘I need your respect before I can let you in.’ It’s like little kids, it’s like 5 year olds. Fold your arms until you get a reason to let someone in. It’s insecurity for the sake of earning respect…but it’s fun to be insecure sometimes.

The B-Boy vidoes, I just do that cause I want to do it, that’s just a part of me, of my roots. I lose money doing b-boy stuff. I make money doing rap stuff, I lose money doing b-boy stuff. But I do it cause I care about it and I get pleasure from doing it. That’s why I do it, and that’s why I’ll always continue to do it. I’m not worried about keeping it real or presenting it right cause I’m not going to present it wrong. It’s not in my nature. There’s nothing I can do that do present it watered-down or more commercially. I try to be conscious of the roots of things in general.

Breaking and dancing is something I find as therapy. I used to care about being the best dancer, and I’m more concerned about making the best films now. Dancing’s just kind of something I do to spontaneously express myself and just have fun. Because I don’t care about being the best, I just care about feeling the music and having fun, dancing has become my therapy and my way to release and relax.

“A Poor Craftsman Always Blames His Tools”

That’s my whole thing transcending tools. How cool is it to be utilizing none to terrible tools? You can get anything done anyway you want to do it, if you really want to do it.  I remember one time talking about money problems with Fest and he told me the same thing that Kanye told him years ago. 'You sound like a wife.’ You don’t get that money until you prove you can do it without that money. Resources will come, you just got to prove you can make it happen before that.

“Just Two Bad Brothers From The City of Wind.”

Me and Rhymefest are a team. He’s one of my best friends, but we also have chemistry. We understand each other and respect each other. No matter what happens, or who I work with in the future, me and Rhymefest are always going to be doing things. It’s a DiNero-Scorsese relationship. He’s my guy and I’m his guy. We’re working together to help each other be the best we can be in our respective art forms.

“If There’s One Thing I can’t Live Without, That’s My Team.”

I’ve been very conscious about trying to build a solid team. I’ve been very independent and alone for a while. I’ve worked with other people, and hired other people for certain things, but I want people around me that care about what they do within their respected genres. I want people who get pissed when they don’t do the best job. I want people who care about how their job is. A team is very important, and it makes the process of creating something more fun. It’s cool to create something in your house, but there’s something dope about making memories and getting experience from working on something. A team is about the experience of creating it and everyone doing the best they can do.

“I’ve Seen Many Cultures Expressed Through Hip Hop.”
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I’ve been traveling for a while, and with lots of different people. I’ve seen Hip Hop all over the world, and it makes me feel like it’s worthwhile. We can reach anybody in any place through any language and it doesn’t matter. It makes me feel like it’s worth doing. You want to do something that’s dope…When you see other cultures embracing that you know you’re not just hitting your demographic, but also the world.

“It’s Like You’re Looking At A Preview Of The Matrix 12.”

The last video that we shot for Fest was about the genocide in Africa. It’s for a song called “Stolen” (produced by No ID). That video, the subject matter, and the way we shot it, I’ve never seen in Hip Hop. I always think, ‘what is being done? What do people expect? How can we do something else?’ The secret to my creativity is thinking about everything that’s been done, and everything that people would probably think, and then I’ll try to find something else. You hear a certain song and people will say, ‘the video should be like this…’ If that’s what you think, then you probably got to find something else. You got to surprise people and stimulate them. Why do something that they expect?

“Stay Hungry To The Death, I Will Starve Myself.”

I have a problem where I get inspiration left and right. It’s nuts. I am too ambitious for my own good. It’s had good results but it also can cause overload, and I am a workaholic. The sickness is that I’m willing to do that work. I’ll take on 11 projects and dedicate and commit myself to doing all of them, and it never stops. And I don’t think it’s going to stop. But I realized that what I do is what I need. I work everyday. I work like 18 hours a day. I sleep only because I have to. I wake up and I get right back to it. I’m committed to forever making creative videos and things you haven’t seen. I’m always going to do that until I can’t. I’m just going to keep coming with stuff, keep coming with stuff. This is what I do. I promise. Hopefully you guys will appreciate it.

“Yes, I’m Still The Future Of The Chi.”

I’m working on the Chicago Hip Hop documentary still, no matter what anybody says. I’ve been working on that since I was 17, it’s been 12 years, goddamn….I started working on that in the mid-90’s. People always ask me, ‘why hasn’t it come out yet? Why hasn’t it come out yet?’ And people were asking me that in 2000. But think about if I came out with it in 2000. Look what I would have missed. I would have missed Kanye West, Lupe, Fest, I would have missed a lot of things. It doesn’t end cause a documentary is life. But I think right now is the time to put it together and come out with something cause the attention is on us, and we got a lot of stars between Rhymefest, and Common, Kanye West, Lupe Fiasco, Twista, The Cool Kids, Kid Sister, Crucial Conflict, Da Brat. There’s a lot of different things coming from Chicago and now’s the right time to put that out cause people actually care.

“I’m Getting Stoney Island On You, You Made Cause I’m Styling On You.”

[Chicago Hip Hop] was grittier, now it’s flashier…Chicago’s always been about that. You get a $100 check and spend $95 on your outfit. Chicago’s very much about spending a lot on your image. Chicago’s very much about wanting to appear successful without actually being successful. You got 100 kids that are dressed like Kanye and not doing s**t. It’s a lot of fronting and insecurity. It’s imitating success and the success is very close to them now, and it hasn’t been. Before they were imitating NY and that success. At least now we have something to imitate from our own town, and that’s cool. It’s still gritty, it’s just covered up by colorful hoodies and shiny shoes.

“We Got More Heat Stored In The Closet.”

Chicago is that little dog that can’t stop barking. I was like that too. I’ve matured a little bit, but I was like that. ‘Calm down, nobody’s against you do dude.’ I think that’s where creativity comes from. People think everyone’s against them when they’re not, so everyone’s prepared. Chicago’s got all this artillery for nothing, but what’s in their own mind. I know I do. But that’s good, that’s where the drive comes from. Chicago creates their own enemies in their minds. If that’s making positive music and art then lets keep being crazy.

“I Got A Million Ideas That I Ain’t Even Rocked Yet.”

I’m working on a new video with Rhymefest about the genocide in Darfur, it’s called “Stolen,” its produced by No ID. I’m working on Rhymfest’s first single for El Che, it’s called “Binary Code.” It may or may not be an animated video. If it is animated, it may or may not be claymation. Next year is the 15th anniversary of Common’s “Resurrection.” I called No ID and I told him I wanted to do a special video piece celebrating the album. So I’m going to talk to everyone involved in the making of that album, and fully break down that album and celebrate it. I’m doing that, that should come out next year.

“This Is My Life Homie, You Decide Yours.”

KR: Do whatever you want. Be respectful, but always do whatever you want. Don’t ever let anyone tell you anything. Decide what you want to do and do it. Don’t kill, don’t steal, but besides that…Always do whatever you believe. Stick to what you believe, if you stick to what you believe, regardless of what anyone tells you, you will be successful. Because success is doing what you believe.

For more on Konee Rok visit his website. Photo credits: Lance Thomas, Franco de Leon, Bone