If you are familiar with Minneapolis’ underground outfit, Doomtree or its most recognizable member, POS, then you surely know its first lady, Dessa. One of the most impressive things about Doomtree is the productivity of all of its members, as many of them release their own material, using the larger collective as an anchor to show off their skills and set the table for their individual creative endeavors. Dessa’s solo works include a book, Spiral Bound, as well as a new LP, A Badly Broken Code. She goes under the First Look microscope this week with Kosha Dillz and we learn about both. Check it out.
RubyHornet: So let’s play weird networking game. It’s a favorite. Who are you and what do you, where you from?
Dessa: My name is Dessa. I live in Minneapolis where I rap, sing, and write essays.
RubyHornet: Your album is coming out….can you give us your two sentence pitch?
Dessa: My new album is called A Badly Broken Code. It’s a retailer’s nightmare: it includes too many genres to be easily shelved. But it’s full of the best music that I know how to write; it ranges from meloncholy rap ballads, to club bangers, to secular hymns.
RubyHornet: What’s your favorite line in your new album?
Dessa: It feels a little self-celebratory to pick a favorite line from my own album….but if asked, it’d be either “Anger is just love—left out and gone to vinegar” or “In a room full of thugs and rap veterans, why am I the only one who’s acting like a gentleman?“
RubyHornet: Working with students must be an interesting experience, as you seem to be involved in learning still…comments?
Dessa: I don’t think there is a singular formula for making good music. Some people do it by writing complicated songs, with challenging structures. Some do it by playing a few, simple chords beautifully. Some people sing like birds, some sing like deisel engines. I don’t think I can tell my students how to succeed—there may well be a different route for everyone of them. But I can outline some behaviors that are likely to help them improve, and to accelerate their progress. Listen carefully to the music that moves you. Pay attention to your curiosity—and indulge it. Show up on time, ready to play, and in a condition that could pass for sober. That last line alone could set you apart from ninety percent of the field.
RubyHornet: I always hated this question. But now I love it. I think it’s an important question that goes overlooked. So where do you see yourself in 5 years?
Dessa: In five years, where ever I am, I’d like to amass publishing credits in some of the magazines and anthologies that I admire. I’d also like to have a piano—and know how to play it.
RubyHornet: How long has your album been in the process?
Dessa: I’ve been working on some songs for years. Songs that have a lot of imagery, or that present intricate narratives, take me along time to write. I puzzle over my verbs and my nouns, and then spend just as much time trying to wrestle my content into a percussive pattern that’s pleasing too. On the other hand, some love songs come together over the course of a single, frenetic all-nighter.
RubyHornet: Can you tell me about your first time on stage? What was it like? Where were you?
Dessa: The first time I performed on stage for people who weren’t related to me, I did so at Kieran’s Irish Pub in Minneapolis. I performed spoken word poetry. After that night, I vowed never to wear shiny pants again—the satin showed every tremble in my shaking knees. I don’t think I every have worn shiny pants again.
RubyHornet: So you’re going on tour as main support for POS. Is it as hard to maintain being a woman as it is to maintain the grime as an indie rapper, moving from state to state?
Dessa: Touring as part of an independent, low-budget tour has its challenges—for male and female performers. I always try to make sure that my gender isn’t a conern for the other performers—I try to shower fast, put on my make up at the club, and offer to sleep on the floor as often as seems appropriate.
RubyHornet: What’s its like being compared to Lady Bug and Lauryn Hill? What woman would you like to be compared to once you reach 50?
Dessa: Being compared to Lauryn Hill is as flattering as it is outrageous. She’s one of my generation’s best pop vocalists. I’d go toe-to-toe with most vocalists, but there’s no way that I can approach the technical skill of Lauryn. Honestly, I think the fact that I’m compared to her says more about how few points of reference we have for women in hip hop.
RubyHornet: Do you think you are anything like Lara Croft?
Dessa: Um, on very rare occasion I have been compared to Laura Croft. I couldn’t pull it off in a movie or anything, but if I were in a pinch, I might be able to make it work on Halloween.
RubyHornet: Ok, ok…you wrote a book called Spiral Bound. Alive Magazine called it “witty and desperately honest.” Is there anything wrong with being honest…or desperate.. On separate measures?
Dessa: Well, I guess I’d rather be called ‘honest’ than ‘desparate.’ But I think I know what the comment meant. Although I’m turned off by emotional exibitionism, I’ve always been attracted to frank art. And when I have been desparate, I’ve written essays that were honest about it.
RubyHornet: How long did it take to compile all your essays and poems? Where do you do most of your writing??
Dessa: The essay and poems that I included in my book Spiral Bound, were written over the course of two or three years. I do most of my writing at home, late at night, and looking sort of tweaked out.
RubyHornet: Ok this is my favorite part of the RH first look. Fill in the blanks is something I always thought was under estimated, and it let’s us all have fun (I think) So get ready, set…GO!
Hello my name is Dessa My album is called A Badly Broken Code and it’s really messing up your Planogram. If I had a pet rock I would name it Isabel because that name is beautiful and rocks are less of a responsibility than kids. I speak 1.75 languages. When it comes to cooking, I’m mostly known for fajitas. My most favorite snack to microwave is cheese. The toughest thing about couch surfing is cats because I am so allergic. This interview is almost over because MK Larada and Carlos are waiting for me to finish. Ok, if I can be any superhero. I would be delighted.
RubyHornet: Rappers love shout outs and writers have acknowledgements just like electricans do plugs, so how bout you get really gangsta electrician writer by acknowledging your peeps and plugging shout outs..here.
Dessa: Many thanks to singer Matthew Santos and violinist Jessy Greene. Thanks to Doomtree’s MK Larada and Paper Tiger for producing the lion’s share of my album. Thanks to Lazerbeak and Ander Other for running an entire effing record label.
For more info on Dessa check out Doomtree.net or Myspace.com/dessa
