Green For The People

"I've been keeping busy,” describes 42-year-old B-Real of his 2013 so far, continuing, “I like to not relax too much. I'm down here at our new studios that we're building down here. We do our live stream broadcasts from here but we're also building a recording studio so we can sort of do both on our social networks, and also record our records, obviously. I've been keeping busy trying to get all that together, and all that.”

Credited as the first-ever hugely successful Latino rapper, B-Real is not content with leaving behind a legacy that only includes eight studio albums, five EPs, various compilations and singles with Cypress Hill, a colourful solo career that has seen countless collaborations, numerous mixtapes, six years of production work and film and TV appearances. B-Real (born Louise Freese) has recently been putting his efforts into his innovative and interactive website: www.brealtv.

“The 420 Show is one of many shows that we do on our site. It's a social network of its own. It's a live stream site and also a blog site and what not. We've just been filling it with content – I do a show there on Mondays to Fridays when I'm not on tour, and even when I am on tour the show runs with the DJs that DJ the show. We're running it like a radio station, but obviously it's a little bit more interactive. It's internet based and we've been doing pretty well with it. We want to expand it and grow it – just another tool for us to market all of our Cypress Hill music and videos and whatever else we have going on. At the same time, being able to help market and promote other artists as well, whether they are up and coming or veterans. It's just a new platform I'm trying to create here.”

Moving on, it's time to talk about the politics that get B-Real motivated. It's no secret that Cypress Hill love weed – Hits From The Bong is one of the most well known tracks from their 1992 breakout album Black Sunday, as well as the name of their greatest hits record. Last year two US states, Washington and Colorado, decriminalised marijuana. Living in the state of California, which historically has led the way for the cause (having reduced the penalty for possession to a petty offence that carried a $100 fine in 1975, and become the unofficial capital of medicinal marijuana use), he describes the situation as something that elated Cypress Hill but also carried a certain disappointment.

“California should have been the first state to do what Washington and Colorado have recently done,” he says. “Due to some confusion going on with some people involved in the legalisation party, it kind of... There was a whole momentum off, and now you have Washington and Denver which have gone before us, and that's a great thing. Our only setback was that we could have been the ones to set the standard and push it forward. I imagine that in the next voting cycle California will probably be the next state to do the same thing. It would be ridiculous for us not to.”

Without needing further prompts, he continues by explaining some of the reasonings behind his beliefs. “Given that the whole industry with dispensaries, and even the people that have to grow it... It takes staff to run these things, and it creates a lot of revenue for each city and state that allows it. Right now there's not really any new revenue streams, new capital coming from anywhere for all the states that might be hurting. California has got so many different types of revenue streams that come through here with the movie industry, and music, and art and all that stuff – same thing with New York and all the other major cities. But most cities don't have those types of opportunities, and this would be perfect because it's a proven, flowing and growing revenue stream. I think it's something that all states in America should consider. We have to fight the bullshit thinking and realise that people need jobs, and this is one way to create it.”

For such a well-known act to be so open about beliefs that contradict the law, one wonders if Cypress Hill have ever faced any serious trouble with the police? “We've had a few scrapes, but we know what's within our rights and what not. We try not to antagonise them, but at the same time speak our minds and speak the truth. I think that as long as you're not speaking against them, the law enforcement is just doing what the federal government tells them to.

“I tell you what – if there was an off the record poll that you could take with policemen I bet that a good third or fourth of them are actually marijuana smokers themselves, but they can't do it or can't admit it because of their job and the drug testing and what not. And then there's another percentage that are sympathetic to it, and then you still have that small group of old-school thinking that can't get it past their heads that this is not the same type of drug as cocaine or heroin or methamphetamine. They look at it as all the same. There's always that old-school thinking type of police officers. However, younger police know what's up. They don't have to arrest you unless you're going out of your way to fuck up, you know?”

And just how much impact does B-Real think his words have had on the matter? “I think our contribution was big. How big? That can't really be measured. I know that we did create a lot of awareness, and got a lot of people think a lot more open-minded as opposed to how they were thinking before our records came out. I think we inspired a lot of other artists to come out and talk about it and represent it.”

In case you were wondering, his favourite strain of weed “since 1995” has been OG Kush. Sour Diesel and The Headband are cited as other favourites.

B-Real reveals that the group are “just starting” work on their new album, and with no further record label obligations are very much considering releasing completely independently.

“We're going to start the early stages of production – picking out music, going through concepts and chopping it up with Muggs, and see what we go with first. I don't anticipate this taking that long, because we're all very excited to do this and Muggs has got a different type of sound in mind, and when that happens it's going to be incredible. I don't have the timeframes but I don't anticipate it taking that long to make. We want to get it done and we want to get it knocked out, and give people a genuine, vibey-as Cypress Hill album. Something different.”

Cypress Hill will be playing the following dates:

Saturday 23 February - Soundwave, Brisbane QLD
Sunday 24 February - Soundwave, Sydney NSW
Monday 25 February – UNSW Roundhouse, Sydney NSW
Thursday 28 February – The Forum, Melbourne VIC
Friday 1 March - Soundwave, Melbourne VIC
Saturday 2 March - Soundwave, Adelaide SA
Monday 4 March - Soundwave, Perth WA