See Logic Talk Biracial Identity, Anime Influence
“When it comes to being black and white, and the things that I’ve experienced, it was just a personal journey to look in the mirror and be happy with who I am,” Logic told Rolling Stone during a visit to the office. The 26-year-old biracial rapper has been hit with criticism during the course of his career given his fair complexion, but he’s using the claims of inauthenticity to speak not only to his own narrative and background but to those of many others, as well. He has two potential albums in the works, including one where he spits rhymes from varying perspectives.
“I feel the Aryan in my blood is scarier than a Blood/Been lookin’ for holy water, now I’m prayin’ for a flood/Feel like time passin’ me by slower than a slug,” he teased from a song he’s recently begun writing from the perspective of a mixed-race person like himself. “But my beautiful black brothers and sisters wanna act like I’m adopted/Go back in time when my ni**a daddy impregnated my cracker momma and stopped it.” Later, Logic says, “My skin fair, but life’s not.”
As for the second album in the works, Logic promises a more “fun” premise, though he did not reveal much more, especially since he claims it will probably be another two years before these projects will be released.
Logic’s big plans come not too long after the release of his similarly ambitious second LP, The Incredible True Story. Running through the album are a number of humorous though earnest skits told from the perspective of a pair of astronauts looking for a planet called Paradise in the distant future after Earth becomes uninhabitable. Logic’s LP is the one that “changed everything,” so they play it as they go off on their trek. One special inclusion in the album is the voice of Steven Blum, an anime voice actor who is best known for his role on Cowboy Bebop, a show that has been a huge inspiration for Logic.
“When I was younger, I hated my life,” he explains. “I was able to escape into video games, travel to outer space, watch movies. Now when I write it, it’s not an escape. It’s a part of my life, which is amazing.”
For The Incredible True Story, which Logic describes as an “audio-cinematic experience,” he decided to go back to the first thing that inspired him as a creator, which was Cowboy Bebop. Watching the show not only made him want to write, but it also inspired him to draw and be a creative person. Space had also factored into Logic’s young life, though he stepped away from it in his music because of how brilliantly Kid Cudi had incorporated it into his own aesthetic. “Two guys can rap about space,” the rapper reflects with a laugh.
This summer, in support of his 2015 LP, Logic will embark on a co-headlining tour with another fan-favorite rapper, G-Eazy. The pair will be joined by YG and Yo Gotti, and the trek will launch in late June. He recently sold out an entire solo headlining tour, which wrapped earlier this month with a pair of shows at New York City’s Terminal 5.