Canibus is a name that millennial hip-hop fans will likely recognize. While he may not be as culturally relevant in recent years as he was at the start of the millennium, the 47-year-old Jamaica-born, New York-raised rapper is still regarded as one of the greatest lyricists of his time. His music career was shadowed by a lot of drama though, including controversial feuds with the likes of LL Cool J and Eminem.
Still releasing music consistently in 2021, Canibus hasn't exactly given up on his passion for rap. He did, however, take a break when he enlisted for the army following the release of 2000 B.C. (Before Can-I-Bus). Speaking with Bootleg Kev about his departure from rap in 2001, Canibus explained his decision to enlist in the U.S. army.
"It was right after September 11. That experience, at that time I made a record, C! True Hollywood Stories, that was the album," recalled Canibus. "The album was satire, it was. It was just done to kind of, like, allegorically make an album that was-- you know, to get under the skin of folks that were saying that, 'Yo man, I want the records to be hard! I want you to spit harder. The beats, the lyrics, I want more!' And then I gave them less. Right? By making a record like that... And the record was strictly just something to-- it wasn't serious but it was something that was still palatable. It was something tangible. You could have went out and got the artwork, look at it, open the fold-out [and be like], 'Who's that guy wearing that shirt? Why is he writing that?' We paid 25 bands for The Source ad and The Source was scared to run the ad because of the relationships that they were saying could have been ruined, and they did it for the money. And then, after that, they turn around and blackball me further. And took money to blackball me. The way I felt at that juncture was like, 'You know what, rap ain't it, I'm still young enough to go out and make a difference."
Watch this portion of Bootleg Kev's interview with Canibus below.