DX: Is this what makes you The Ambassador?
B: Yo, I think so! I never really thought about it like that, but now that you’ve mentioned it. I honestly feel like my presence in music generally, I’m an ambassador in music on a little different levels. One, being foreign and bringing an African perspective to the game. Two, my general identity. I’m fortunate enough to have something that I can actually call my own. My overall goal is to play with a 50-piece ensemble. The type of shit, that when you set up, people know it’s Super Bowl status.

DX: On your Myspace page, you’ve got a bit of a shrine to some influences. How is Bjork an influence?
B: Aw man! Shit! I love Bjork. She is fuckin’ fabulous! She’s from Iceland somewhere, which is dope. Music is a function… everything around you is what ends up in your records. She’s in Iceland, fuckin’ with an 808 and a crazy MPC joint, making fabulous music. I love her sound; her voice is insane. That influenced me to a write a song called “Suicide Theme.” It’s actually the title track of the album, highly influenced by her, Portishead, Radiohead the ambient musicians – the ones who go out there and do what they feel. I pay real money to see these people. I want to know how Radiohead rents a studio in the woods to record. That’s interesting. I want to do that. I want to know how Bob Marley and Peter Tosh did it; I know how these guys [rappers] do it. It’s obvious. They don’t put no thought into it. Smoke a couple blunts and press record. I feel like that’s not working. My level of sophistication won’t allow me to respect it. I have friends who never dreamed of being artists today, being artists, because of how low the bar is. As Chuck D told me, "You’ve got to put the 'awe' in “audience.”

DX: You said the album is two-and-a-half years deep. When it’s done, what kind of situation are you looking for, or are you going all out independent?
B: We are. I have been operating for years, independently, putting myself on the road, touring. None of that shit is ever gonna stop. My machinery is well-oiled right now. I’ve got the hooptie. If they want to throw some rims on it, that’s cool. I’ll take some rims. If they wanna give me some gas money, I’ll take it. But I definitely know where I’m driving to. Nobody is getting into that driver’s seat by me. That’s how I’ve looked at it for years. It’s definitely tough to compete. Let’s be clear too, this is a competition. Every time I get to play an Akon or Snoop Dogg show, somebody is not getting to play that. So I have to treat it as a do-or-die situation. You have to get it ‘cause it’s yours. If I don’t get one of these [label] situations, the record is the record, and the record is good. It’s just a ratio thing. If it gets exposed to 100 people, 90 people will buy it. If it gets exposed to 100,000,000 people, 90,000,000 will buy it; that’s my outlook. I just have to make sure that I’ve made the best product possible. What I aim for is definitely high, definitely huge, and I need a home to understand that this is international, and we can be Bono status.

DX: What kind of time-table?
B: My goal is to put it out this fall. I’m done recording. I’m done with the initial marketing to start circulating a single. We’ve started multiple campaigns. I’m targeting different regions. My goal is for the fall. Tour throughout the summer; I’m hoping to do Rock The Bells, do a small tour with either The Roots or Common. Hopefully, by the fall, I’ll have a single that circulates well enough to have an album out by the end of the year.

To hear Blitz' music [click here].