In the early 2000s, J-Live was stride-for-stride with Black Star and Common in bringing the early classic Hip Hop components out to combat the mainstream. Thanks to a different plateau of labels, and maybe an endorsement or two, Justice Allah remains comfortable in the independent marketplace while his peers soared onto mainstream success.

The last five years have not helped matters. Whereas 2001's The Best Part and 2002's All Of The Above appeared to be as strong as an opening pair of albums as any contemporary emcee could possibly deliver, a jumbled handful of EPs and jumbled Penalty Records' return to the game, 2005's The Hereafter weren't in line. Returning to Brooklyn after a stint living in Philadelphia, J-Live isn't quick to admit that any of the last five years were professionally taxing. Instead, within the complex verses, the emcee, deejay and producer chronicles a divorce, financial struggles and a renewed vow to his craft on Then What Happened? [click to read].

Listeners can find out what actually transpired in J-Live's life in the last three moons. What J-Live tells HipHopDX is that he was aware of criticism, to a point. Fresh off of a personally-touching South African tour, gearing up for domestic spot dates and a high-praised album finding new fans, Justice prevails. 

HipHopDX: To what extent was it difficult to come out and really expose what’s been going on in your life recently?
J-Live: I don’t know if expose is the right word. It’s sort of therapeutic to write and spit about it. It’s sort of a good way to clear the air. I imagine the first thing that comes to mind is “The Last Third.”

DX: When you were recording The Best Part [click to read] doing “Get The 3rd,” did you ever imagine this would become a three or four part series?
J-Live: Nah. Not at all. Had it not been for the specific experience behind “The 4th 3rd,” I wouldn’t have named it that. No, I wasn’t going for [EPMD’s] “Jane” part one, two and three or anything like that.

DX: Even mentioning EPMD, on “The Understanding” you say that Slick Rick, KRS-One and EPMD were role-models that helped father you. I can certainly relate to that with my own select emcees. In your own career, have you had the opportunity to know your impact to that sort of extent?
J-Live: I get it on occasion, when I’m at shows talking to fans, whether I’m selling merch, signing stuff, talking or just hanging out. I get it in some interviews. I get a lot of love on MySpace. For me, it’s very important and very much appreciated because, especially staying on topic with “The Last Third,” I kinda look to artists like Stevie Wonder in that regard. Every relationship I’ve ever been in, there’s a Stevie song that sums it up or is very helpful in terms of insight. Conversely, with matters of social injustice and things of that nature, you can look to a Bob Marley or a Peter Tosh. Not just singers and songwriters, but lyricists and beautiful people I look to, to inspire me, not just in music, but in life. To get that kind of feedback from fans, to have people really tell me that they appreciate “The 4th 3rd”…somebody once told me that “Timeless” helped them through a suicidal period. I’ve heard people say that they’ve used All Of The Above everyday for a two-hour commute. Stuff like that is pretty much the greatest form of a compliment I can get – that I’m affecting people the way my favorite music has affected me.

DX: You use metaphor well. You told me that “Nights Like These” is a song about your discovering knowledge of self, which is something I never realized, despite being a favorite. In “The Last Third,” you reference athletic and judicial terms to discuss divorce. Were metaphors a way for you to deal with tougher issues more comfortably?
J-Live: It’s like I say in the song, “Even now, writin’ this, usin’ coded language / More so to save face than try to hide the anguish.” You know what I’m sayin’? To put the sordid details out there like that would be inappropriate, but I think by using artistic language and figurative language you’re able to tell a story that people can relate to beyond the specifics, ‘cause I know I’m not the only person that’s going through this personally, and conversely, I know I’m not the only one goin’ through the situation as it is, so I have to be respectful of that, you know what I mean? It’s a combination of both. There’s other songs like [Kool G Rap & DJ Polo’s] “Truly Yours” or [Ghostface Killah’s] “Wildflower” or “Get The 3rd” that are just specifically venting; that’s not the song I’m trying to make. That’s really how it comes out. Even with “Like This Anna,” there is a reason for playing with words the way that I do. I try to make it relatable, on a grander scale, beyond subject matter itself, but with metaphors.

DX: The first two albums were received so very strongly. With The Hereafter [click to read], I saw a lot of criticism with that album that was not so favorable. Then What Happened broke back to the first two in progression. Were you aware of the criticism in making this album?
J-Live: My ears are wide open. I hear everything. Some of it I take seriously; some of it I take with a grain of salt. Some of it is me having a closer perspective. You take it all in. Every now and then I might Google myself to see what they’re saying on the message boards. Continued on page 2 »