Z-Trip in Kuwait: Dry Country, Dry Eye :: Reminiscing upon his performance in Kuwait, Z-Trip reexamines his view on the troops he was sent to entertain
05/19/08 :: URB 153
www.urb.com
In
early March of this year, I performed on an army base in Kuwait for our
troops. The show was put together by, and broadcast live on, MySpace.com.
The other acts on the bill were Disturbed, The Pussycat Dolls, Jessica
Simpson and Filter. The show was hosted by Carlos Mencia and Metal
Sanaz.
This was, without a doubt, the strangest event I've
ever been asked to perform at. I'm not saying that in a bad way-I just
never thought in a million years that someone would ask me to do
something quite like this. I'm no supporter of the war or the fucker
who put us there. In fact, I've been extremely vocal about my feelings
on this issue and I've tried to express my views through my music. So
you could imagine when I got the call, I was like, "Me? Are you sure
about this?"
Growing up on the kind music and culture I
did-the majority of it having a heavy dose of anti-establishment to
it-I wasn't sure how I'd fit into the line-up. How would the music I
play-influenced by Public Enemy, Rage Against the Machine, Jello Biafra
and The Last Poets-help me out in front of 5,000 soldiers, Jessica
Simpson and The Pussy Cat Dolls? I mulled this over for a week before
realizing I needed some guidance. First, I spoke with Chuck D. He
helped me put things into perspective, reminding me not to over think
it, that I needed to focus on bringing a show to these soldiers, not a
political forum. He also mentioned that James Brown went to Vietnam
back in the day, which I found comforting. I spoke with Shepard Fairey
next, and like Chuck, he thought my doing this would be a good thing.
He also shot an email off to Hennry Rollins on my behalf. I wasn't
aware that Henry has been over there before to perform for the troops
three times. I felt like his reply nailed it:
"You will
find that the troops are often apolitical. Their job is don't get
killed. They don't always have much to say about policy, they don't
make it, they just take orders.
Having a beef with a soldier
about the war is like having a beef with a cop about the law. They're
not the ones making the policy. The Army doesn't start the war, never
have. They take orders and that's it. You want to argue about the war?
Talk to Cheney. It's Haliburton's war, the troops are just fighting in
it.
Also, you never have to ever mention the war. No one there
will really give a damn about your opinion as they are living it and
you're visiting it. You get to leave and they stay."
Once
I read that, it all fell into place. I'd been so caught up in my
everyday life that I never really stopped to think about these people
and their being away from home. I'd been so caught up in dissing the
administration that I forgot about the men and women doing the work and
the struggles that they go through. Leaving their families for over a
year at a time (some of them on their third and fourth tours). Top that
off with having the possibility of getting killed hanging over your
head? That shit sucks. I was so caught up in my own world that I
completely overlooked the whole point of going over there. "How was I
going to be perceived? How was I going to hold back my views? How was I
going to fit in?" This wasn't about me at all. This was about doing
something good for them. These people have the hardest jobs out there.
This was about supporting them, not by just putting a sticker on my car
and using an empty slogan. It was about me doing something about it by
going over there and bringing them a piece of home.
The
concert was to be held on a transit camp, just 10 miles from the Iraqi
border. The last stop before heading into Iraq or Afghanistan. This
could be, for some, the last concert they would ever see. Shit, if
nothing else, I felt obligated to rep the music. Imagine being a
hip-hop head going off to war, with the last concert you ever saw being
Jessica Simpson.
I rode on the plane with Disturbed, Filter
and Carlos Mencia (all very cool people). We got there two days early
to set up and to spend some time with the troops. The Pussycat Dolls
and Jessica Simpson showed up the day before the show. I didn't really
get to spend much time with them and, from my perspective, it seemed
like they were there more for the exposure than anything else. The
Pussycat Dolls even showed up with bodyguards. I mean, seriously, who
the fuck needs a bodyguard on a fucking ARMY base!?
We got to meet and hang out with the troops over the course of our four
days. They were so stoked to have us there. They took us up in
Blackhawk helicopters, let us shoot some guns on the indoor video
firing range, and took us all around the base, always answering our
questions and happy to talk about their experiences. We ate with them
three times a day and got to really know some of them. While sitting at
lunch, I met Dave who was 18 and from the South-freshly married with a
brand new daughter. He had only been in Kuwait a day and was going to
Iraq for 12 months. He was the nicest kid with a good attitude and
seemed to be taking it all pretty well. While we were talking, the news
was on in the background and they mentioned there were casualties in
Baghdad that day. There was a huge pause in the whole chow hall. When
they went on to the next story everything went back to normal. That
fucked me up. It was all I could do to stop from choking up. I felt for
those soldiers, I felt for Dave...I really hope that guy makes it back
alive.
The actual show was pretty interesting. Disturbed
rocked all the rockers, Filter a little of the same. Jessica and the
PCD were the eye candy, and Carlos Mencia had the crowd laughing its
collective ass off. For me, I felt like the odd man out. Normally, you
see someone like me at a club or a festival where there is alcohol or
some sort of drug floating around. People are loose and in a mood to
party. They also get the whole DJ thing. This wasn't the case out
there. Alcohol is illegal in Kuwait and the people I was playing to
were about to be sent off to fight. The mood was somber. They were
having a good time, yeah, but it was a pretty tough crowd under the
circumstances. I needed to find a way to break through. I rocked a
couple tunes, got some hands in the air, went out on a limb and played
some Rage Against The Machine (which fell in line with my Obama sticker
being rocked proudly on my laptop for all to see), did some scratching
which got them excited, and ended it. But, I still felt like there was
something else that needed to be addressed. I let the applause settle
then asked the crowd if I could play one more song, a song that
reminded me of them. That song was "Hometown Glory" by Adele. It's a
slow piano track with female vocals. I happened to find it the day
before I left and it fit the mood perfectly. I told them the whole
point of my being there wasn't really about me being on camera and
getting the spotlight, it was about them and my attempt at bringing
them a little piece of home. I told them how we all miss them and we
want them back ASAP. The song title had the word "home" in it, and the
lyrics fit. It all fell into place. I then asked the camera crew to
take the cameras off of me and keep them on the crowd for the whole
song. Since the families and loved ones were watching back home, I
wanted them to have a good opportunity to be seen. I let the song play
and at the very end, I cut in a quote from a Jello Biafra spoken word
album: "We support our troops most cause we say... BRING THEM HOME!" The
crowd cheered and I stepped away from the decks with a piece sign in
the air. Mission accomplished.
The next day I was able to
get on MySpace and I got a message from a girl named Brooke. She was
watching when they turned the cameras on the crowd and she saw her
boyfriend mouthing the words, "I love you Brooke, I love you Brooke,"
over and over. She broke down and cried, getting to see her man one
last time before he was sent off.
This trip changed my life;
I'm glad I went. I'm glad I got to meet the people I met over there. I
have a new level of respect for them and I wish them all a safe return.
At the end of the concert, Jessica Simpson had us all come out on stage
while she sang "God Bless America." During it, she said "You know, God
does bless America, if we ask him to."
As I type this, four
more soldiers died today in South Baghdad bringing the total American
death toll to 4000. The Iraqi death toll is said to be above 655,000,
with another two million forced to leave the country and 2.5 million
people displaced. I hope God can bless those people as well.
Z-TRIP'S "HERO SHOT"
TAKING THE DESERT HEAT
EQUIPPED WITH SHADES
"MOST AMAZING AND UNREAL EXPERIENCE"
"PEACE IN THE MIDDLE EAST"
For photos and video of Z-Trip's time on the base, click here
