Hip Hop 50th Anniversary
Rick Rubin: The Shaman of Hip Hop
9 Quotes from Rick Rubin’s Book, The Creative Act
“The artist is always on call. This is because the artist’s job is of two kinds:
The work of doing.
The work of being.”
- Rick Rubin, The Creative Process: A Way of Being
Every movement needs a philosophy. That philosophy is nurtured by individuals who dedicate their lives to swimming in the ethos of The Movement. They are often known to be eccentric or esoteric.
They are the philosophers.
They say things that appear outside the realm of the field of play. They are above and outside of constructs and constraints.
Rick Rubin is one of those people in Hip Hop.
His new book, The Creative Act: A Way of Being, is a deeply satisfying read and an articulate expression of his philosophy.
Who Is Rick Rubin?
The social, economic, and technological revolutions of the 1960s gave birth to the 1970s and a new community of thinkers and creators who partnered to create Hip Hop, among dozens of other innovations that defined the Baby Boomer and GenX generations.
It was especially ripe for partnerships between Blacks and Jews who shared special bonds in the wake of The Movement for Civil and Human Rights where they marched arm-in-arm against forces that sought to destroy them, individually and collectively.
The most innovative collaboration of that time was Russell Simmons (Black) and Rick Rubin (Jew) as co-founders of Def Jam Records, Hip Hop’s first independently-owned record label.
“Sometimes the most valuable touch a collaborator can have is no touch at all.”
— Rick Rubin, The Creative Process: A Way of Being
Simmons and Rubin were college-aged New Yorkers with rebellious spirits, creative genius, and business instincts. They also had natural, organic relationships with emergent talent that positioned them on the right side of Hip Hop history.
Simmons was the business mind of Def Jam Records. Rubin was the creative force within the partnership — the Steve Wozniak to Russell Simmons’ Steve Jobs. Rubin had unique ideas about how music should be made. He always had a way of connecting deeply with artists and instigating the best in them, especially their more raucous natures.
It was Rick Rubin who stripped Jay-Z’s “99 Problems” to its bare essence. He made that song sound young and fresh in a field of popular auto-tune albums. In doing so, Rubin reminded us that he was the producer who helped the Beastie Boys (a few more Jewish Hip Hop pioneers) fight for the right to party.
The legend of Rick Rubin’s career, production routines, and ways of thinking have been well-documented over the years. I will not re-hash them here, but it is important for you to understand the evolution and breadth of his talent. The man has launched and revived the careers of the most significant artists across six decades, reaching every bit of soil on this globe.
Check out this list of critically important artists Rick Rubin has worked with.
- Run DMC
- Beastie Boys
- LL Cool J
- Public Enemy
- Geto Boys
- Sir Mix-A-Lot
- Lil Jon & The East Side Boys
- Wu-Tang Clan
- Jay-Z
- Kanye West
- Lil Uzi Vert
Rubin also has a crazy significant list of Rock, Punk, and Metal artists he has worked with, including Linkin Park, Slayer, Limp Bizkit, Lady Gaga, Kesha, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Johnny Cash, James Black, Ed Sheeran, among dozens of others.
“A point of view is different from having a point. A point is an idea intentionally expressed. A point of view is the perspective — conscious or unconscious — through which the work emerges.”
— Rick Rubin, The Creative Process: A Way of Being
The Creative Process is not technical, historical, nor biographical.
This book is an open portal to the mind of an artistic master. Reading his words is like walking into someone’s house and seeing it decorated precisely as you thought it would be.
The book is a set of reflections from someone who has been to a metaphorical mountaintop after amassing thousands of hours of experience within a perspective. His words walk slowly with their hands behind their back, patiently teaching us.
The Creative Process feels like it was sculpted to its present form. It privileges artistic permission over artistic process, though Rubin does sprinkle ample practical advice throughout his book of wisdom.
This book reads like a scroll The Rza would have discovered when he was 10 years old. The language is plain, direct, and packed with durable insights.
The Creative Process is about the artists’ way, but much of Rubin’s approach is applicable to nearly every domain and phase of life.
It is an ideal read for beginners inasmuch as regenerative for masters of their crafts.
My craft is leadership and I was inspired and recharged by much of what I read from Rubin.
Enjoy these snackable quotes from the book and go buy it for yourself or for someone else. It is worth it.
6 Additional Quotes from Rick Rubin’s Book The Creative Process: A Way of Being
“Every innovation risks becoming a rule. And innovation risks becoming an end in itself.”
“Listening is suspending disbelief.”
“Impatience is an argument with reality.”
“If you have created a truly innovative work, it is likely to alienate as many people as it attracts.”
“I am both professor and student because if you’re no longer a student, you don’t have the right to call yourself a professor.” [Arn Anderson via Rick Rubin]
“It is a disservice to the project to weigh our contribution to it.”
Rick Rubin has been defined as an elite producer for more than 50 years.
His book, The Creative Act: A Way of Being, reveals how Rubin sees his role in the creative process: less producer, more Guide.
He doesn’t lead with the technical; he leads with his philosophy.
That is why I will always consider him the Shaman of Hip Hop.
Namaste,
Ed.
I am a poet, essayist, and civic strategist celebrating 60 years of civic revolution and 50 years of Hip Hop in Birmingham, Alabama. Get to know me better here.
