Gabriel O Pensador balances controversy with positivity in new album: ‘focus on the antidote’ [ENTREVISTA]

Gabriel the thinkerone of the most renowned rappers on the national scene, broke an 11-year hiatus without a new album this Friday, the 15th. Antidote for all types of poison(2023) arrives on digital platforms celebrating an even more conscious moment for the artist.

In conversation with the Rolling Stone, the rapper explains that the gap between the new album and its predecessor, Sem Crise (2012), was the way people were consuming music. “I had the feeling that the album format was no longer getting the attention it deserved and people were very much into the single thing,” he explains.

Despite album tracks like “Crooked lines” It is “Lone Surfer/Lone Surfer” perform well, Thinker He understood that it was time to adapt to the way digital music was being experienced.

It was then that Pensador dove in head first and produced works during this period such as “Passport to Faith“, in partnership with Gustavo Macacko“Let it burn“, with Amanda Coronha“I’m Happy (I Killed the President) 2” It is “Faith in the Fight“, with Taís Alvarenga It is “He arrives.” The rapper says that during the pandemic he also released tracks: “I recorded with Ivete(the two released the song “Crowd of 2“), with the Cynthia Luz (“The Healing Is in the Heart”).”

The artist explains that one of the reasons that motivated him to launch a more robust work was that he noticed that this type of format was once again appreciated — even digitally. The main reason, however, despite the more than 10 singles released during this period, was very simple, according to Gabriel.

There was so much to say that I wouldn’t have known what the next single would be. ‘And now, what will be the next theme? I’m writing so much. I don’t know if it’s going to be a serious lyric, if it’s going to be the one I talked about the sea. Let’s polish it here and make the album.”

From then on, the challenge was to select the tracks, making them connect with each other. Among the songs that make up the work, there are songs that had already been written previously and others designed for the album. “After my last single, ‘Communist Patriot,’ I was studying some beats from Dree Beatmakermaking some letters on top of them.”

“I also already knew the Kevinof Malibu Studios, who was always in my head as a good producer. He invited me to record a voice there and I decided to centralize the production in his hands,” he says. Gabriel. At that moment, the project of Antidote for all types of poison.

The rapper revived some songs that had been in the works for a while longer, “Burn Babylon,” co-written and produced by little papa It is “Thank you Mar for all of this“, with André Gomes in production. From a beat by DJ Caique he was born “Top of the World/Bottom of the Well.” There was also a transatlantic collaboration, the Portuguese rapper, producer and long-time friend, Sam the Kid produced the track “Spin” in partnership with Kevin.

Gabriel also highlights a reunion that the project provided. The sound engineer responsible for the album is Renato Bologna. “He had already worked with me many years ago. Even in the song2345sock78‘ he operated the table and says one of the lines in the lyrics: ‘She moved away, married a police chief/Do you want the number?,’” he says about working with his friend again. “You can see when, in addition to being good, he meticulously works on every detail.”

For the rapper, this is one of the best aspects of creating an album: collective work. In singles the work is more ephemeral, he explains. The larger project allows for the creation of bonds between the team.

Another partner of the artist — inside and outside the studio — was Gab(Gabriela Vicente), your girlfriend. The suggestion of changing the beat in the track “Peace Pipe 2”, a partnership with Lulu Santos It is Shamanleft her. Gabriel says that originally the song would follow a more classic line, a roots rap. But they considered bringing a look closer to trap, the final touch was given by Kevinwho also wrote the track.

The name of the album was given from the song “Freedom,” made in partnership with Armandinho“He gave me the song as a gift, ready to go, with the lyrics only in the chorus and some ideas of what we could cover,” says the rapper.

The rapper then took inspiration from situations in his own life, learnings and attitudes to compose his verses. “We have a world of a lot of bad energy, negativity, violence, a lot of repression in every way, intolerance. Human beings are increasingly unscrupulous, greedy,” he reports. Gabriel He also says that situations he went through recently, with disappointments and losses and all of this, end up poisoning us.

Even things that we give importance to, like this world of images, of falsehood, which makes superfluous things important and which causes anxiety and frustration. Everything is very poison for our minds and our hearts. Sometimes we forget to focus on the antidote”

For every poison there is an antidote, explains the artist. It can be courage, freedom to overcome barriers, peace of mind, love, forgiveness, strength. All of this is in the artist’s lyrics throughout the tracks of the new work.

“I think we have to extract the antidote whenever we can, sometimes it’s inside us and we don’t realize it, in the smile of the person next to you, in the hug,” summarizes the rapper, who classifies himself as a very sensitive person. “I even exposed this in a video once, saying that so much hate in the world was hurting me. And I said for the first time that I had some pain in my chest.”

Gabriel, however, takes great pleasure in transmitting joy and good vibes, whether on recordings or at shows. The song that gave rise to the album’s title brings this energy. The collaboration with the reggae singer brought an interesting mix to the album.

Admirer of the genre and declared fan of Bob Marley, Gabriel classifies reggae as resistance music, as does hip hop. The partnership with Armandinho had already been a desire of both artists. “He brings a lot of positivity to his work.”

On the album there is also “Thank you Mar for all of this,” another reggae, this time in partnership with Makua Rothman, musician and surfer, as well as the rapper. The two met in 2020, in Hawaii. “Talking about something I love, which is the sea, surfing. Because it brought me many friendships, the desire to explore and courage.”

The rapper has already surfed giant waves in places like Nazaré, Portugal. For him, the relationship with sport is very paradoxical. At the same time that the activity awakens courage, it is also a time of panic. “

One of the most interesting aspects of these songs about surfing and the sea — Gabriel There are also songs like “Lone Surfer/Lone Surfer” It is “Me and the Board” — is the identification of people who are far from the ocean through song.

In addition to these artists, the album features several collaborations. Perhaps the most emblematic of them is “Peace Pipe 2,” in which Gabrielfollowed by Lulu Santos It is Shamanrevisits one of his most classic hits, released in 1998, on the album Puzzle.

The first thing that came to mind was the need to talk again about the issue of drug trafficking. It had nothing to do with this vote that is almost taking place before the inauguration. But I think there is a need to talk about this because another innocent death in the favela, another child shot, a pregnant woman, whatever it was, had been normalizing for a long time. At the same time that we know that the police officer dies, the worker dies. It’s bad for everyone”

In the midst of these reflections, during the album’s 25th anniversary tour, the rapper decided to resurrect the chief, the song’s main character, and address the indigenous issue, deforestation and the massacre of this population more directly.

During the recording of the track, Shaman He told Gabriel that he had done a work in the 6th grade in which he sang the 1998 song. “He sent me an audio last week explaining further that this work was very important for him to discover himself as a poet. I was very happy, I really admire the work of the Shaman.”

In “Burn Babylon”, the rapper receives Hélio Bentesfrom the band Balance Pointthis is not the first time they have met professionally, they have already collaborated on “Our song” is at “Let’s go,” which also includes the participation of Gabz.

Gabriel also formed a partnership with the rapper Sainton the track “Dry mouth.” He was looking for a skilled poet to participate in the track, which is one of the most personal on the album, the invitation was accepted and the collaboration became one of the artist’s favorites. “The song talks about personal issues of emptiness, shallow thinking and also slightly questions our dependence on artificial intelligence.”

Another special participation is that of black alien, longtime friend. “He even commented, ‘How come it took us 30 years to get the pens together?’.” In “Never Have Afraid” the two deal with their ghosts, but also with courage and determination.

The rapper highlights the importance of presentations in the moment he is living. “I’m looking forward to bringing these new songs to the show. ‘Prophecy,’ one of my favorites, I sang it at the Madureira show, here in Rio,’Peace Pipe 2‘ too, but now my mission is the new show. We have a very good band and a very good structure, it’s the ideal time to bring a new album to the public.” He ends by talking about the upcoming tour.