Malice in Bronderland

After hurrying through the rain following class, I walked into Clark 107 thinking I had arrived late. Quickly scanning the crowded auditorium for a seat, I spotted an open chair in the back corner next to an unassuming guy with glasses and a fairly garish iPhone case. I asked him if he was saving the seat and he gestured silently that the one on his right wasn’t taken. After getting slightly more settled in my surroundings, I peeked just past my immediate left and saw a guy wearing an enormous gold chain with a yellow diamond centerpiece that read “Re-Up Records Gang.” Standing behind him was a bodyguard who couldn’t have topped out at less than six foot six. It immediately dawned on me that through the weariness and disorientation accumulated through spring break and midterms, I had unwittingly sat down next to an obvious seat of honor reserved for Malice, one-half of critically acclaimed coke-rap godfathers the Clipse that also features Chad Hugo of the Neptunes.

The Student Hip Hop Organization at U.Va. was recently voted Student Council CIO of the year, and with good reason. In the semester and a half of their existence, they’ve followed up an expertly executed marketing campaign by fulfilling their promise of expanding knowledge and appreciation for hip-hop music and culture at U.Va. They brought Mac Miller and Big Sean for a sold out concert at the SAB last semester, and before spring break the SHHO hosted a lecture with veteran producer 9th Wonder, a true power in the game and actual hip-hop professor at Duke University. On Tuesday night they arranged for Malice, a Virginia Beach native and certified trap star, to speak to a packed classroom about his new book, Wretched, Pitiful, Poor, Blind, and Naked. Considering the majority of the University community’s exposure to hip-hop doesn’t stray far from the Billboard Hot 100, the term “doing big things” would be an understatement.

Malice (real name Gene Thornton) characterized the book as a personal and intimate account of a series of true stories that he described as “the wildest chain of events that happened in [his] life.” Although he seemed relaxed as he spoke before the eagerly attentive audience, the difficulty of recalling a story that obviously aroused a lot of complex emotions came through pretty clearly. He recalled the pain and the pressure of seeing several members of his entourage, including former manager Anthony “Geezy” Gonzalez, getting caught in a DEA drug bust and receiving prison sentences longer than 30 years for leading a cocaine trafficking ring allegedly worth ten million dollars.

Anyone who has heard a Clipse song knows that drug dealing and violence are pervasive on their music, but Malice revealed a vulnerable and introspective side of his personality that rarely appears in his music. Bringing attention to his reaffirmed faith in Christianity, he introduced a series of short film clips featuring excerpts of his book in which he experienced a late-night breakdown that led to an epiphany about the wicked ways of his life and the necessity of positive change. Evoking the biblical story of Job, Malice spoke of being stripped of all his wealth but maintaining an unwavering devotion to God, and his treasures being restored because of it.

Careful not to give away too much of the story of the life-changing events contained in his book, Malice stated that he had tried to rap about his experiences, but found himself unable to express the message he wanted to circulate. Although currently focused on writing, he affirmed that he has not abandoned music and is at work on a mixtape while he supports his book. After getting through the promotional aspects, Malice opened the floor for questions about his work, but most students desired information about the rap industry and his views of the current state of hip-hop. He touched briefly on feuds with former label Jive Records (“Sorry to the fans / but those crackers weren’t playing fair at Jive”) and Lil Wayne. Unapologetic but not arrogant, Malice admitted that he enjoys the current state of hip-hop, but hasn’t been able to keep up with current artists because of the time devoted to working on Wretched. Some questions he fielded also brought some pretty hilarious responses, including a clarification on the meaning of “wamp wamp” and his annoyance at Chad Hugo and the Neptunes for giving away the beat that eventually became “Throw Them Bows” to Ludacris instead of the Clipse.

Despite the brief duration of the appearance, Malice had no shortage of advice and opinions for the youth, at whom he says the book is aimed. He articulated a desire to set a better example for kids who he feels are inundated with the hip-hop obsessions of sex, drugs, and violence, although he acknowledged the influence of street life on his music as a representation of reality more than a glorification. The SHHO at U.Va. has started an excellent trend in bringing some heavy-hitters of the rap game to Charlottesville, and they show no signs of slowing down any time soon.