Indigo Child: Joey BadA$$

Written by Calvin Stovall (@CalvinStovall)

Approximately two years ago, Jonny Shipes, President of Cinematic Music Group and manager to Big K.R.I.T. and Smoke DZA, stumbled upon web footage of a 15-year-old kid named JayOhVEE spitting advanced-placement rhymes. Impressed, Shipes contacted the young teenager via Twitter and began developing him as an artist. Two years later, with cosigns from visual artist Va$htie and Pittsburgh’s Mac Miller under his belt, the online community is buzzing about this kid named Joey BadA$$.

Those who’ve heard the 17-year-old Brooklyn native spit can attest that Joey (born Jo-Vaughn Scott) was blessed with the gift of gab. But while his age and mic skills make him unique, there is an added dimension to the lanky high school junior’s presence that has some convinced that he’s hip-hop’s next torchbearer.

“I’m telling you man, [Joey] can change the course of time,” exclaimed producer 9th Wonder in a recent interview with XXL. “If he’s 17, there are no boundaries of how he can influence a 14-year-old. (What) Tribe and Public Enemy and Brand Nubian did for me as a 15-year-old, he can do the same thing.”

That “thing” that 9th believes Joey can offer is consciousness, or lack there-of, depending on your perspective. The fact that an artist as young as Joey is completely unaware of what’s on mainstream radio gives hip-hop purists like 9th, whose work with Little Brother received similar praise from the likes of DJ Evil Dee and ?uestlove last decade, hope for the future of the culture. “If it’s one of him, that means he has friends and there’s a whole legion and generation of kids that’s just like him,” said 9th.

But while he’d be flattered to know that his “Survival Tactics” video reminded 9th Wonder of a young MF DOOM (one of Joey’s favorite MCs), the precocious lyricist is quick to remind anyone looking to label him as the next “anything” that he’s still evolving into the artist he will ultimately become.

“That’s not my style anymore,” said Joey of the Creative Control-directed “Survival Tactics” video, which features Pro. Era teammate Capital STEEZ and has become Joey’s most-viewed video to date. “That’s probably the oldest song on the tape right now—we did that shit last summer,” he said. “What people fail to realize is that I’m not only into boom bap, this is just how I felt at the time.”

While his rhyme skills certainly set him apart from other MCs his age, it’s his deep interest in philosophy and consciousness that puts him over the head of some of the adult rappers he tunes out by ignoring radio airwaves. When asked to name his influences, Joey mentions “Gandhi,” as Capital STEEZ, sitting next to him, chuckles and adds Confucius to the list. “Nah, I don’t like Confucius,” snaps Joey. “He was all for like, listening to your parents and shit.”

His rebellious spirit flies freely in the music, and his increasingly complicated existence is kept grounded by his mom. The fact that he had to miss last month’s SXSW festival under mom’s orders frustrated him, but he understands the position his talent puts her in.

“School is really making it hard for me to really do what I want to do as far as the music goes,” says Joey of his predicament. “It sucks that like I’m being pushed out there right now—there’s like pros and cons to it. (SXSW) would have been a really good move.”

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So is Momma BadaSS even aware of her son’s talent? “Now, since everything’s been happening faster and more effectively, she actually sees that I’m going somewhere with it,” says Joey. “(Still), her only concern is: finish school.” But Mom’s stance on education may be tested as her son continues to rise. “Certain shit I make sure she doesn’t hear too much, just so it can’t be processed.”

But just because Joey is careful not to bump certain songs too loud in the crib, it doesn’t mean he’s ashamed of his mature subject matter. “It’s not like my shit is not positive, this is my thoughts. I hang out with a lot of older people, so if I need advice—which, I never really take from anyone—I can go to people I hang out with who would give me more of a direct answer. But I do talk to my parents about a lot of things.”

His mom wasn’t truly aware of his potential to make a career out of rap until recently. “Probably when she seen me on MTV,” explains Joey, who appeared on the station’s primary hip-hop segment RapFix on March 26 (and had a predictably awkward interaction with Odd Future). “Actually, it was this whole last week. This whole week really changed it for her. We opened up for Mac on Wednesday at Roseland, that was like 3000 kids sold out and we rocked that shit. After we walked outside, all the shorties was fiending. And then after that, we shot the video for “America” (with Mac Miller) and I didn’t get home ‘til like 5 o’clock in the morning and shit. My moms was mad ‘cause I had to go to school the next day.”

So what could be going on in the mind of a kid whose eyes are focused far beyond the high SAT scores and college degree that society expects of him? Like most teenagers, he’s not even all the way sure what’s going on himself. But his rap fluency and eclectic influences suggest that 9th, Shipes and his other believers may be onto something when they speak highly of him as hip-hop’s potential next voice.

“I feel like we’re going into a new era where people are raising their levels of conscious,” says Joey of his appeal. “Consciousness, awareness, that’s what it is. I just feel like this is what the people need. They need somebody young talking about this or the youth will never know. Kids my age don’t want to hear a 40-year-old man talking about this shit. They’ll listen more if they have someone that they can relate to. And I don’t even do it just because of that, I do it because that’s what’s on my mind all the time.”

Joey and his crew’s interest in consciousness doesn’t necessarily refer to the socially aware lyrics of artists like Talib Kweli or Dead Prez. Politics and social issues catch their interest as well, but it’s meditation and herbal stimulation that have him and his Pro. Era homies thinking at levels far beyond their years. Now they’re acting to turn their elevated thoughts into reality, creating a network of young creatives and entrepreneurs, some of whom are still handing in high school book reports.

“It’s about like 18 of us,” Joey explains. “It’s, like, seven rappers, and producers, clothing designers and graphic designers.” The collaborative network Pro. Era has empowered the young freethinkers and provides purpose to their focus. “It’s great because we build on all these different aspects of the world together. We take it to the next level together, so it’s great.”

But while the energy surrounding he and his team has the potential to change the trajectory of hip-hop, the pressure of the task had Joey stressed until recently. Enlightening a new generation of listeners to the world beyond mainstream rap is a hefty assignment. And as capable as Joey is of achieving it sooner than later, his journey has already taught him the virtue of patience.

“(1999) has been pushed back several times because of me being nervous of what people want to hear,” says Joey of his highly anticipated debut mixtape. “But now I just don’t give a fuck and I feel like I put my full potential into all the tracks. So I’m just going to give the world what I’ve been working on.”

Confidence comes with experience, and considering all of the new memories Joey is making for himself, he may be ready for the world sooner than later. Va$htie no longer makes him star struck, and he’s quickly picking up on the fundamentals of the music industry game—a game he has little interest in playing.

“I’m literally fucking with people now,” said Joey of his new approach to the industry before adding a “pause,” for the record. “Before, I was stressing over what people would want to hear and shit like that, but now it’s just like, I’m not really for that whole business side dominating the music industry.” His words are convincing, and his intense stare assures us that he’s the only true pilot of this trip. “I honestly just don’t give a shit anymore. I just do me.”