Flavor Flav Has No Time Limit on Being a Hype Man

By
Devon Ivie,
a staff writer covering classic rock and TV

“These people are babies. But there’s a lot of babies that know about my music, so why can’t I learn about the music they’re making in return?”
Photo-Illustration: Vulture; Photos: Rhiannon Ellis, Kevin Mazur/Getty Images, Christopher Polk/Billboard via Getty Images

Yeah, boy, consider this a glory day. Flavor Flav is a positivity magnet, with just about every artist who tick-tocks into his path keen on a hug, a photo, or a few words of encouragement. (Miley Cyrus got the trifecta.) But Public Enemy’s elder statesman makes sure it goes both ways: Over the past year, it seems like Flav has been in the crowd at every concert imaginable to enthusiastically support the headliner, whether it’s with a wrist full of friendship bracelets at the Eras tour, a yeehaw attitude while seeing Tim McGraw, or, most recently, a spiritual awakening from Bruce Springsteen.

Last Friday, the Boss — back to his onstage self after an illness — returned to Las Vegas, giving us perhaps the most endearing Flav cameo yet. While concert footage documented his big-kid blitz during songs like “Dancing in the Dark” and “Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out,” Flav was also able to meet the Boss after the show thanks to the help of Steven Van Zandt. Yes, he brought gifts, and the duo had plenty to discuss when the cameras turned off. “When it comes down to this music shit,” Flav explains, “I’m all over the place.”

It’s been such a joy following you from afar because I never know where you’ll be stopping for a concert next. What do you credit your musical curiosity to?
I’ve loved all kinds of music since I was a kid. I’m not just into one genre — from Patti LaBelle and the Blue Belles all the way down to Billie Eilish and up again to Def Leppard. I’ve always been a big fan of Bruce Springsteen. That man is a legend. He’s paved the way for a lot of people in music today. C’mon, that’s the Boss. He paved the way for me by being one incredible musician. I’m still kind of starstruck from meeting him.

Being aware of and possessing this effusive energy has always been a part of your artistic process. I don’t really see a lot of your peers engaging with other performers with this level of sincerity and interest.
It’s because of my choices of people to love and support. I don’t care how old you are. If the music is right, I’m going to support it and the whole nine yards. Right now, you’ll see me at a Bruce Springsteen concert; next thing you know, you’ll see me around Taylor Swift; and next time, you’ll find me around Kenny G. And after that, you’ll probably see me at a Morgan Wallen or Jelly Roll concert. I spread it out. Music is a universal language and for everyone that likes it. I like opera music. I love old Italian mob music. I listen to music that a lot of people wouldn’t listen to today. I’m really enjoying the younger crowd. It’s interesting to me to learn about how young people accept music. That’s why I’m so much into Taylor Swift.

C’mon, I’m 65 years old. I know it’s far beyond my generation. These people are babies. But there’s a lot of babies that know about my music, so why can’t I learn about the music they’re making in return? By supporting these people, I think they feel good about it because, first of all, I’m an icon. I don’t know one iconic Swiftie that Taylor Swift has. I don’t think she has many iconic Swifties. If she does, will they please step up? Because I feel I’m the only one.

Taylor writes about true things and a lot of the people in her audience can relate to it. Me and you, we used to be good friends, but you fucked up, and now we’ve got fucking bad blood. That’s the one that made me really get into it. I thought, Hey, this girl is dope, and I started listening to the rest of her stuff. When it comes down to the writing, she keeps it real. That’s what I like about her music. A lot of people have cruel summers. Everybody’s summers aren’t always going to be the best. Word up, man. The Swifties call me King Swiftie and they get together to make me shit and send it to my crib. I’m like, That’s cute, the Swifties are hooking me up! They love their boy!

What I’m hearing is there’s no time limit for being a hype man.
There’s no time limit for it. The only limit that you have is the limit that you set for yourself, and that’s it. I haven’t set any limits for myself.

When you met Bruce, you commended him for the “years of good music and leadership.” What does he represent to you as a leader?
The reason I said that is because, first of all, he’s the actual leader of his band. He’s led that band for so many years without missing a step. But he also has a lot of fans who follow him. When you have people who follow you, that makes you a leader. As a fan, he led me along the way for years. I really meant every letter of each word that I said.

Were you hoping he would pull you onstage during “Dancing in the Dark,” Courteney Cox style?
My biggest dream would’ve been him pulling me on the stage if he did “Born in the U.S.A.” I thought, Man, how come he’s not doing this fucking song? That’s the one he’s most famous for. But when he did “Dancing in the Dark,” I was jumping up and down for the entire song. I had a ball. I was like, Look at me, Bruce!

Did you get to have a very Vegas night out with the E Street Band after the show?
Nah, not after the show. I took my family out to dinner and then we packed it in.

I had a feeling that Bruce previously spoke about being an admirer of your work, and I stumbled upon a Nightline interview of his from about 20 years ago. Do you know the one I’m talking about?
No, I sure don’t. Man, am I honored to hear that. I was just honored to see this man and he knew who I was. When I met him, I thought, Bruce Springsteen knows who I am? Wow, this is crazy. This is big. Can you tell me more?

He grouped Public Enemy together with artists such as James Brown, Bob Dylan, and Bob Marley to explain why the greatest pop music was about liberation. He said of your intentions: “To begin to find a way of looking at the world, to find a way to move through the world, and perhaps a way to impact upon the world.”
I feel larger than life to hear something like that from Bruce. Hearing you saying that coming from him? Shit. That’s crazy right there. What a very good feeling.

Do you find a strong connection between yourself and Bruce, in terms of how you aimed to liberate your listeners?
Yes, I feel me and Bruce are musically on the same page. The reason I say that is because … well, I had this conversation with him, and I’ll tell you what I said. Back in the day, there was a peddler in New York named Amadou Diallo. He got killed by the police, and they let the police off. The police shot at this man 41 times, but only 19 of the bullets hit him. Once that happened, I wrote a song for Public Enemy called “41:19.” And then about two years later, Bruce comes out with a song called “American Skin (41 Shots).” His song just blew up like a phenomenon. I told him, Yeah, that’s great, but mine was first, man. I had the first 41 shots song out. But his went more viral, because it’s fucking Bruce Springsteen. That’s the fucking Boss. You know whatever he puts out is gonna go viral.

Were there any dealings between Public Enemy and the E Street Band over the years that we might not know about? Did you run in the occasional social circle?
No, absolutely not. I’ve just been a big fan of Bruce. I don’t know how the rest of Public Enemy feels about him.

How did you choose the right clock to meet New Jersey’s king?
I like to think of nice things and nice gestures instead of the clocks that I wear. I thought it would be good to give Bruce and Steven a desk clock signed by me. Little black clocks to put on their desks. Ya feel me? They really appreciated the gift, and I was honored they accepted it. They didn’t know I had those clocks for them.

Is there still a bucket-list concert and meet-and-greet for you at this point?
Yeah, there’s definitely one person that I would’ve loved to have met and shook his hand and told him, Thank you for all of the good years of music. This man was a jazz musician who goes by the name of Chick Corea. I would’ve done triple somersaults in the air meeting Chick Corea. That was my favorite album, Return to Forever. I did get to meet Herbie Hancock and I did get the pleasure of meeting my boy Stanley Clarke. I got to meet a lot of my jazz greats. Quincy Jones is one of them. The first movie I was in was Listen Up: The Lives of Quincy Jones. Me and Miles Davis narrated that movie, and we were able to become great friends before he passed away.

Flavor Flav Has No Time Limit on Being a Hype Man
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