Paul Wall interview
Paul Wall
Ice Cold
Iconic rapper Paul Wall hasn’t had much time to catch his breath these past 12 months. When IE speaks with The People’s Champ (born Paul Slayton) via telephone, he’s cruising around his native Houston with his one-year-old son, William. While he can, he’s trying to squeeze in a little quality time before he heads out on tour with Fall Out Boy to promote his new album, Get Money Stay True (Atlantic). “Every second counts,” says Paul about seeing his son and wife, Crystal.
Appearing: 6/10-11 at Charter One Pavilion (on Northerly Island) in Chicago.
With his frequent references to his son, it’s not hard to tell Paul is a bona-fide family man. Although amid fatherhood, Paul is no less of the hustler he has always been. Touring with pop punk stars Fall Out Boy is only a small measurement of his astronomical success and appeal these days.
The title of a new song called “Everybody Know Me” aptly sums up Paul’s status. His daily grind and approachable nature have attracted high-profile collaborations with pop tarts like Brooke Hogan and brought his diamond-studded dental grills company, Grills By Paul Wall, an über-elite clientele (including T.I. and NFL quarterback Michael Vick).
But since last spring, Paul hasn’t just been chasing after money. On more than one occasion, he has taken out-of-country trips for everything but monetary gain. Only a month after his son was born in April 2006, this slow-flowed rapper left the States to visit the war-scarred West African nation of Sierra Leone. Leaving his new family wasn’t easy, but as Paul explains, “I’m trying to use the level of celebrity I have for a good cause.”
Organized by VH1, the visit was made to film the documentary Bling’d: Blood, Diamonds, And Hip-Hop. Cameras followed Paul, the Wu-Tang Clan’s Raekwon, and reggaeton star Tego Calderon as the iced-out artists took a first-hand look at the darkness that engulfs the diamond trade.
Admittedly, before hearing the remix of Kanye West’s “Diamonds From Sierra Leone,” Paul had no idea about the civil war and the atrocities that were happening in the African mines. He had no clue the very same diamonds in the grills he was wearing and selling could have been dug up by kidnapped young boys. “It was embarrassing for me to have never heard of Sierra Leone and to have never heard of their struggle,” he says.
Paul’s not trying to hide his ignorance about the situation — he just wants to make a difference now that he knows the truth. “The civil war just ended in 2001 so the effects of the war are evident — they’re very evident,” Paul explains of his observations. “There’s [often] no electricity, no running water, and you can get an electric generator for as little as $200 to $300. And that’s not a lot of money for people to donate. If we can put our heads together for a good cause, then it’s all good. We can make a difference.”
While the filmmakers behind Bling’d are already setting up foundations in Sierra Leone to help the people directly, Paul is also looking at himself and how he can make a difference back in the States. But just because he became a changed man after this trip, it doesn’t mean he’ll be taking the grills permanently out of his mouth or changing his line of business. (Just take a look at the cover of Paul’s new single, “Break ‘Em Off,” which features the rapper showing off a diamond the size of a baseball. The song itself is just as focused on upholding his baller status with lines like, “Baby, I got million dollar dreams with my mind on cream.”)
For Paul, the bling still stands for the same thing. “As a jeweler and as an entertainer, I definitely represent the diamonds and the jewelry ’cause for me, it’s always been a symbol of success,” he explains. “So it’s something I could speak on a whole lot because that’s something I always looked for when I was growing up. When you get successful you want a chain, a grill, or a watch to show off that we’ve made it.”
— Max Herman
For the rest of the interview, grab the June issue of Illinois Entertainer, available free throughout Chicagoland.
