OPERATION: DISRUPT PROPAGANDA MACHINE He is the creator of an online magazine called H2O (www.h2omagonline.com) a site on which you see him interviewing some of the best of Milwaukee’s hip hop artists about their music to help them promote their music. Its seems to be his mission to create something monumental for a city which has been traditionally known for things other than music, many things to our embarrassment, detriment, and poor collective consciousness. He uses catch phrases like, “Long Live the City,” a tag line in the visual ads that play on large screens at his events, subliminally instilling a sense of Milwaukee pride, showing our modest but growing skyline and streetscapes. You could say he’s a pusher of Milwaukee Hip Hop PROPAGANDA. Actually, HE would say that he’s a pusher of PROPAGANDA; In both his work as the owner and editor of H2O, as well as his own music, he is purposely crafting a message to be internalized and further disseminated to public, by the public. Although he may be known most by his persona created by H2O, he was actually an artist first and has a long history in music. His name is Sose (pronounced “so-say”), a hip hop emcee with a very aggressive agenda of challenging irrational thinking, sense of reality, and purpose. He speaks with an urgency that emphasizes the importance of the now and taking an active role in the shaping of the world. He’s well respected in the hip hop community, is a mentor and advocate for our city’s forgotten youth, and works tirelessly to help other artists reach their dreams. TACTICS: discredit the messenger SOSE on his album title.... The album is called PROPAGANDA to challenge how the word is used in our American culture. By definition, propaganda is a purposefully crafted message that advocates an idea or position, or is presented as opposition to another message with the goal of influencing public opinion belief. When Americans use the word propaganda, its an expression of opposition to information addressing a belief of which we don’t want to address or investigate it’s validity or truth. If the information doesn’t come from the source that agrees with what you already believe to be true, you will dismiss it as propaganda. What people fail to realize is that all media is propaganda; TV, news, music, commercials, magazines and leaflets are purposefully crafted messages in order to sway opinions, preferences, and beliefs in the direction of the source of the information. All these messages we receive are by definition, propaganda. Whether this information is true or to be believed to be true, is solely the issue of the receiver of that information. My theory is that all humans spread propaganda through everyday life. Our speech, language, style, positive and negative attitudes, are all propaganda. We spread propaganda in our actions and how we interact with others. We create, perpetuate, and spread it to our kids who learn what the world is about because of what we told them it was about. PROPAGANDA. SOSE on coming out as an atheist... I did it because many religious people believe that atheists are evil, immoral, and quite honestly, of the devil. I feel my music challenges that notion as presents itself as a stark contrast of musicians who identify with a religion who make music that is in conflict with the beliefs associated with it. I did it to challenge the notion that the only way you can be moral and do positive things in the world is if you are religious and believe in god. I did it because it’s unpopular. I did it because I don’t understand the concept of Black Christianity; Slave owners gave them that to cope with the moral, political, and social injustice they inflicted on them….it’s still working to this day. I did it because I got fed up with the accepted hypocrisy, especially in hip hop, of having religious beliefs that are contradictory the actions I observe and the music they propagate. I purposely did it to elicit a gut response of judgment, instant exposing you as a person who has a problem with me because I don’t think like you. I did it to challenge your ideas of who you think I am and what I’m about. Sose has built a reputation as an advocate and ally to artists, where others may attempt to exploit. He was once dubbed “the savior of the Milwaukee Hip Hop scene,” due to his tireless efforts to create a safe and positive space for hip hop in Milwaukee. This may be the reason that so many are shocked (and disappointed) to discover that Sose is an atheist and he is not shy about it. For those who know him personally, he states he’s “everyone’s favorite atheist,” as he is a very polite, considerate, and all around positive person, and while he’s not asking you to agree with him, he wants to share a little bit of his PROPAGANDA with you and maybe, just maybe, change the way you look at hip hop, the black man, government, society, and religion. PRECUATION: AVOID BEING INFLUENCED Sose on his mission....... The goal of my music to encourage people to find a sense of purpose in what they do. Too many artists are talking about getting money, but for what purpose? While I am motivated by money to do certain things, I my ultimate goal is not money, but to create opportunities for others. My mission is to build a network of individuals who care about the conditions of Milwaukee and want to actively do something about it. Money is the conduit to creating this change, so I am challenging myself to become more business minded. How people use money is reflected in the realities of the human experience. I dislike and discourage vanity, egocentrism, selfishness, greed, and envy in people. I try very hard to exemplify the changes I would like to see in others. I want to see improvements in education, a new definition of success that is not based on earnings, but objectives met and qualities of tasks completed. I care about people and I want people to start caring about people too. It’s been a very long, arduous journey, but looking at where the Milwaukee Hip Hop scene is now, and where it used to be, I’d say we’ve come a long way and have grown a lot. I feel responsible for the change in tone and attitude of the scene for the better, and in raising the bar for artists, encouraging them to push harder and become more creative. I think that we’ve been successful in creating an atmosphere of friendly competition and mentorship. We are working together more, giving advice and help and supporting each other’s efforts more than we ever have. I hope that the young emcees coming up in Milwaukee respect the path that has been laid and the opportunities that are here due to my efforts and the efforts of other leaders on the scene. I love Milwaukee and will remain dedicated to making positive contributions to its future as long as I am of sound mind and body.