GET FAMILIAR: Mister Burns — Vermont Hip Hop

From his start with Lynguistic Civilians to his tireless solo hustle, Mister Burns has really put the 802 on his shoulders. He's always been an outspoken advocate for Vermont hip hop as a scene, always generous with his spotlight and his experience. Shrinks and nerds call this "enlightened self-interest" - recognizing that what's good for the larger community is good for you.

This was a long conversation but still, it hardly does justice to his longevity and impact around these parts. Just before embarking on his upcoming All Fun And Games Tour Vol. 2, he was happy to talk shop about the scene, the business and his journey through the hinterlands of independent hip hop.

VTHH: What was your introduction to hip hop?

Mister Burns: When I was around 9 or 10 years old I was dog sitting for my neighbors. They had a pool out back and there was a CD player with a bunch of CDs out of their case scattered on the table. I rummaged through them and among the No Doubt and Smashing Pumpkins was a CD with a drawing of a naked woman. Instantly I put that CD in and was blown away. OutKast’s ATLiens is still my favorite album to this day.

From there, I was fortunate to have friends with older siblings to put me on to the new music out. The Rawkus Records days are what really gave me the understanding of how Hip Hop was going to play a huge part in my life.

VTHH: What did the BTV hip hop scene look like when the Lynguistic team was coming together?

Mister Burns: The Hip Hop scene in Burlington back in 2009 was thriving. Not only was there a plethora of established and up and coming artists but it was a time where Hip Hop was more prevalent in the music scene. There have been a few cornerstone artists who took on the role of promoter and have been responsible for bringing legendary Hip Hop artists to the state and they were all active at the time. Plus being a 22 year old kid and just starting to cut my teeth as an artist, it was fun. No stress and all fun.

Photo courtesy of Precipice Music Festival

VTHH: Do you remember any particular turning point when you realized that Lynguistic Civilians was going to really take off?

Mister Burns: We did an open mic night at Manhattans and was booked for a residency at Nectars from the talent buyer seeing us at that show. When we did the residency and had huge crowds each week is when I knew we had something special. We had a solid following of friends, but that residency really got us a solid local following.

VTHH: Did your time in Lynguistic Civilians make you in the music entrepreneur you are today, or did you come into that group with a clear sense of the demands and responsibilities of business management already?

Mister Burns: I had a small sense of the demands and responsibilities but the knowledge and competence came with time and a lot of trial and error. When we first started out we were just having fun with no real direction of where we wanted to go.

We were fortunate enough to start getting big gigs early on and with that was the realization that we needed to be more polished. Not only with our live show and music but with the way our business was handled. I spent countless hours researching and learning from others but the time spent learning from mistakes is what put me where I am. Though I still have lots to learn.

VTHH: Who would you consider your role models, in terms of music business and how to handle your brand? Did you have mentors help along the way?

Mister Burns: You know I never really had anyone really mentor me or teach me their ways. Hip hop is competitive by nature and the business side of it is the same. Rightfully so because if you are getting the show or the placement you are ultimately taking that opportunity away from someone else.

I learned a lot from attending shows that BurntMD and Nastee put on. Learned a lot about merchandise and branding from N.M.E The Illest from down in CT. But mostly I just spent hours online researching and following others who were already going hard.

VTHH: What were the most important lessons you learned working with a group dynamic with Lynguistic Civilians and Cultural Chemistry? Is that something you'd want to return to in the future or do you prefer riding solo for now?

Mister Burns: I learned so much from being in a group like Lynguistic Civilians and tried to implement that into Cultural Chemistry. Both had so much talent and some of the best times I have had as an artist on and off stage. Being in a group with a lot of people is tough, especially for someone like me. I tend to handle all business and have a hard time leaning on others to get things done. That isn't healthy in any relationship and tends to cause friction.

Also, when being in a group and a solo artist at the same time it's hard to separate the two. Knowing when to book a show for the group or for yourself and having other members understand and stay supportive. Regardless of any negativity the positivity still outweighed.

VTHH: Are you working on a followup to Indubitably Dope?

Mister Burns: I have a couple projects that I am working on. My biggest downfall as an artist is that when I write music I am always writing to perform and never to record as I am always on the road doing shows. Though I have two solo albums they were always projects that I rushed to get out before a tour. They both sound incredible (thanks to Zach Crawford) but from a lyrical and structure standpoint I can't listen to them cause all I hear are mistakes and things I wish I had done differently if I had spent more time on it. So that is exactly what I am doing with these projects. I have some exciting features and am excited to release some new music soon.

VTHH: What inspired the rebrand from VMB Productions into Aeolian Sound?

Mister Burns: The name Aeolian Sound I had been sitting on for awhile and always wanted to make a project with that name. Through the pandemic and having time to sit and stew on things I decided I wanted to come back with my first shows under a new name and decided to adapt that. Having time to sit and think on it the name made more sense to me as a business venture more than a musical project.

VTHH: Do you think this COVID era is going to result in permantent changes to live music as an industry?

Mister Burns: I think it’s going to take a long time before things are back to where they were pre-pandemic. But I believe we will get there. It’s unfortunate that a lot of amazing venues and restaurants had to close down during this which were staples for traveling musicians. Especially the spots in “off the beaten path” markets.

But when things cool down those types of spots will pop back up. Venues are timid on even having music right now and if they do the guarantee money isn’t there as people are still timid to come out. That makes touring hard and even not worth it right now for some. We will get out of this it will just take some time.

VTHH: Speaking of "off the beaten path," I've always thought that was one of the most impressive things Lynguistic Civilians did: you brought hip hop into the boonies instead of just rocking shows in major markets. Was that born of necessity or did you want to pave a new path? Or both, I suppose.

Mister Burns: It was a necessity as we were all working full time and doing long tours was not an option but we wanted to play as many shows as we could, so we needed to be able to hit as many places within a 4 hour radius as possible.

I also wanted to pave a new path. We were fortunate enough to break venues/restaurants who always had a "no Hip Hop/Rap" stigma to them. One thing that was huge for us was when we added Taylor Whipple, our drummer and I started billing us as a Funk/Hip Hop band. That opened a lot of doors for us. It wasn't misleading as that was exactly what we were.

VTHH: You may have seen more opening sets than anyone else in Vermont. What advice do you have for young artists trying to hone their live act?

Mister Burns: Work on how to engage people in front of you. Stage presence is everything. How you address the crowd with eye contact and body language. That comes in time, nobody is going to be able to understand that doing one show. Obviously your music and way with words is the most important but your demeanor means everything. You can be the most incredible lyricist on record but if you are stagnant on stage you will be doing yourself a disservice.

VTHH: This is a question that comes up constantly in my VTHH work and I figure you're one of the best people to pose it to: what does the Vermont hip hop scene need in order to keep growing? What will take it to the next level?

Mister Burns: That's a great question and I am not sure I have the solution. VT Hip Hop has gone through waves. When there are non-artists making moves it seems to do the best but being a promoter is a thankless job and people tend to see the artists getting the shine and they either want to then be an artist or just give up (also losing money sucks).

Also not everyone is cut out to be a promoter and it can hurt the scene. When events like Sound Affects, Yo! BTV Raps and 3rd Thursdays and other weekly/monthly events were in full swing, it was great for the scene. People are always talking about how there is no community aspect or camaraderie in the Hip Hop scene, but that will always be the case. Hip Hop is competitive by nature and that's a good thing. I am down to do shows with whomever and put people on but I am still getting onstage showing that I am better than you.

I don't think that Hip Hop is ever going to be the top genre in VT, it's just not what the majority of people here support. The younger generation of Hip Hop artists are doing well with shows and support right now and that's great. Old heads like me can't be mad at that and get bitter. That's just how it works, when you are young and have no real responsibilities your fan base is the same. Once you get older and have those responsibilities your fan base does too and it's hard to get the support at shows like you used to. Damn, I think I'm talking about myself. What was the question?

VTHH: Amen. You're about to go on tour with some notorious miscreants. How did a respectable guy like yourself link up with juvenile delinquents like Jarv and Eyenine?

Mister Burns: Tell me about it. I lose my respectability every time I associate with those fools. Dillon doesn't have any friends so he flies up to tag along. I met Jarv when a teacher of his, who was a fan of Lynguistic, told me about this group of kids who rapped and were really good from Windsor. I was putting on a music festival in the Windsor area and agreed to have them do a short set.

Maiden Voyage blew my mind and we (the Lynguistic Civilians) put them on whatever shows we could to get them in front of people. When Jarv and I both started doing a more solo venture it only made sense we teamed up on shows and tours. We both have a demented sense of humor so it works well on the road. I have known Eyenine for a while through doing Rap Nights in Portland and Manchester since 2013 or so. Again, when I started going solo we did more shows together and work well on the road together too. We all rag on each other a lot, but all three of those guys are some of the most talented individuals I have ever been around.