Eternia talks At Last, International Reception

Toronto-Emcee, Eternia appeared on #BodegaRadio this past Friday on PNCRadio.fm and discussed her critically praised debut album, At Last and the creative process shared with Canadian producer, Moss.

“We actually totally agreed with the creative,” says Eternia.

“Anything in terms of creating the songs that you heard, we were really on the same page with. I think that once it got to the push come to shove of trying to get it out that we had a difference of opinion in. And I can say that because he’d say that too. But in the end we have ultimate respect and appreciation and love for each other. And we realized that our clashing came from us both caring so much equally about the project. It wasn’t like somebody was indifferent. Like, ‘Whatever, dude. Do what you want.’ We both cared so much. I think that passion, you can hear it on the project.”

Eternia has built a solid international following through independent projects Where I Been, It’s Called Life, Where I’m At -- The Setup and a raucous live show. And, although she’s toured and performed all over the globe, she’s still surprised by her world-wide recognition. “It’s like one of those things where I under estimate the reach until I go to certain countries,” she says. “We toured with Pete Rock and CL [Smooth] in November and December out in Europe and it’s like you don’t really know how many people know you until you show up and you’re like, ‘Yo, they’re spitting the lyrics. How do they know this?’ That always surprises me. Always. It will never stop surprising me probably.”

At Last was released in June 2010 on Fat Beats Records and features several guest appearances including Joell Ortiz, Rah Digga and Maestro Fresh Wes. When asked about her next project, Eternia stated that she’s “taking a lot of time to wait on God.”

“Most people in the business find that crazy because it’s one of those things where you’re just trying to stay relevant,” she says. “You’re trying to align yourself with people that people are checking for. You’re trying to stay busy and promote and do all these things. I call it “default artist mode.” Record. Release. Tour. Promote. Record. Release. Tour. Promote. It can become like a robot and I’m trying to step out of The Matrix, step out of robot mode and really be intentional about when I’m on stage, when I’m in the studio and what I’m releasing.”

Eternia also revealed that she and Moss have a collaboration coming soon on Apathy’s next project. “I don’t know if I’m allowed to say what it’s called but let’s just say that we’re all really excited about it,” she says.

Eternia's #BodegaRadio interview


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Eternia, AT LAST Album Review

The temperature gets cold in T.Dot, just like the beats and rhymes.

From Marco Polo to MoSS, Kardinal Offishall to k-os to Eternia to everyone in between -- Toronto continues to cultivate artists, producers and aficionados who put a premium on the sound of quintessential, golden era Hip Hop.

Emcee/Producer duo Eternia and MoSS’s Fat Beats Records release, At Last, fits right in with the city’s rich tradition. E flexes her extensive mic skills straight out the gate, opening with four rugged cypher cuts in a row. Her vocals spill confidence, ripping through “Any Man” and “32 Bars” as if she’s on a mission to extinguish any stereotype ever placed upon white and/or female rappers, kicking lines like “I bet you / Only see one thing when you see me / I love it / Y'all stupid for that / You make it easy” and “Tell me that I’m too late / Too wordy / Too white / Tell me what you want / The world tells me that I’m too nice” (respectively) over MoSS’s basement ready boom-bap soundscape. Lead single “BBQ” feels refreshingly nostalgic, as golden era lyrical titans Rah Digga and The Lady of Rage join Eternia in decimating the high-powered, eighty-miles-an-hour backdrop. Digga’s nimble flow and scathing summation of the dwindling presence of women Emcees -- “Chicks are a hot mess / Fergie all we got left / Sad story / Even the awards done dropped the category / These rap bitches corny” -- shines brightest of the three.

Proof positive of Eternia’s Emcee skills occurs on the Joell Ortiz-assisted “It’s Funny” . After Joell bodies MoSS’s scratch-heavy beat with “And the broads y’all stress / I done had mami nude / And I was butt-ass myself so we meshed like Dr. Goo / And the rest is a given / Nah, fuck that, I’ma tell you, man / Her neck was in rhythm then we sexed in the kitchen / Tryna tell you that’s what you get when you’re fresh with you’re spittin / So in New York or not, I’m still next to a pigeon,” E shuts it down with:

“Your bitch ain’t as nice as me / That’s 'cause I ain’t a bitch / I’m the grown woman that bitches aspire to be / That cats try to see on the low / They tell their chicks that they’re going to check a show but it’s me that they’re checking for / And they tell me that they don’t want the wife / They want a life with a rapper chick / Grass in greener shit / That’s why I’m celibate...I roll with one army / That’s me, you can’t harm me / Or what I live for / God, music and family / All three out of reach bitch please understand me / I’m untouchable so don’t be Sean Connery / Pops was a gangster / Mother was God’s property / That makes me sort of something special like an Odyssey...”

Not only does Eternia immediately separate herself from the stereotypical idea that women in Hip Hop or otherwise are worth little more than getting “sexed in the kitchen,” but she highlights the omnipresent undertones of At Last as a whole: God, music, and family.

CONTINUE READING @ HIPHOPDX.COM