With food and music, Bronson’s plate is full
Action Bronson likes lists. In just 10 minutes on the phone, he manages to rattle off the countries from which he sampled music for his latest album, “Blue Chips 7000”; his schedule for a typical week; topics on which he is fluent; and, in a too-blue-for-publication bit, one fictional scenario that would meet his need for constant stimulation.
The longest list in Bronson’s life, though, might be on his imaginary resume. The rapper/chef/television host added “author” to the list in September with the release of “F—, That’s Delicious,” a part cook-
Action Bronson performs this month at the Meadows Music and Arts Festival at Citi Field in New York City.
book and part essay collection that comes on the heels of the August release of the third installment of his “Blue Chips” record series.
“I do many different things, but I’m always me,” he says. “Some people want to talk to me about art. Some people might want to talk with me about graffiti. Somebody might want to talk about weightlifting from back in the days, world strongman s—. And they can talk to me about foreign affairs, or wine and food and literature. You can also talk to me about the newest, crazy s— on WorldStarHipHop. You can talk to me about many different things, ’cause this is what I’m about — I like a lot of different s—.”
On “Blue Chips 7000,” Bronson and producers Party Supplies, the Alchemist and Harry Fraud, among others, push that diversity to its limit, going obscure to dig up samples for the record’s 13 tracks. “The Chairman’s Intent,” which Bronson performed on “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon,” borrows from Thai jazz. “9-24-7000” relies on a snippet of a song by China Crisis, a somewhat-forgotten ’80s English band; and “Let It Rain” heads to Nigeria for a sample from the Funkees. Austria and Russia are also represented on the album.
“It’s like when I go to a restaurant and I order 30 things. I need to taste a little bit of everything,” he says. “I don’t just want one dish. I’m disgusted by just one dish. I need many things in front of me, so that I can mix and match.”
That around-the-world vibe has been enhanced by Bronson’s travel. His Viceland TV show, “F—, That’s Delicious” (where the cookbook got its name) has taken him to Morocco, Denmark and Australia, along with more traditional food capitals like Barcelona, Paris and Tokyo.
“I meet people from around the world, and we become friends, we exchange knowledge and gentle-ism — I don’t even know if that’s a word,” he says, with a laugh. “And I’m from Queens, so I’d been around the world before I even traveled.”
Throughout his travels, however, the Bay Area has been a recurring stop for Bronson. In just the last year, he’s shot an episode of his television show in San Francisco and Oakland, which aired in January, and he performed at the Independent and at the Outside Lands Music and Arts Festival in August. But while set lists may change, Bronson has one dining stop that’s a must on any Bay Area itinerary.
“There’s no doubt at all that as soon as I go to San Francisco, I hop right over the bridge and go to Oakland to Lois the Pie Queen,” he says. “I gotta go see my brothers over there; that’s my family over there.”
Bronson manages to carry that less-formal “family” vibe over to his newest “Blue Chips” release, despite the kind of difficulties that come from working with the corporate side of the music business. The first two records were released for free online, which meant clearing those musical excerpts wasn’t necessary. This one is the first to be released on a major label, Atlantic.
And yet, moving the freewheeling series to a more commercial platform didn’t seem to change the improvisational feel of the recordings.
“When I started doing the ‘Blue Chips’ records, I just rapped, stopped whenever, f— up whenever. It was one take. I didn’t give a f— about anything, just went in,” he says. “As it’s evolved, now this is the 7000 version of that. I’m taking pieces of music from bands, from crazy samples that we dug for in different places in life, mashed it up, gave it my top-of-the-line lyrics for who I am right now. I gave it my entire all.”