Earl Sweatshirt Discusses Black Lives Matter, Buddhism, Beating Up Christopher Columbus In New Interview

Earl Sweatshirt was recently interviewed by A Country Called Earth (as Complex points out), and revealed some insight into his political, spiritual, and pugilistic leanings.

Fame is something Earl says he has learned to come to terms with his fame, thanks to insights from his mother. “One is that, whether I like it or not, I am built for this. Another is that my ultimate job/purpose is to teach. I’m blessed to have a platform that allows me to speak to many at once. I recognize that I can make consciousness a tangible thing for young people.”

He says he's “fully behind” Black Lives Matter, and declared it a movement of substance. “Black Lives Matter has already demonstrated that it has the power to shift the societal landscape by bringing awareness to age old issues that have plagued us as a people.”

Earl briefly mentioned his spiritual upbringing (he was raised in a household practicing Nichiren Buddhism, which he now follows) and which historical figure he'd like to fight (“Christopher Columbus for pretty obvious reasons.”)

A visit to Johannesburg, South Africa, the birthplace of his father poet Keorapetse Kgositsile, is also in the cards. But Earl is waiting till the time is right: “There’s still connecting and building to do on a cellular level between my father and I. I don’t want it to get overshadowed by other people’s expectations.”

Earl recently released three new songs. Read his FADER cover story here, and check out another great interview of his below, with NPR's Microphone Check.