Fans bombarded us with questions for Virgin Recording Artist Ben Harper prior to The Action Sports and Music Awards. We took some of your best questions and asked Ben. Here's what he had to say:

Q: Hey Ben, what do you think of "extreme" sports becoming a mainstay in American culture over recent years due in large part to national television networks and corporate sponsorship? How do you feel about your current involvement in this?
Jasper
Madison, WI

Ben Harper: What do I think about the whole thing? I mean, I think it's fine. I think great sports should be exposed to as many people as possible.

Q: What song or songs typically provide the greatest high for you in your shows?
J. Thomas
Madison, WI

BH: Some nights I'll feel like doing one song more than another, depending on the night or what mood I'm in.

Q: Hey Mack-Daddy ... inquiring minds want to know ... do you still collect antique skateboards and if so ... how many you got? Also, we know the musicians you admire ... but who are your skateboard heros?
Ryan Miner
Nelson, NH

BH: Yea, I still collect. I probably have over 100. (My most prized) is my mint condition Steve Caballero with gold wings and yo-yo's. All mint. Steve Cab is one (of my skateboard heros), Lance Mountain's one, Chris Miller's another.

Q: Is it true you were working with Rahzel (The Roots) on his new album? What kind of song did ya'll lay down? Glad to see you giving some love to hip-hop.
Kory Bartholomew,
Vienna, VA

BH: Yea, I worked on two tracks for Rahzel's upcoming solo album. I was doing a little bit of everything ... keyboards, guitars, vocals. He's mind-blowing for sure, especially live, because you don't know that it is him on the record - you just think that he's a drum machine. We've toured with the Fugees, the Pharcyde and the Roots quite a bit.

Q: Who has been the biggest influence on you as a person and an artist? How do you stay sane on while on the road, since you tour so much?
Sara,
Newton, MA

BH: (Laughing) Sometimes I'm sane sometimes I'm not on the road! But I just try to stay focused and make the shows a priority. (The first question) is an unanswerable question. I continue to be influenced more by different people - strangers and famous people alike - so it's hard to say one person.

Q: Ben, what do you think of your growing popularity among the general public. Does this take away from your intimacy with your fan base?
Adam Zeek
Salem, Oregon

BH: I would hope not. I don't think so.

Q: Do you envision your children becoming musicians? Is it something you think they seem interested in?
Kristen
Santa Barbara, California

BH: Yea, they love music, they love to sing and dance and strum on my guitars. (Music) will be there for them if they want to get into it, I'm not going to push them, you know what I mean? (NOTE: Ben has two kids, a two-year-old girl and a four-year-old boy)

Q: Hey man, how do you feel about being the creator and generator for a unified understanding and connectedness amongst such a diverse group of people, all around the world? Do you ever think about how much power and influence you have on so many lives?
Jarrod Thomas
Madison, WI

BH: Man, that's an unanswerable question, you know what I mean? You hear what I'm saying, though. That's, like, acknowledging something. Man, if I acknowledged it, that would belittle it. Like if I was saying "I'm a conduit for generations to fill the gap between cultures," you know, that would be ridiculous. If someone feels that way, I'm flattered, s--t! You dig?!

Q: A lot of your songs are very personal expressions, what is your biggest influence for writing songs full of emotion? Do you experience it and then write or see other people experience things, etc? Thanks...
Stephen Collie
Charlotte, NC

BH: Both. It's both. It's a combination of all of that. That's the beauty of songwriting - there are no rules, it can be experience, it can be somebody else's experience, it can be fiction, it can be a sentence that rhymes just to go with something.

Q: What kind of things do you see for your future in music?
Kristen,
Isla Vista, California

BH: I see a lot of exciting sounds and experimenting with different methods of recording, working with different people and bringing some new ideas as to bringing different tone. I write songs, I sing and I play guitar - I am not going to try to pose as a hip-hop artist. But, I mean, there's plenty of groove-oriented influence AND lyrical oriented influence as far as old-school hip-hop that can come into play musically with what I'm doing. If it would be a cross between Eric B. and Rakim/Sly Stone meets Ben Harper, sure, I'd be down with that! For future records, yea, I'd bring out more distortion, more acoustic stuff, more samples, more grooves, more funk. More out of the stuff like Suzie Blue.

   Send to a friend  | Most sent  | Submit your photo or video