Which Personality Did The Psychologically Troubled Rapper Bring to the Show??
story by : Tamara Lee photos by : Tamara Lee previously published : Uptown Sound
This time it was persona of Kool Keith, who was playing last Thursday at Richards on Richards in Vancouver. Kool Keith is most certainly a cool guy; so cool in fact that he spells it with a “k” instead of a “c”. But when he is not being his “kool” self, he is being a geometrical and gynecological doctor– Dr. Octagon, or the doctors’ evil nemesis – Dr. Dooom (extra o’s for effect), maybe part of a hillbilly duo, the Diesel truckers, or just a super charged “ultramagnetic mc”.
Confused yet? It is a confusing endeavor to follow the many personalities occurring in the career of this highly successful hip hop artist, actually named Keith Matthew Thorton at birth. Throughout his years in the music industry, dating far back to 1984, Thorton has released many successful albums topping Billboard’s charts. But you may not be aware that he had occurred in your record collection more then once, since he has released practically each one under a different name and persona. Why, you may ask? Well, he may just be exercising his creative side(s), or there may be something more in depth going on psychologically… Early in his career, Thorton was institutionalized in the mental ward of Bellevue Hospital. This has been reported many times and supposedly been confirmed by sources, although Thorton later claimed to have made up the whole debacle for publicity. Either way, it certainly seems at least that Thorton’s imagination walks like a duck and talks like a duck.
In a previous interview with UKHH.com (July 19.07), Thorton showed his Kool side, his humorous side, and his…er….”creative” wacky side with statements like:
“I don’t listen to those groups who try to sound like me very much, it bores me.”
“One day I might write about eggs, one day I write about bitches, the next I might write about chopping up bodies in the basement. I’m a creative writer in my music and lyrical genius.”
“I believe aliens exist. I seen one in the projects one time wearing a gold chain and smoking a blunt.”
So, how would one with so many ‘colourful’ sides stay on top of the musical game for so many years? Perhaps one of the secrets to his success are the union-ships and connections he has made to other artists in the industry. Within his discography, Thorton has worked with the likes of KutMasta Kurt, Dan The Automater (of acclaimed Ninja Tune), DJ Qbert, DJ Shadow, and even released an album with Ice-T, in his pre-television success.
It’s also possible that Thorton just does well based on his musical prowess. This rapper has publicly claimed to have invented Horrorcore, a popular rap style based on horror movie topics, such as death or suicide. 
(Other musicians known for this style are Gravediggaz, Three 6 Mafia, and Insane Clown Posse.) Adversely, with the release of ‘Sex Style’, Thorton uses another popular genre of Pornocore: which is (obviously) sex based topic matter. Whichever style he uses, his imagination is affluent, and he tells interesting stories often written with science fiction themes. Thorton has been acclaimed for pushing the envelope and consistently producing cutting edge music.
Which may bring his long running success to the credit, simply, of fan power. His fans certainly must have the loyalty and patience to follow him around his confusing changes of identity. At his first locale of Vancouver, those loyal fans seemed to have their own collective identity crisis. The crowd was pretty diverse, ranging from moody trendster types in their skinny jeans to Nascar-loving kids in trucker jackets. There were older folks (no doubt long running fans) and barely of-age teens. The only consistent crowd dynamic seemed to be the intoxication level, resulting in several people being ‘bounced’ out of the show before the opening act was finished. The venue bar had clearly anticipated this crowd type, as they were serving up drinks in plastic cups rather then the usual pint glasses.
It’s hard to say if it was the amount of liquor or love of Kool Keith that created the high audience energy level. It’s also hard to tell which persona Thorton had arrived in. (The show had been advertised as Kool Keith presents Dr. Octagon vs. Dr. Dooom, which is a long standing battle throughout his discography) His DJ, KutMasta, was clearly the diesel trucker with a long fake beard. His co-MC (who was not introduced and listed on flyers simply as ‘special guest’) was pretty neutral looking. Thorton wore regular baggy rap type attire, but he oddly completed his look with a silver sequin scarf wrapped around his head… a little bit disco, a little bit grandma. Either way, the three of them brought out a huge level of energy, as they loudly bounded about the stage. They interacted with the crowd, which just fed the audience frenzy, overall making it a worthwhile show.
In the end, whether you are a Kool Keith fan or not, you would have to agree, at least, that he is an interesting character(s). Nobody (shy his doctor) can be absolutely sure how much he puts on vs. what he actually believes. Thorton manages to almost always arrive from left field, and whether that means he needs psychiatric care or he is just being silly, it makes for good old fashion entertainment.