Eight Questions With Clinton Sparks

Posted by BIGLIFE on September 12, 2014

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If you ask five people who Clinton Sparks is, it’s likely you’ll get five different answers. Labeled by many in the industry as a jack of all trades, Clinton Sparks has taken the leap from mixtape king and super-producer to leading man with the release of his highly anticipated “ICONoclast” EP earlier this week. Melding the sounds of hip-hop, rock, and EDM into one “ICONoclast” is a collaborative body of work chalked full of features that only Clinton Sparks could make happen. It’s safe to say he’s on the rise. Rather than ask the standard questions asked of every artist when they’re on a press run, we decided to sit down with Clinton in order to find out what makes him really tick. Prepare to Get Familiar.

BL: You’ve just released your “ICONoclast” EP via Photo Finish Records / Republic. Instead of asking standard interview questions. We’re going to mix it up. Are you ready?

CS: Get Familiar.

BL: Alright, let’s get to it.

1.) How do you start your day?

A. I start my day by looking at my emails, texts, socials & my to do list that i made the day before then, of course, i have breakfast which is my favorite thing to do. Remember when you would get your favorite cereal as a kid & couldn’t wait til the morning to eat it? That’s how i feel about breakfast everyday.

2.) When flying on an airplane, do you prefer the window or isle seat?

A. The window so i have something to lean against when napping.When my life wasn’t as awesome, i use to curl up in the back of public buses in the winter where the heat was or in a warm part of the train stations so, i kinda curl up in the corner of my window seat as a habit BUT this window seat is much bigger & comes with free breakfast 😉

3.) Do you ever make a mountain out of a molehill?

A. I dont understand this question. If this is a way of asking me if i take a small opportunity & make a bigger one out of it, then yes, sometimes my penis is just chill in at ease & a situation presents itself & we must rise to the occasion. wait, what? i’m not sure what the question means or what i’m saying. it’s 4:16am.

4.) What’s the best advice you could give to your younger self?

A. I was very fortunate to have not made many mistakes that i regret. I definitely appreciate all that has happened to me whether it was good or bad because it was all lessons to become a better me. I was always open minded. I always respected others & whatever they were into. I never discriminated. I never drank alcohol or did drugs regularly. I never cheated anyone or banged a friends girl & i wouldn’t even change all the crime i committed as a kid as it made me understand people & respect other people. Not to mention, gave me a sharp ass awareness to the streets & how criminals think. The only advice i would maybe give is, lock your door when your teaching yourself a lesson so your sister doesn’t walk in on you showing yourself who the boss is forcing you to wonder many years later if she still remembers this moment.

5.) Do you wear your heart on your sleeve?

A. 100% & i often get so mad at myself because i don’t hold grudges nor stay mad long so when people screw me over, i often forget & still do favors. i pretty much built a self activating system within myself that starts a clean slate everyday so whatever happened yesterday, is water under the bridge. I also cry seeing good deeds, listening to any song about a father & son or sweet commercials.

6.) Have you always felt comfortable in your own skin?

A. I don’t think i even feel 100% comfortable to this day. I never fit in or was accepted growing up. I didn’t have anyone to show me how to be a man or cool or how to handle bullies or approach a girl i liked so i was always different. The good part of this is i was left to study the world from my own perspective in many different environments as i lived with roaches broke to a duplex in the suburbs so i was exposed to a lot of different ideas & lifestyles which gave me an uncanny ability to understand how to understand & also how to make others understand each other.

7.) If you could listen to someone’s conversation anywhere in the world, who would it be and why?

A. Well i was hanging with Datwon Thomas, former editor of XXL, VIBE & King magazines after my ICONoclast EP release party the other day in NY & he was telling me how him & Eliot Wilson, Also former editor of XXL & owner of RapRadar.com sat & talked for hours about coming up in Hip Hop & the tons of dealings they had with artist. I would loved to have heard that conversation & absorb their wisdom & experience. I would also have liked to listen to Michael Jackson & Quincy Jones during the making of Thriller & how they would disagree on records AND lastly, hear how the band reacted when Freddy Mercury said, we will be named QUEEN.

8.) What do you want the world to know about Clinton Sparks?