The tag line on Donald Glover’s Village Voice interview is “The comedian/writer/emo rapper is on a collision course with stardom. The only question is, will he survive?” Clearly yes, right? Aside from drinking and poaching ladies from under DC Pierson’s nose, there is little to no evidence in the text that we’re looking at the next comedy train wreck here. I guess every article needs a hook, but come on; let’s not pull a tragic hero figure out of thin air. Instead, the interview actually details how Donald Glover continues to consistently and thoroughly handle his business. He’s got that ambition, baby. “If one day, I can be a neo–Michael Jackson, I want that. I don’t know if it is possible for someone to be that big anymore. But I want that,” Donald says about his growing stardom.
In Glover’s Spin Interview, he puts his comedy game face back on to discuss Childish Gambino and the rap game in general. “Three-camera is old rap, when they tell you when to be scared and when it’s funny,” Glover explains. “Like, ‘Yeah, fucking drugs! Fucking bitches!’ And the comedy rap is like ‘This is about salami!’ But now, there’s an element of single-camera: Is it funny? Laugh if you want.” As Glover explains to the Village Voice, “Power is what allows you to do whatever you want. If Will Smith wanted to play Hitler, they’d make that movie. That’s power. I want to do a Nazi movie. I want Jay-Z and Eminem to rap on the same track with me. I’m in it for the power.” We’d all see that movie in theaters, right? You’re hearing that song in every deli no matter what.
