In the years since Virginia Rap duo the Clipse broke up, brothers No Malice and Pusha T have not made many appearances in the booth together, but as Push shared in a recent documentary, there has been no love lost between them. No Malice (fka Malice) embarked onto a life journey centered on his faith, which he documented in his 2011 book Wretched, Pitiful, Poor, Blind and Naked as well as his 2013 solo debut Hear Ye Him.
Since then, he has maintained a low profile musically, even admitting to Billboard that he’s “definitely out of the loop” when it comes to today’s Hip-Hop. However, he is not short on things to say and projects to promote, including a new documentary and another solo LP (and a hint to a possible Clipse reunion). In an interview with Billboard‘s Eric Diep, No Malice (born Gene Thornton) goes in-depth about his creative mindset, his artistic goals, and how his spiritual development led him to where he is now.
His film – The End of Malice – is a visual adaptation of those aspects of his life and, as Diep writes, will go ” deeper into crucial life moments and his discovery of God with additional commentary from Pharrell and his brother Pusha T.” Airing March 27 on Revolt TV, it will stand on its own as a body of work but is “all a warm-up” to his new album, titled Let The Dead Bury The Dead.
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Diep opted to use the interview to do more than plug Thornton’s upcoming releases, asking him to share insight into why he opted to leave the Rap industry back in 2009. In response, Thornton explains “What happened was I was no longer able to talk about those kinds of things that I would talk about in the way that I would talk about them. Anybody who followed the Clipse and know about our catalog in the music—you know that’s what they want.
They want what they know the Clipse for.” He laments the glorification of a lifestyle that often led to the incarceration and sometimes death of people close to him, saying “I didn’t want to perpetuate [that lifestyle] and make people feel like it is OK. We love those things, we celebrated those things, and we championed some things. But now I am seeing the ramifications and so it’s only right I told the entire story. It’s not that I just decided to leave. You won’t get the same thing from Malice no more.”
The interview also provided an opportunity for Thornton’s reflections on his younger brother’s success, which he says was never unexpected. “His greatness, that doesn’t shock me. I’m not in awe. I expect that from him. I don’t lose my mind when the world sees something advances. I don’t expect anything less from him. That’s how I view my brother. I view him as someone who is successful.” Their continued bond with each other and their early days as the Clipse makes an appearance in The End Of Malice, as both Push and Pharrell provide commentary for the film, a glimpse of which can be seen in its trailer.
Diep does not forgo the opportunity to ask Thornton about a Clipse reunion, asking him directly: “Is the Clipse done for good?” “I’ma tell you that I learned to never say never, and I don’t shut the door on anything. I really don’t. In fact, I would like to see Clipse do it,” he responds. “I’ve said it before, my brother and I would definitely make clown soup out of all these MCs. Now that much I know.”