Black Thought is now a venture capitalist. Axios reports the rapper has become a general partner with Impellent Ventures, a firm that aims to support Rust Belt startups.

Thought is doing more than just lending his celebrity to the company but does admit he brings a "cool factor" with his involvement. "I didn't want to do anything that felt contrived," he said. "It had to come to be in an organic way."

He said that ultimately, he wants to help make the venture capital space "less intimidating" for other artists and people from underrepresented communities. He understands his appeal to regular folks and hopes to use it as an opportunity to enlighten them and share his knowledge.

"My brand is kind of like a bridge, and then people also look to my lyrical content for historical and political commentary, which helps inform them," he said. "When people see me out on the street, they don't feel I'm the sort of celebrity that [is] far removed from them, on another planet with nothing in common ... There's a blue-collar rock star thing about The Roots that's approachable and understandable, and I think any company or brand aligned with that will appear more so as well."

In more business news, Black Thought is prepping for his anticipated collaboration with Danger Mouse, Cheat Codes, which is due out Aug. 12. The pair have dropped a few singles, including their latest featuring UK singer/songwriter Michael Kiwanuka, "Aquamarine."