Song Exploder - Big Boi - Order of Operations

Episode Date: November 5, 2018

Big Boi is a rapper from Atlanta. When he was a teenager, he and Andre 3000 formed OutKast, and went on to sell over 25 million records and win six Grammys. He’s released three solo albums, including Boomiverse, which came out in 2017. In this episode, Big Boi breaks down a song from that album called “Order of Operations.” songexploder.net/big-boi

You're listening to Song Exploder, where musicians take apart their songs, and piece by piece tell the story of how they were made. I'm Rishi Kesh Hirwe. This episode contains explicit language. Big Boy is a rapper from Atlanta. When he was a teenager, he and Andre 3000 formed Outcast and went on to sell over 25 million records and win six Grammys. He's released three solo albums, including Boomiverse, which came out in 2017. In this episode, Big Boy breaks down a song from that album. called Order of Operations.

Wake up, repeat, order of operations. My name is Big Boy, aka Daddy Fat Sacks, aka Sir Luce's L, left foot, the L stand for lavender cut of ladies like to put lip gloss on my lapel. That's my name. During the course of me recording Boomerverse, I would kind of break up my recording sessions between stankonia, my studio,

and I would record at a studio in LA as well. So this happened to be on one of my trips to LA. I would have, you know, producers come in, and that first day was the producer, Scott Storch, who I worked with on Shutterbug. Shutterbug was Big Boy's debut single as a solo artist. It was nominated for a Grammy and named by Rolling Stone as one of the best singles of 2010.

Now, party people in the club is time to cut a rug and throw the loose up in the sky just for the Shutterbug. I'm double-fisted and you empty, you can grab a club. Boy, stop, I'm just playing, let me definitely. This was our first time reconnecting since we did Shuttlebug. I wanted a real raw, rough rap song that had simple melody in it and that was just kind of driving. And he kind of tailor makes the beats to fit the artist. So we got in the studio and we were cooking it up from scratch.

My name is Scott Storch. The very first thing that I did to start this beat was the guitar part. Oftentimes, I'll layer different things. I'll layer different instruments playing the same part. Slightly, slightly different feel on it to make it have a certain human feel to it. And this particular instance, I used the keys. So that's just creating that little gel around the guitar. I love the way the melodies rolled in the song.

The emotion came from the keys to do-dun-dun-dun-dun-dun-dun-dun. That was like the driving force of the melody to me. me. We like to have a contrast from this like smooth part that's played on the keys and on the guitar with some good tempo and some dirty 808s. That's my boy Diego Ave on the 808. He does co-production work with me. And then I programmed some drums, like snares, highhats, and atmospheric things, like little delay. tricks and vocal chops. Keep the momentum going for the rest of the beat to get fleshed out. It just sounded like something that I knew that I could attack. And my lyrical style, sometimes I might tap dance on the beat, and I could be Fred Astaire all over this motherfucker.

The next step was he brought a writer in with this guy by the name of Eric Bellinger. Eric Bellinger is an R&B singer and songwriter from L.A. He's put out four albums of his own and co-written songs for other artists like Usher, Justin Bieber and Brandy. This was like my first time working with somebody that was outside of the camp and collaborating with somebody who I've never collaborated with and trusting them with hook responsibilities.

But he came in with Scott, so it was somebody that Scott was working with. I liked his voice, and I didn't want to hear my voice the whole song. I want to kind of break it up some. And so me and him kind of kicked it off and we vibed out. We were kind of tossing back ideas

about what the hook should be. And basically my take on it was a step by step, play-by-play of everyday, repetitive life of making it happening and hustling. It was like a hustler's anthem, you know, and he killed it. Wake up, fresh, crease, jeans, get to the fucking money. Roll up, smoke, pull up, drink, right back to the money. Pull up, stun, turn up, leave, more motherfucking money. Go hard, go home, wake up, repeat.

I'm a hustler by blood, you know. I got that hustle blood, so just to be sitting still, just doing nothing or just, you know, kind of relaxing. That's just not where I'm ready to be right now. So it kind of fit perfectly for what I was trying to say on the song. And once you get a hook in place, you know what you're talking about. You know what I mean? Can't just be out here just saying anything just to say it.

So I sat down at the counter and just... started putting the verses together. So what if I told you that I was a cold soldier that give them a cold shoulder, these hoops been getting over on these niggas like Olympic hurdle jumpers. My voice has a little raspingness to it and I know how to control it with breath control and I know how to make it hum

or make it smooth at certain times. You know what I'm saying? I kind of use my voice as an instrument. Why nigger be stressing about this money, I retire, my dear mama, been fucking up some commas way before I could buy a bottle or liquor looking like the lotto, my nigger, Lotto, my nigger, but we don't flash it.

I bought throughout my 20s by 30 C. I was stashing. Yeah. And then I would kind of say a little soliloquy after the first verse where it kind of really summed up what I was trying to say on the song. First 100,000, I bought a Lexus. First million, I was 20. I learned less. I bought some land.

It's real life. First hundred thousand dollars I was probably like 19 years old. Me and my partner signed a publishing deal with Crystal. music after players ball had success and went gold to being number one, being a teenager straight out of high school and getting $100,000. That shit was like, boy, you don't know what to do with that type of money when you first get it. So there are times when you might buy a new car every week, you know what I mean?

Or you might go to the mall and spend $10,000 on clothes and buying the same tennis shoes and outfits every week. It's blowing money. And then, you know, from being on a road and being a platinum arts, you know, from being a them artists, you know, by time I was 20, I made my first million dollars, and I knew what to do with the money then. Bought some land. They're not going to be making no more land. The earth is what the earth is, so once you buy it, it's yours. You know, me, I come from nothing. You know, I come from the projects of the west side of Savannah. We lived in homeless shelters and hotels and things like that. And me now, being a father, married with three kids, like what I went through, I would never, never, never want my kids to go through that, and they shouldn't have to go through that.

because of the legacy that I'm creating for them and the generations to come in my family. Operation grinding stack. Operation grinding stack is something that was instilled in me by my uncle. It's like being a multimillionaire and having it now and just doing music for fun. Like I don't have to do music.

I could retire, do whatever I want to do, but it enables me to provide for my family and my extended family and provide jobs for people that work at my studio to my band members. So Operation Grindy Stack is just basically working, doing what you love to do. And instead of being frivolous with your income, it's putting it away. You know what I'm saying?

I mean, it's okay to get some wants, you know, but it's all about needs. And right now, it's about helping other people. Grind stack. I wrote the first verse one day and the next day I wrote the second verse. Sometimes when I'm writing, the shit be going so good. I'd be like, I want to back up off of it and then come back with a fresh set of ears the next day because I don't want to go into the second verse on that same vibe. I'd never want to sound the same or repeat the same cadence or repeat anything that I've ever

recorded in the past. So I try to come back the next day and challenge myself to do something other than what I did already. And so I jumped right back in the studio. They got this raspberry lemonade that they make. So I ordered that, drunk me a cump of lemonade, got a whole bunch of sugar in my system, and went crazy. I'm King Cole like Natalie and her daddy beat.

My things, whoa, pole dancers, say they be adding me on IG, they're going to DM. We gonna act like we don't see them. They just follow us, follow me, follow us. Somebody's leading, but everybody eat it. Or acting like they pool. I'm blessing, highly favorite, learn the game when I would lose. I guess it's time to state my claim to conquer every good. Help my partners get this lumber two by sponsoring the jug.

The jug is in Atlanta is like making a mood that's going to get to some money. You know what I'm saying? We call that jugging. If you're jugging, that mean you're making money. hustling to get to the bag. And so I'm sponsoring the jug by taking my DJ, horn players, background singers, sound man, road managers, bus drivers on the road with me. If I eat, everybody eat. There's a certain spiritual gratification when you come in the studio and you make a song from scratch.

It's something that I was born to do and still am excited to do every time I'm in the studio. But to sit down and write a song, you know, I don't have a song. You know, I don't have a team of writers. So everything you hear me say, every rhyme I spit, that's coming straight from my ink pen. You know what I'm saying? And trying to be fresh and new with every verse is a challenge, you know what I'm saying? So you got to push yourself.

I've been on Operation Grinding Stack for some years right now. Nothing's going to fall in your lap. Nobody's going to do it for you. Whatever you put your mind to, you can achieve, man. As long as you keep grinding at it, you shoot a chip through and break ground, man. So if you wanted, it's out there for you to go get it. And now here's Order of Operations by Big Boy in its entirety. Wake up, FRAPS, Creece, jeans, get to the fucking money,

motherfucking money, wake up, repeat. Order of operations. Order of operations. So what if I told you that I was a cold soldier that give them the cold shoulder? These hoes been getting over on these niggas like Olympic hurdle jumpers. They trying to get that goal. Portfolio's diverse. This type of paper just on fold or get thrown in the boutique club flexing.

We hooty-hoo them hose them have them glue to the sex. Ain't nothing new that's just that's oozing perfection. Been stacking the flipping this paper that made really wrecking. Why nigger be stressing? About this money, I retired my dear mama. Been fucking up some commas way before I could buy a bottle or liquor. Looking like the Lotto, my nigger, but we don't flash it. I bought through out my 20s by 30, see I was sashing.

Yeah. First 100,000, a bottle Lexus. First million, I was 20. I learned molest, boss in the man, operation grind and stay. Wake up, fresh, crease, jeans, get to the fucking money. Roll up, smoke, pull up, drink, right back to the money. Pull up, stun, turn up, leave. More motherfucking money.

Go hard, go home, wake up, repeat. Order of operations, order of operations. with draining. Bucket's just like Mo William. Fuck your cancer vaccination. Plantation mentality. Make an laughable salary. That'll never beat me but that you in actual reality. I'm King Cole like Natalie and her daddy be. My thing's world pole dancers. She they be adding me on Ivy, they're going to DM. We gonna act like we don't see them. They just follow us. Follow us. Somebody's reading. But everybody eat it. Or acting like they pool. On blessing Holly favorite, learn the game when I would lose. I guess it's time to statement

claim to conquer every hood. Help my partners get this number two by sponsoring the If I eat, everybody eat. That is how I go, day one. Tons and family, first generation. Still here. Wake up, fresh, crease, jeans, get to the fucking money. Roll up, smoke, pour up, dream. Right back to the money.

More motherfucking money. Wake up, repeat. Order of operations. Order of operations. Order of operations. to learn more about Big Boy and to find a link to buy or stream this song. I have a new album of my own coming out on April 24th. It's been about 15 years since I last put out a full length,

and this is the first one that'll be out under my own name, Rishi Kesh Her Way. I started making Song Exploder when I was feeling lost in my own music career. And then for over a decade, I've gotten to have these incredible conversations about the process of making music, talking to other artists. and it made me completely rethink my relationship to music and my way of writing songs. And this album is the product of all of that. It features contributions from some of my favorite artists, including some folks that you may have heard on this podcast, like Iron and Wine, Kevin Morby, Vagabon, Fenlily, and the producer Phil Wine Robe. I'm going to be on tour playing in cities across the U.S. starting in April, and I'm trying to bring the spirit of the podcast with me.

So every show that I'm playing will begin with a conversation about the album with a different amazing guest moderator in each city, like Adam Scott, Samin Nasrat, Jason Manzukas, Josh Molina, Minjin Lee, Ken Jennings, John Roderick, Austin Cleon, and more. They're all going to be my conversation partners on stage, and then I'll play with my band. The album is called In The Last Hour of Light, and the first couple songs are out now. You can listen to the music and get tickets for the shows on my website. Rishikesh.co. Or just go to songexploder.net slash live. That's songexploader.net slash live. Thanks.

This episode was produced and edited by me, along with Christian Coons. Carlos Lerma made the art for this episode, which you can also see on the Song Exploder site. Production help from Nick Song, and special thanks to Adam Harrison. Song Exploder is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX, a collective of fiercely independent podcasts. You can learn about all of our shows at Radiotopia.fm. You can get a Song Explorer t-shirt at SongExploder.net slash merch, and you can find Song Exploder on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter at Song Exploder. My name is Rishi Kesh, Hereway. Thanks for listening.