The Breakfast Club - INTERVIEW: Mike WiLL Made-It Talks Early ATL Collabs, New Album, Advice To Young Producers + More

Episode Date: March 18, 2026

Today on The Breakfast Club, Mike WiLL Made-It Talks Early ATL Collabs, New Album, Advice To Young Producers. Listen For More!YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@BreakfastClubPower1051FMSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed Human. Every day I wake up. You're all finished or y'all's done. Morning, everybody. It's DJ Envy. J. J. Salarayne Gailene de Guy. We are the Breakfast Club.

Lawn LaRose is here as well. We got a special guest in the building. He's still getting so much money, man. Mike Will, ladies. It's unbelievable, man. How you feeling, brother? How you feeling? New album?

No one. I got a new album coming out, man. It's Friday. That's right. This Friday. Why did you call it reset? His mic's not on. Oh, there you go.

Yeah, it's Ransom 3, so I spelled the R3 SET. And Ransom I was still for releasing all new songs orchestrated by Mike Will. And it's been nine years since I dropped the last one. So I feel like over that time, like that's like where I've been like at in life. It's like going through like a reset or whatnot. And yeah, man, it's like a, I ain't gonna look like a lot. It's like a, I ain't gonna lie, that title's like a quadriple entendre type, you know what I'm saying? Because it's like, it's like, it's like we resetting back up.

But then at the same, at the same time, it's like, man, it's like, I went through it with like reset phase where it's like I kind of had to hit the reset button. I had lost my hard drives in the backup. You were forced to do the reset button. Yeah. You got lost your hard drive. Yeah, lost my hard drives in the backup. So, like, that was a reset button. I just, I started, like, curating like a new sound.

I was, you know what I'm saying? Kieran, new producers, curating, I mean, I bought a lot of real estate. I got like, I got like 60, 70,000 square feet right in the city of Atlanta. And, um,

and it's just been, it's just like a start over button, but like a resetting up button too. So I don't know. I felt like it was the proper, proper name for it. Break that down, you know, because I was watching,

you lost your heart. Yeah, I was watching the documentary. You said you lost it all, right? Yeah. And you said you, when you say all, is that, because it seemed like you just started from over and everything was,

gone. So how did you lose your hard drive and the backup? I mean, it's the same thing that a lot of creators go through. It's like that car being broken into. So I used to keep my hard drives away from me and I used to let whatever engineers I was working with hold the hard drives because I didn't want to be the target. And so one time, man, one of my engineers had the hard drive. He was working on his mix. He left the laptop on his seat. And then he's in the Honda Accord. He just went in this restaurant to get something to eat right quick, came out, boom, they broke into the car, took everything,

but they were really going for the laptop. They didn't really know they got Mike with hard drives, but I'm thinking like, okay, it's all good, man. I know we got a backup, but he's like, nah, bro, I had to back up with me because when we went to L.A., like the drive that we usually work off of, it was like clicking or making some noise, so he didn't want to mess up in the sessions that we had. So he brought the backup and then, you know what I'm saying?

So it was crazy because by the time I hit the reset button and I, because when that happened, I really was like, all right, I'm cool on the music. I'm done with the music. Like, I'm just. You're just, I'm done period. Because you lost it drives or you just felt like it was a sign. Yeah, it was a sign because I felt like I fulfilled my label deal.

Man, Shrem was on fire. You know what I'm saying? Sway going double diamond and everything. My producers, like my guys, eardrum is like, they started doing their things. 30 Rock was on fire at the time. Like, man, we were, you know, like, when you tell people that you lost your hard drives and your backup and you still getting nominated for Grammys

or you still got songs on the radio and everything, and they look at it like you just lost an iPhone charger or like some headphones or something, but it's like, I'm trying to let them know, like, because the way I used to like orchestrated by Mike Will, the way I used to put together songs is like, I might go take a verse off of this beat and then put it on this beat

and then put these features together. together and you know like that's how I was putting stuff together back then so for me it was like a major blow but then at the same time it was a sign it was like man I didn't got a number one I don't want to grab me I didn't put put some young producers on I didn't empowered a lot of people man God's trying to tell me man it's your way that you could just exit up out of this and so I was like man I ain't cool you know I started trying to I thought I I was Mark Cuban then you know what I'm saying like you said I got I got a lot of I came into a lot of money or whatnot so I started trying to invest in all type of stuff and real estate was one of

the things that was a good investment and then over time like a couple years later I just started realizing like that that's why I had to make that that little dock or like that little trailer type thing is because it was like I feel like everybody goes through that like they might lose they might invest all this time into something they might lose it then they might feel like it's over then they want to quit and some people like might result to draw or some people might result to, who knows, suicide or whatever, you know what I'm saying? Certain people go through different things when they're going through adversity, and I feel like it's not about what you go through, about how you go through it.

So like, over the time I started realizing like, man, okay, man, this is really God's gift for me to be able to make music, man. I'm way further along than where I started, but I'm nowhere where I want to be. And so I had to realize, like, man, I'm still in my 30s. all these young guys looking up to me, coming to me for advice and different stuff like that. Man, I really got to lead by example. So I had this big warehouse,

and at first we used to just sit in there and play 2K for like a couple years. We used to just sit in there and play 2K, and then it'll be people like push ice to come through there. All kinds of people, money bag, yo, little dirt. Different people came through there that I ain't even record any music with them. They just came through the spot, and they might have been there for hours,

and I'm like, man, if I would have had to set up, Like, you know, I could have almost did a project with all these guys. And then I started realizing like, all right, man, I'm going to start slowly but surely putting the setup together. Got a new engineer, got some new talent. And then I'm pushing all these guys to push their sign forward. But then at the same time, I'm telling them, I'm telling them this. But then I know at the same time it's better if I get hands on. And I show them, like, what it means to break the rules on the beats or put these collaborations together.

because other than that, you just sound like, oh, man, like, man, back in my day, I used to be doing this, that, and third, you know? And so I didn't want to do that. I had to realize, like, I'm like a Kobe Bryant. Like, I just got a rolled ankle. So it's like, I'm a coach and a player. So it's like.

You know, I wanted to ask, you know, in the video in the trailer, there's a flower form. Yeah. What is, do you own a flower farm? What's the significance of a flower farm? I'm not talking weed, Jess. It's like flowers for like a flower. I don't call out like that.

Right, you know what I'm saying. Everybody knows she's behind, Mike. Sorry, Mike. Mike Hyde took it right now. He's got to change them. No, I ain't going to lie. I learned my lesson from coming up here high. That's when I'll be saying, you know what I'm saying?

Too much. I already said it a lot. But when I'm hot, I'm going to say it times times 10. I'm going to try not to break the record. I know y'all keep it count. But now the flowers, it was like, it started off with the forest burning. And then it shows, like, new flowers. And really, like, the symbolism is, like,

like everything could be going down everything could be burning and everything like that but then it's like this reset it's like this rebirth where it's like it's new flowers

so it's like like I said it's new players on the team it's like a new sound it's like a new hard drive like now this new hard drive got 20 terabytes

and then I back all my files up on a cloud edempty.com you know what I'm saying back out my back out my files up on that and now I know okay I got this cloud

I got these hard drives and my hard drives do not leave this building nothing leaves this building and it's just a reset I'm just like a whole new approach like before oh no I was saying before it before it is

I wouldn't like I wasn't working out or like or like playing golf or anything like that but like with this reset process is like now it's like okay bro this is what you're going to do you're going to wake up you're going to get at least 10,000 steps today

and you're going to go to the studio and you're going to make three bangers if an artist pull up on you, man, make three bangers with the artists. If artists don't pull up on you, made three beats in different genres. Boom, I'm out of there. If I do that every day, it's going to turn into something. And then

boom, everybody, all the young guys around me trying to match my energy or beat my energy, and then man, boom, we just stacked it back up. Word up. The music you love, was it just beats or was it actual songs with people? No, it was like un-release songs. Like, every artist that I work with, I don't never just do one song. I do a bunch of

songs. So sometimes certain songs might not get used, but I might go back and put new production around it, or I might put a feature on there, or whatever, just to freshen it up and bring it out. And at that point, like, if we look at the product supply chain, you know what I'm saying? Like, man,

the manufacturer manufacturing, we're the raw material, we're the supplier, and we're the factory. So it's like, man, we're doing it like that, and then boom, we lose it. And then So on the documentary, my bad, I didn't finish this. It was like, man, people implement, they might lose everything,

and they implement self-doubt. And then when they implement self-doubt, they don't know which way to go. And then, like, with me, I implemented that self-doubt. And then I was thinking all the type of crazy stuff, but then I kept hearing my songs on the radio. And people still was like, man, bro, you just want to gram me. Man, bro, just cook up.

Man, bro, you're the goat, bro. Man, everybody fuck with you, bro. I'm hearing that, bro. I'm like, man, I don't know. but then it's like I had to realize like okay man this is God's gift only way I tell God thank you is I can't give him my cars I can't give him no watch I can't give him no clothes I can't give him no no buildings or nothing I only the only way I could do it is just max out on the gifts that he gave me so that's when I

really started like okay I'm I'm back cooking up so it's like um yeah man like and I felt like everybody goes through that like all creators have been through that and then I feel like everybody goes through that and I just wanted to be I feel like even this time around, like I wanted this album that even means something and I don't want to be like, I don't know, I don't really like it. Well, I ain't gonna say I don't really like it,

but I don't really want to be that artist or person in the music that's like trying to be acting like a basketball player or acting like a mafia boss or like, you know what I'm saying? Acting like, just acting like some shit, you know what I'm saying? Because our life is already a movie. So it's like letting people in a little bit because people only really hear my tag on music that they like,

but they don't really, you know what I'm saying, know anything about me or what I got going on or anything. They just look at it like, man, your songs is playing, bro, you ain't going through shit. What's the biggest record you lost that you could think of? I don't know. Tell you the truth, I forgot everything that was on that hard drive. Damn.

Like, I got, man, I got. Yeah, like on purpose at that time. But you know what's crazy? Like four or five years later, or however many years later, when my engineers pop up and say, But you know what? Man, there was a backup in this storage.

I just moved. And there was another hard drive in this storage. It was a backup like, man, I got to get this to you before I leave town. And I thought he dropped it off. But I never did look at it until like fast forward until like now. And I'm like, man, this photo got like two, three songs. And I might have mentioned this on the interview before. And then now this guy pops out and he's thinking I'm coming at him.

But it's not about you. You know what I'm saying? I'm not saying that you took my hard drive and threw them in a lake. Everybody car get broken into. I'm telling people what I went through. So he took it as a personal attack, but all of a sudden... He took it as a personal attack, but you just saw your truth. Yeah, but all of a sudden, he just popped up with a hard drive with damn there all the files.

And like, bro, you never lost anything, bro, you're lying. And it's like... Oh, so you got him back? He has him still. I still haven't got him back, but he's showing now like, yo, Mike didn't even lose everything and da-da-da-da. But it's like, bro, I literally. got a phone call you told me that you lost the hard drives and the backup and it's just weird but does he want money for him? Man I don't I don't know man you know what I'm saying like he wants money

he wants money to be able to for his time to be able to upload the files you know what I'm saying or he's saying that he's not trying to hold him up he's saying that he wants to give him to me he's saying that he gave me a hard drive with these files on them before but I don't have no hard drive with any of these files on them And so right now, I'm letting him know, like, man, bro, I got so much new music. Like, my beef ain't with you. This is just something that I went through. And this is just something that I got over.

And now I'm, you know what I'm saying? Now I'm on to a whole new journey. I ain't mad at you or nothing. And if you bring those drives, maybe one day I'll go back and revisit it. But I got so much music right now. I ain't dropped in nine years. But I ain't never stopped working. So I got so much music right now that hasn't dropped that,

I'm not really fucked up on that. Like maybe one day when people are like, man, I'm missing that 2014 or 25th. Like, I'm missing that sounds like, maybe I could bring that back. But right now it's like, nine years? Yeah, I ain't dropped, no. I ain't dropped a Mike Wood album in nine years.

I did like a joint mixtape that fucked up the streets for Chief Keith. Remember that? I did, I did Creed, Creed two movie soundtrack. And then I did, And then, like, I also been like, my guys been on fire. Like 30 Rock did the box. She went to diamond.

You know what I'm saying? True, he's on fire right now. He did that Mona Leo putting you on, put you down. And he also did, him and males did that Looking for the Hole for Sexy Red. And Sean Ferrari did that, Hellcat Srtys and for sexy red. And female Gucci Man, I feel like. And somebody, and did that okay for J-T. So my guys, they've been going, they've been going crazy.

So, like, the sound is still going, you know what I'm saying? It's weird. I mean, I don't even think about it. I just feel like Mike Will comes and goals whenever he wants to. Like, was his Black Panther soundtrack. Yeah. The joint with French. Like, I just feel like you, whenever you want to hop in, you hop in,

and whenever you hop out, you hop out. And that's what I had to realize. You know, the rest of the world ain't looking at it, like, how I'm looking at it. No, not at all. So, you know, like, at the end of the day, I had to realize that, too. And I'm like, man, once I realized that, I'm like, hey man, what does a Mike Will made it album sound like 2026 where I'm able to understand like, okay, boom, like what position I play in the game? And then you have other producers in their projects, man, you got mustard, album banging.

You got Cal it, album banging. You got Metro, album banging. You got all these different producers and DJs and stuff putting together albums. So I'm like, okay, what makes a Mike Will? album stand out, you feel me? And sometimes you've got to just remove yourself from the body and the creator and just look at it on the wall. And so that's what I mean, I think that your sound makes it different in the collaboration. Like, we were listening to your album and the NBA young boy chief keep record hard. Like, right. And the thing with NBA young boy, you don't hear him really with nobody else. So the fact that you heard, how did you, how did that record come about? I know you worked with Chief Keep before. How did you get NBA Young Boy and Chief Keep? And y'all were in the

same place to do it. Yeah. Talk about that. So, um, that was, that was, that was, that was, I was just, it was just like really organic. I feel like both of these guys are like fucking icons and fucking goats. Like, you know what I'm saying? And young boy, he always shared that he had a lot of respect for Chief Q coming up, like, inspiration-wise, and then Chief Kee were always fucked with young boy as an artist. So sometimes it just take, like, I feel like that's what I, that's what I realize that

I do best is like putting together these rare collaborations. Like, you know what I'm saying? Put them, Miley on the song with Wiz Khalifa and J. or putting Future on the song with Kendrick and Lil Wayne and putting Lil Wayne, Drake and Future on the joint. So it's like putting those massive collaborations together.

So that's what I was like, man, okay, this new album like, man, what's that collaboration? What's those collaborations going to be? How do I keep this going? So boom, young boy had hit me when he started on the Massa tour and he was like, man, come fuck with me in L.A. And I was like,

I bet. Went to fuck with him. And after one of his days, he had pulled up on me at the studio, like, early in the morning, and then we were just working on some music, and then he left, and then I had talked to Sosa the day before, and I was like, hey, bro, I'm going to get up with Sosa. I always linked with Sosa when I go to L.A., so I was like, man, hey, I'm going to link with Sosa, and, man, bro, we need to get in there, bro. I'm telling you, bro, we need to do a tape or something, bro, like, my y'all niggas

too hard, and it's just too easy. It's right here. And, like, both of these guys, like, my little brothers, like, I watch both of them come up as teenagers. I met young boy when he was like 16, 17. I made Sosa when he was like 16. You know what I'm saying? So like both of you got my little brothers in this.

YB was like, man, shit. See if you can make it happen. You know what I'm saying? He was like, he was like, see what he say. And then I was like, I bet. I'm gonna call you on FaceTime pick up. When I called him, so on, I'm like, hey, bro, I was just with YB. You know what I'm saying?

We need to get in there. You know what I'm saying? Knock some shit out. He was like, he was like, I'm worried. He was like, I bet. He was like, shit. I'm worried him. man, hold on.

Boom, Carl YB on FaceTime. Boom, they let them chop it up. We all chopped it up. Boom, when they got up with Sosa, and we're supposed to go straight to YB. But Sosa got the new Ferrari truck,

he got the SF90, and he wanted to go get an oil chain. Well, he already planned to go get an oil chain before I called him. But he don't want to take you to Ferrari and drop it off. He want his people to do the oil change, and he want to sit right there while they do the oil change.

So we were right there at the car shop for like eight, nine hours. Like, I'm like, man, I'm like, So, bro, like, you got 30 cars at the crib. Like, you know what I'm saying? We can just lead these and just pull up on, bro. We can knock out a whole tape right now.

I know how y'all both work. So he's like, man, no, no, it's almost done. It's almost done. So it ended up getting done. We still end up pulling up on YB. And, man, we knocked out a few joints. You know what I'm saying? Bives were good.

Played the music. Bives were good. And, you know what I said, I just like to be that glue. I see had a nice conversation with YB. I could say it was like a big brother conversation. Why did you have to have that? You were just telling him what he meant to the coach at that time. Why do you feel it was important to tell him that?

Because it almost felt like he didn't know. He didn't get it. He didn't understand at the time. Man, sometimes, but like I told you how I was going through like that reset. Like sometimes you got to have that reassurance or you got to have, you got to hear from like another creator right there next to you that you respect. Because he was telling me, he was like, man, I ain't going to lie, Mike. Sometimes.

but, man, this should be a lot, boy, like, sometimes I'll be damn that done with this shit, but, you know, I've been doing this shit for damn there, like, a decade, like, you know what saying, like, and I was like, no, hell, no, like, but I've been doing it for, I'm going on my second decade, you know what I'm saying, but I know how you can, like, run out of breath or, like, I know how you can feel like you tired or whatever, but I'm, but I'm like, man, bro, where you at right now, you're on your A game and, like, man, you could take, you could take it so far because you're sharpening up. and you're getting tighter as you go.

Like you're growing. Like you're aging like wine. Like you're getting better and better. You know what I'm saying? You getting more mature. Like, you know what I'm saying? Boom, you got a whole lineage. You got a whole family.

So I was just telling them like, man, you got these people. I just went to the show tonight before. I see these people, man. They bangs popping out of their neck. I damn there saw a lady fall from the second level to the first level. Like these folks going crazy.

Green flags everywhere. They know every word. Even when I thought I knew. young boy music. They're playing songs that I might have missed, but these folks know every word. Like, I definitely felt lame as hell in there. Like, you know what I'm saying? Like, not even knowing the words on some of these songs. So I was like, man, nah, like, you know what I'm doing arenas? Yeah. He better appreciate that blessing. No, no, no. He appreciated it, but it's a lot that come with this shit. Like, as you do it, then you got to think, like,

man, he got, he got his kids that you got to take care of. Everybody loves to spend time with their kids, and you got to move around, then you got to tour. This is his first big. tour like this and it is a lot and I feel them but as um you know what I'm saying as a brother and as another creative that I know bro respect like I'm like man boom I'm just I'm just speaking through the soul I ain't this one unscripted or nothing and just so happened like I was already in there cooking up and the camera was on while I was in there cooking up so you know what I was something that was caught and I was like hey bro you know what we got to put that in there because because that's what I do with a lot of guys that might be younger to me

or might it came after me. It's like, I always try to be that light at the end of the tunnel or give them some kind of game or whatnot. And like the content that I put out, I always try to make sure, you know what I'm saying? I don't want it to just be lifestyle and cool shit or like clothes and shit. Like I also wanna give some game

and show the creative side of me too. So yeah. I wanna say something to you too, because you know, you mentioned a couple other producers. And the reason I don't put you in that category because there's only a handful of producers that literally defined an era of hip-hop right defined an era of music I think about Neptune's I think about Timberland I think about Swiss Irv for me no for me it was early on I'm talking about as far as

radio everything I ain't I'm talking about everything little John little John you know what I mean like and you you you got to be in that category too I say 40 because of Drake right But you went there too. Like, you defined an era of hip hop and music. Kanye. I say Kanye. How do you keep evolving without chasing those trends? See, I never chased the train.

You know what I'm saying? I never chased the trend. A lot of them guys that you named were, like, my inspiration. I was looking at how Farrell was, like, them they're running 60 to 80% of music at one time. Dre. From pop to hip-hop. and then doing all the crossover records. And same with Little John.

It was like, man, little John had the fucking town and the chokehold, like, you know what I'm saying? Like he had the streets, he had the records that we were fighting to in the team clubs. How do you understand, little John? Pop. Yeah. Yeah.

That's why I don't put Premier of them in there. I loved them guys, but that's a different, it was different. Yeah. And it was like, with little John, it's crazy because I told my big cousin he had a record deal back when I was younger. And I was telling him, like, when I was coming up, up because I always would see him making music.

When I started making beats, I was like 15, 16. I'm like, bro, I'm trying to come for a little John, bro. I'm trying to be the next little John, bro. Because, like, he had the songs that we was fighting to in a club and the teen clubs. And then he had fucking Sierra bangers and, you know what I'm saying? Shot, shots, shots, and then turn down for what? Like, yeah, he's...

Literally, you know what I'm saying? So it was like, when it's my turn to step up and represent for the town, it's like, this the guy who just came before me that, that really shook the game up. So I was like, man, I just wanted to, you know what I'm saying? I wanted to make sure I shook the game up. And then I was trying to, I was doing it on the underground level.

Like I had songs in the street with Gucci, with Juice Man, with Titty Boy. And I had like a, man, every underground rapper that was coming out of Atlanta, I had a song with them. You know what? And so I was like, man, you know what? What's the difference between me and like a little John or a Kanye or like, you know what? saying Dr. Dreo, one of these guys that are really like

Apex Energy like taking over the game and it's like, okay, these guys have a production company. They have like a production team like even Shottie Red like different people like that. It was like these guys have a production team and a production company so that's what I need to start and I need to get with a bunch of producers

that think like me like that's thinking out the box it's thinking different. It's trying to come different and that's trying to change your game. And so boom, that's what I did. And And the first person that I was joining the team was my brother Plus. I've been on him since 11th grade.

We ended up doing, bitches love me together. We did formation together. We did Humble together. And we got too many hits together. And then, man, that's the most loyal guy I know. Like, we've been rocking. Everybody's been trying to throw him money,

give him this time to deal. Man, the whole time, even when I was broke and my mama house was like, nah, I'm rocking with Mike. Like, I'm with Mike, no matter what. And so shout out the plus. and then it was P. Nasty. I made him through a mutual, and P. Nassie came through,

and he was just out of here, man, the way he thinks. And he was able to mix the sound and, like, make it real clean, but he was also thinking super out the box. And, like, him plus, and then he brought his brother Mars, which ended up being my brother, and him plus and Mars had fruity loose. They had the software sounds. I was making beats on the hardware sounds

so the game started switching to the software sounds and then I was just telling them like hey bro I know what we're gonna do like man we I'm coaching them and we're coaching each other and we're all in the huddle like man this is how we're gonna change the sound Mars brought J-bo

and then I was teaching my boy scully how to make beats and then boom we all in the huddle like man this is how we're gonna do that man we're gonna put the filter on the beats they send over the beats I put little effects on there where it's just beating too out of control damn they're distorting and all

this and and I'm like man we just got to come through disruptive and so I will go to the studio with certain artists and these beats would sound so different and so new but I would just know like but this beat fits for Gucci this beat fits for future this beat fits for Titty Boy this beat fits for trouble like this beat fits you know and I and I would just know like man this is and even if the artist didn't want to get on it like I'm I'm play three beats and I'm gonna just slide because it's like all we're going to do is go deeper in this rabbit hole that you don't like so it's like i'm gonna play three of these i'm gonna ease up off over i'm gonna leave the studio go to the next studio that i'm gonna come back the next day play three beats again and then hopefully

we get you on there and then and we're gonna make songs like uh playing jane or ain't the way around it or itching or you know what i'm saying or different joints that that was that was able to come out and change up the game bands make a dance uh no lie all this different kind of stuff so it was like man we were coming with that sound that was like changing the game and um at this time like um my guys they they weren't too familiar with with titty boy because he was on to come up i had just met um uh future through roco and they weren't they weren't familiar with him but it was like man i feel like a future gonna change the gang feel like this man titty boy gonna change your gang he's gonna you know what i'm one the best rappers out of the city and gawat he's about to come home and he

already fucked with me so man bro we're gonna focus on them and we're gonna focus on everybody else that's coming up out here and like that was just our mission and we just who's your favorite to work with who's your favorite artist to work with like who do you connect the most with i can't i don't know you don't want to say you know yeah yeah i don't want to say because it's all it's all a journey it's like it's all the journey all of them got their own different things but like i'll say i say Gucci was the first one of my beats so i was kind of spoiled working with what because because walk the type of person that'll knock out about 10 to 15 songs in the day.

Then go to the studio. I mean, then we go to the Magic City or Onyx or Platinum and we're playing all the songs we just did. Then we're going right back the next day making about 10, 15 songs, the hardest songs we got. We're going to all the strip clubs, playing them joints. And so I thought that's just how the game just went. So when I were going to studio with other artists

from like, it's not from Atlanta and not from Georgia. I would see like, damn, it's like taking these folks like, hell along. 10 hours and do one record, like, what's going on? Yeah, and then it's like, don't play it for nobody, don't let nobody hear, and it's like, oh, okay, bet. Or sometimes I might fuck up and go to the club and just play this shit. And I'm just thinking, like, how I came in the game, and this person might feel slighted or disrespect,

and I ain't mean no disrespect, like, you know what I'm saying? And it's like, oh, shit, it was a wake-up call for me. So I fought with Gucci How we came in I fought with Pluto Because Pluto like the same type of machine That's why like when I put Gucci and Pluto Together and they did free bricks mix

I already knew that I was the perfect matchup You know what I'm saying Gucci won all the way hip to Pluto at the time Gucci was rocking with like Rocco Little Wayne different stuff But I told him like man Pluto about to be The guy that's gonna change your game And um and Gucci just trust me

I'm his little brother like He just trust me He's like man Pluto hard like that Like, because we had this one song that he did called Nasty, and he was telling me he was going to get Lil Wayne on it. And I was like, bro, I fought with little Wayne, man, Lil Wayne, bro, but you need to put Pluto on this joint.

And he was like, man, Pluto over Lo Wayne? I'm like, yes, bro, yes, he's about to be the next guy. He was like, man, tell him come to the studio tomorrow. Came to the studio, Pluto killed it. And then, and then Gucci was like, Gucci got him on another song. They did two songs, and then Pluto left. And then Gucci was like, bro, your boy, Pluto, man. He hard, bro.

he's hard man he's going crazy i was like bro do a tape with him because i was in the room when Gucci did the whole tape with goddie and when he did the tape with juice man we when he do it when he's doing collab tapes with shoddy low and all that kind stuff i'm in the room while all this is happening so i'm like bro do a tape with him he was like man do a whole thing i should do a whole tape with him i'm like for sure he's like man tell him let's do a whole tape and from there we did free bricks but it was like they reminded me so much of each other because Pluto was the same way he was a person that just knock out all these joints.

Then we go, we go on the magic. We're pulling up on Esko. Esko making a movie every time. So, and then two chains. He's cut from like the same cloth too. He's gonna work all night, but two chains, you might think he's sleep. Like, I remember this one time, real talk.

I remember this one time we did, we did, got one. And I was locked in with my brother Mars. Mars had this hard as beat. I'm like, bro, I got to get the beat to Chene, bro. And he was like, he was like, oh yeah, Hell yeah, ooh. So I pulled up on two chains,

two chains like going to the studio at one in the morning. So I was living in Cobb at the time, and his studio was on old nap. So I got to drive all the way from Kyle to old nap. Boom, pull up on him at one in the morning. So he over there on the wait bench, his head down like this, he just like almost like, I'm like, dang, bro, man, brother, man, bro.

Sleep. So I played the beat. He was like, just the one you're talking about? I'm like, yeah, he's like, Pull it up. He stood up. He's like dragging his feet.

You walk to the booth. I'm like, hey, bro, I can pull back up on you tomorrow too. Like, this one or the one. Bro, like, you look, you know what I'm saying? I understand if you're tired, but I could got down. I pull it back up. And then he's like, cut the mic on. Close the dough.

Man, come in. The crazy thing about it. I knew who I had it. Like, he's going crazy. I'm like, oh shit. Like, whole other monster come out of him. I'm like, by this shit. this is it.

And then Chains will be like, and I'm always that producer, like, man, you're just going to have to kick me out the studio. Like, if I have any input, I'm going to give my input. Like, even if you read Gucci book, like Gucci says it, like, man, Mike Will, like the only person that ever asked me to redo my verse or anything like that.

So it was like, I remember I was in the studio with Chains and I was just like, bro, I love this joint, but you're rapping when the beat drop. I think you need a rap, like, where the beat is open at and then let the beat drop. And he was like, hey, Mike, Hey, one more comment, bro. I'm going to have to ask you to leave.

You know what I'm like? I'll get out your way. I'll get out your way. But I'm telling you, I can hear that. He was like, he was like, bro, keep it going, keep it going. And he just kept rapping. Then he went to L.A.

for like a week or two, then came back and was like, man, I got to let you hear some of these songs I did on your beat. And he ended up moving his voice over where the beat was open. And they ended up working out. But you know what I'm saying? All these guys are like my big bros, you know what I'm saying? So I definitely like fucking with all of them. And then like when it comes to like this new generation,

it's like YB is a monster. Here, trust me like, oh, you want me to get on this beat? You're going to walk it down. You're going to kill it. Like he's going to give it that new bounce, that new flow. Same thing with Sosa. Sosa going to push me as a producer because he called on the beats. So he might make a hard song and be like, man,

y'all this beat ain't hard enough. And then he might just start doing some crazy stuff with the beat. then we might cook up, like, me and Sosa probably got a hundred beats on his computer that ain't never came out. Like, man, that dude is like a, man, he's a different kind of genius. You know what I'm saying? His house looked like Dave and Buster's mixed with goddamn guitar center, like, and he don't leave that joint.

I was going to say, he fucked with you heavy. When I saw him at the verses, I was like, oh, Keith really fucking my brother. You don't see Keith doing. No, that's my real brother. He don't leave the house, but that's my, no, that's my real brother right there. Like, you know what I'm saying? I'm airdrema glow gang, like, we all the way locked in. but um but um and then it's a new artist i'm working with right now

cid's for rome and i can't i can't not mention uh ray shremmer yeah ray shremant is like i i feel like it's just too on a know for me to mention them but like man them guys are like like rock star when i met them i knew they were the coolest thing on earth and i just knew they could make anything cool on earth and they did everything that i thought that they could do and more like they didn't travel they didn't tour the world twice They got so much music on the way Sway Lee album coming out on April 3rd and it's sounding crazy

and then they're working on a group album and then Jim working on a project so I can't not mention them. It's like man we can make hits with our eyes closed like this is like you know what I'm saying they really part of the eardrumor family like producer and songwriter wise The album comes out this Friday

Jay Cole record on this crazy I can't not mention this one more artist We can't go go go go We got time I did it I got time There's one last artist that I'm working with right now. He's on the album, too, that song AAA. It's Sid Jerome.

Man, he's already famous in India, like selling out 10,000 seats, 15,000 seats. But, man, this dude's voice is a cheat code. And, like, this music that we've been doing, he was born in India, raised in the bay. But, like, I gave him, like, a, man, I told him, like, man, we're going to make that. Like, he was with, um, Def Jam for a Law. little bit, then he had finished his deal over there, and then he was independent. I'm like, bro, don't sign of nobody. We're going to, we literally going to create a whole new sound. We're going to make that sound that folks want to put on parfume or, you know what I'm saying?

This dude, he would have fly chick. He want to put her on or something. He's going to put this on first. And I ain't know what that was, but I was just imagining it, just hearing his voice. And really, like, with Sid, I can turn on any beat that I might have made for, like, Jay-Z, or like any challenging beat and he's gonna a 21 savage beat he gonna kill it and turn it into something else like with that voice so shout out to cid sharam that was like that was a different bag that i got in on this album and me and him have a whole album coming out um it's probably gonna come out at may word up you're living in the room he mentioned the record with cole yeah yeah yeah how did you and cole get together cole spitting on that record too no hook he's just going in just

man cole is a cheat cold is that before his album or that was after his album? When he did that first? We were working on his album. And, man, me and Cole got some of these songs. It's crazy because he came to my compound in Atlanta. So I got a compound in the city. It's like three commercial buildings.

And they are next door to each other. He came down there, locked in with the whole squad. He was down there with it for like a week or two. And, man, we just knocked out so many joints. Like, we were knocking our joints for it. We were trying to knock out joints for the album that he was working on. And then we ended up making this one. we ended up making another time we locked in we made the joint the him and Gucci I did

um man man Cole is just like Cole is so hard because Cole Cole was like my corner coach during this album because I was trying to drop this album like three years ago and um Cole was like no but I don't drop it like man all the music you play me and all the music you be playing up there at the studio is too good like Mike package this up like don't just throw the music out there, like, like, really packages up. Like, what are you saying to the people? Like, you know what I'm saying? What's your trailer?

Like, what's your videos look like? Like, bring them into the might well world. And I wasn't thinking that. I was just like, man, bro, it's been X amount of year. But I got to go. Like, it's time, bro. Like, it's time. He was like, man, but if it's been that many years, like,

just get it all the way together. And I was like, man, damn. You're right? Yeah, he was right as a motherfucker. And I'm happy that I'll listen to him. and he stayed right there with me and I was like, bro, I need you on one of the songs. He was like, bro, I'm the easiest one to get.

I want to be on your album. I'm a fan of everything that you've been playing of your album and everything. Come to me last, but I want to make sure you got this shit all the way together and all the way right. So even when I was going through like different troubles with different creative directors

I might have been working with or like trying to figure out how to package this up or trying to figure out how to tie this together, he's somebody that might sit on the phone with me for like an hour to him and like, yeah, yeah, I like this, but it's missing this, or I like this, but I think you need to do that.

Or like, this is perfect, and this need to da-da-da-da. And, no, don't take this one off the album, keep this one on the album. You feel, me? He was like a good corner coach, so shout out the cold, man. And he blessed me with that joint right there. We all, we all love that joint. You had to chase him for it either, huh?

No, not at all. Damn, Cam. Damn, Cam. Man, I don't know that one over my head. Don't worry about it. It sounds like you've been on like a real, like, spiritual, like, journey, but you didn't even know you were on it. It just kind of happened when the whole reset thing happened.

And then I saw the song that you did, Money Talk with Youngdrow, Ti, Killer Mike. Yeah, right? So what were conversations with a Young Joe, T.I. Killer Mike, like, when you were talking to them about at one point not wanting to do music anymore and not feeling like, because they are their OGs that have probably experienced all of that. So what were they pouring into you while recording? Like, tip I play golf with. So we play golf all the time. So like, we're able to chop it up about all type of different stuff.

And like, I always was a fan of Tiltz music coming up. And we, and we always seen each other on the scene. I might have gave him beats. He might have got on the beat. Like, we know each other from Atlanta, but now, like, playing golf and, like, me have my own studio and him having his own studio, I could pull up on him. He could pull up on me.

It's like, we're able to build, like, closer where it's like, oh, okay, this, you know what I'm saying? It's like a Big Brother type shit. And Young Droh is somebody who I always seen on the scene that always fuck with me and shit too. And Killer Mike, like, that's somebody who, like, I would always see like in passing. But, like, you know, all of you guys are older than me. So, Killer Mike, I started developing more of a relationship, too, just being more in the city. And shout out to my boy, Cuzz.

Cuzz Lightyear, that's like one of the A&Rs on my team. But Cuzz also A&R, Killer Mike's album, that they won three guys. Grammys on. So he was like the glue between us. But by the time we did that song right there, I was already cooking. So they looking at it like how y'all saying like, man, Mike ain't going through shit. Like he's back in the studio. So they really came to the studio and they were like just killing shit. Like I got a whole project with killing Mike. Like, you know what I'm saying? Me and Tip got like like 20 songs. Like it's literally like at my studio, it's so in the city as like whatever is organic, whatever I talk to,

if I'm playing golf for tip today, and he's like, man, what you doing after this? I'm going to the studio. All right, I'm going to the studio. All right, I'm going to pull up. I bet. You know what I'm going to? I'm over here with killer.

We're about to pull up. I bet. Next thing you know, we got 10, 20, you know what I'm saying? Songs with all these guys, and then we figure out where they live. But all of these guys, they respect it. They were watching my moves. Even though I might have thought they were missing my moves.

They were like too big and they were missing it. They were watching it. And so they always, like, just, like, voice their respect for me as a producer and was like, man, hey, bro, man, you're the producer, you're the one. Like, you do, they didn't say, like, you're the little John, but, like, that's, like, the position like they were putting in it. Like, man, you're the guy from the town. Like, man, shit, let us know what we need to do.

And so that specific song right there, I just felt like it was, it was dope as fuck because me and Zay Tover made the beat. And I love cooking up with Zay. me and Zay got too many unreleased beats and it's like it's literally a cheat code I literally try to break the rules and just have my drums doing the most distorted or just doing the most craziest shit because I know Zay going to put the most beautiful shit on top of it

so me and Zay had made the beat and then Tip had just got on there and he had knocked out like three or four songs that night and he had got on there and then I was like man it's drunk hard bro I'm like how we're going to finish it so I was trying to figure out who to put on there and then I was like, man, tip and dro, they never missed. So I was talking to Drew one day, and Drew came through.

He knocked out a couple joints, but he had put a verse on that joint, and then there was never a hook. And then I was just listening to it one day, and I was just like, man, I don't know what made me think about that junior mafia sample, but I was just like, get money. I'm like, man, I'm going to take that sample, and I'm going to put that on here. I just feel like it'll be hard, and I put it on there, and it was matching. And then I was like, all right, cool.

I'm going to put, killing my animal. put big boy on here so i sent it a big boy and then the big boy said he was going to get on it and then um man he had a lot he had a loss in his family and you know what i'm saying he kind of stepped away so we never did get a chance to line it up and then killer mike had came to the studio and gave like the flip side of like getting money and so man i felt like that was just perfect and i felt like it was like a southern hip-hop like classic it's like mike will zaytovin t i yo yos I think I'm Joe Kilamite. It's like, it's a rare gym and it's like, it's just hard, bro.

You have a lot of projects, I mean, a lot of songs on here that are like that ATL, like the Russian roulette with a young thug. For sure. Like that sound as well too. And people, I mean, the regional conversation, regional identity conversation, I feel like there's been so many songs since then where people are like, okay, that is still possible. What do you tell artists when they're trying to get to the moments like that where it sounds like Atlanta? And you've talked about the internet being such a. such a big, vast thing that everybody sounds like Atlanta now.

Like, what do you tell new artists? Ask me in a different way. So this song, Rush and Roulette, right? It's very young, though. This is, like, what I wanted to hear from him when he first dropped music when he came home. New artists that are trying to get to that real old-school Atlanta sound, how do they do it coming out of Atlanta with the internet, and everybody sounded like Atlanta? I think you got to, like, I don't know what to tell everybody else, but,

like with me I'm really I really come from I really come from that like even though I grew up and Kyle they don't like to they don't like to consider that Atlanta but it's 10 minutes out the street but you know what I'm saying

I was still able as a kid like going to the Hawks game I remember when Freak Nick was going on I seen Freak Nick like I seen the Olympics I seen Mookie Blaylock de Kempay like I seen

the city transformed so many different ways. Like I went to church in different parts of the city. Like, and like, even, even like, coming out of Atlanta, like, you got to be original. Like, you can't be biting. Man, you're damn there get your ass whooped or get barred or whatever, you know what I'm saying, for biting. So you had to be original.

So, and then back then it was no internet. It was, it was like your name ring bells. You either hard or you're not, like, you either known for a goddamn, Come with some hard shit, and your shit is either connecting or it ain't. And so I feel like, and you got to think, like when I came into the game,

I was like 16, 17, pulling up to the studio with Gucci. And the producers I would be in the room is Shottie Red, drummer boy, Zay Tovin, fat boy, like all the guys that I look up to.

Shody Red and drummer was so hard. Come on, man. Fat boy, and Zay Tover. Like, All of them were like, this is like the gladiators. So I'm in there. I remember the first time I ever went to the studio with Gucci. All them were in there.

And then I'm just like, damn, I'm just, I'm hearing all their beats. I'm like, shh, this shit crazy. Like, I'm about to go home and go crazy. Like, then Gucci's like, hey, this my young nigga right here, man. Hey, put your beats on. I'm like, hell now, bro. Like, and here with all these folks? Like, hell no.

Gooch, like, man, what you're nervous? I'm like, man, you're a star, bro. Put your beats on. I'm like, put my beats on man, Gucci started freestalling and everybody in the room bobbing their head

and then I remember CIO had put me to a side and was like, man, you know what? Man, bro, what you made beats on? I told him, he was like, bro, all you got to do is focus on your kick and your snare, everything else going to fall in place. I was like, damn, I'm not, I bet.

And so, man, me and Gucci ended up doing like no pad, no pencil, guappaholics like a lot of mixtape records. And I remember Gucci was like, now he had all these mixtapes out, but he's trying to like level up. He had come into the house one day. And then, man, I had this beat CD. I just know, like, it's like, it's like the notepad, no pencil two point note. It's like the, I'm just knowing, like, because all the songs that me and him did were like going in like the young nigga clubs, like the clubs I was going to, like the team parties and all that shit.

So I'm like, man, I'm just knowing this. This is like the beat CD. So I pull up on him. He just skipping through the beats. And he's like, man, you know what, Mike? I'm gonna tell you, like I told Zaytoe, I'm trying to level up, bro. Y'all boys got to start giving me some single-type shit. Like, I'm trying to take my career to the next level.

And I'm like, what? Like, man, Goos, you're on the Hollywood shit, bro. Like, man, these beats is it, bro. Like, man, this is like East Atlanta six. It's like, da-da-da. He's like, man, now these beats hard. But you need to give him to, like, Walker or like somebody, you know what I'm saying? Somebody in the squad.

But, man, for me, I feel like, I'm trying to start leveling up. And I ain't know what he meant by that. And at this time, me and Walker, with each other every day, I was telling him Walker, like, man, Gucci's talking about he want to level up. He's talking about these beats ain't hard enough, like, and then Walker like, man, yeah, he's been saying that lately, man, woo. And the next thing you know, Gucci started coming with songs like lemonade, and I think I love her and all this type of shit.

And I'm hearing him, I'm like, damn, that's what he mean. Like, okay, I see what he means. So now I'm starting to try to push my sound. but now my brother Walker man I know I've been pushing him to start rapping and I know a lot of people were like man bro you need a rap you need to rap but he wasn't trying to rap

so he finally started rapping he called me do his first song he's like man Mike hey right there my first song bro man listen at this shit put the phone to his headphones played the joint first song he did was we on the way with Southside and then

he was like he was like I'm like who Who the hell made that beat? And he's like, man, bro, this is this young nigga that ain't Southside, bro. I got to introduce y'all, boy, like, man, I think we're gonna, man, he got to be part of the squad. And, bro, he reminds me of the old Mike Will. He reminded me, like, when you came on the scene, bro,

like with that hard, aggressive shit, bro, like, your sound getting to Hollywood and shit now. I'm like, bro, Goose told me to level up. He's like, man, fuck that, bro. Man, that shit, man, this shit getting way to Hollywood. So these are two guys that, man, I look up to, like, walking my bit brother. I'm with him every day, seven days a week.

And then Gucci, like, my bit brother that's rapping on my beats that's turning me up. They gave me the mic, what made it, name. Like, you know what I'm saying? So I'm, like, I'm touring in between and two. And so I feel like that's where my sound lies at. It's like that pretty hard. It's like that out of here. But it's always going to make you like, God damn.

This shit's knocking. So it's like, every song that I do is like, that's what I'm thinking about as far as, like, my sound in the eardrum. and sound. And it's like, I feel like we've been putting it down in Atlanta for like 18 years now, 20 years now. Now it's considered like the Atlanta sound or like an old school

Atlanta sound, but it's just like me being me. So it's like, I feel like advice to give other producers or artists or anything like that. It's like, man, make your own sound and believe in it. Even when you don't believe in it, like Gucci made me believe in that shit. Like Gucci made me play my beats in front of all these dudes who I look

up to, who I would have been like, If it was my choice, I'd have been like, nah, I ain't gonna play it right now. Or y'all play it, I'm gonna leave. And Gucci made me play it right there with my chest. You feel me? So it was like, boom, doing that and doing that at a young age. Like Gucci might have a whole session with Shottie Red, Fat Boy,

all these guys all day. And then the last hour is like, man, Mike Will go turn some beats on. You know what I'm saying? Just go in. Yeah, just go in and freestyle on the beats and just go crazy. So shout out the walk. But, um, I feel. Yeah, I feel like it's all about consistency

and wanting to be different. And everybody that's on here, like, even with young thug, like, like, Thug is just so, he's just so unique. He got so many different styles. So it was like, like, with him,

he might be on this style right now. He might be on that style right now. He might be on that style right now. And I got, I got songs with Thug. I got so many songs with Thud that ain't came out, but I got every time. You don't make somebody steal your hard drives again.

You keep telling us about how many songs you got with all that you can. They can't get it now. They can't get it now. But I got so many songs with Thud that it's like, I got every swag. And like this song right here, that Russian Roulette is just something that always just,

just, it's three-16s. You don't really hear too many rap songs with three-16s that you even want to hear anymore. And it's like, this song is like fun. It's a banger. It's three-16s. And it's like, like you said, like the Thud that we love. It reminds you, it's so much fun.

Right. That's dope. My last question, man, what kind of legacy you're trying to build at this stage in your career? Oh, man, I'm still growing and learning. I feel like in your 30s, that's when you really saw learning yourself as a man. You feel me? And Jimmy Avine always tells me every time I meet with him, he's like, man, you might well, man, I started, I started Innsco when I was 40.

And how are you now? How do you now? Yeah, just ask me every time he sees me, he's like, bro, remember I was four. when I started Interscope. So, man, you're way ahead of me. And so I started ear drummers, the record label, when I was like 24, 25. So I was like, boom. I'm trying to always expand on that.

And then I'm trying to figure out what product. As a business, man, that's what I'm trying to do. I'm trying to expand my production company, expand my music, and then come with a product. and then basically be a successful quote-unquote producers. And I feel like some of the best successful producers like produce more than just music. They're just good at producing product, period. So it's like they produce music,

like Ferrell produces music clothes, Dr. Drey music, headphones. So it's like trying to figure out what that is and just keep being as creative as possible and keep like pushing things forward. And, man, I'm still learning myself, man. I'm being, I'm being patient as possible. I don't have any kids yet. I don't have a, you know what I'm saying?

I don't have a whole family. So one day, you know what I'm saying? That will come. And I want to just keep empowering. I feel like God put me here as a vessel for like the ones younger than me. Because I remember always being the youngest in the room. And me and Walker was pushing the, man, this young nigga way, man, this new one. wave, this young nigga wave, and I was the youngest one in the room.

I was the only one on the young nigga wave. And then now Mona Leo comes to my studio and call me OG. You know what I'm saying? So it's like, I got to understand I'm an OG now. So it's like I got her, even when, even when she don't know, man, should I do this or should I do that? It's like, yeah, you should do this or yeah, that I, or when the artists might come in, some artists might come in and be like,

man, my label, this, that, and the third man, I only sold this much the first week, man, I feel like the label ain't push it. And I always try to let them know, like, hey, you got to look, do you know about the product supply chain? You know what I'm saying? The product supply chain is how everybody in the whole world makes money. Like, every person in the world makes money

after product supply chain. So you got to understand that. And at the end of the day, you just put a product on the show. So fuck how many people were lined up the first week to come get that product. You know how much smoke is on here. That just shows you how much demand you had.

So am I supposed to be cussing on here? Me good, okay, okay, my bad. So, so, like, I'm telling them, like, man, when Jordan puts out the team Jordans, he's not looking at it like, oh, it didn't sell out like the OBOs or the Travis Scott's or the Travis Scott. The Retros, those are going to sell out. But the team Jordan's, he knows, hey, man,

I got these on the shelf. I got these on the shelf right now. Man, they might sell out in five, ten years. Or if Travis Scott or Kanye West where I'm on the red carpet, you know what I'm saying? They might sell out next week. So it's all about getting that product out. So as a creative, it's all about getting that creativity out,

making it into a product, packaging it up, and getting it out. You know what I'm saying? Like, and a lot of these different, like, what are they called, the guys that sit on the internet, like streamers and shit. Like they'll make an artist They try to make an artist feel like discouraged about like Man oh you only you only move

This person only moved this much the first week This person only moved that much the first week And it's like bro that's cool That just that just shows you how many people Were outside waiting For your album to drop But that don't mean That don't mean your album's whack

Like you know what I'm saying And now you gotta Now it's on you to push like Did you put a single out or did you not Did you hit him with the surprise release Like Beyonce if you hit them with the surprise release like Beyonce, you got a lot of post-marketing to do. Because I remember when Ray Schreemann dropped Shrem Life 1,

and they did like 20,000 first week or something like that, somebody had asked me on Twitter like, man, yo, when we're getting Shrem Life 2? I was like, whenever Shroom Live 1 go platinum, I just threw it out there. I just said, whenever Shrem Live 1 go platinum, I remember a blog picked it up and was like, it looks like we're never going to get a Shrem Life 2.

Shroom Life 1 only did $20,000 the first week. and now Mike saying that Shroom Life 2 isn't coming to Shroom Life 1 goes platinum. But I just said it. You know what I'm saying? I just said it. But just so happened when we were putting out Shrimp Life 2, Shroom Life 1 went platinum. And then Black Beatles came out

and then Black Beatles shot to the roof and that shit went number one. That was my first number one. I didn't work with all kinds of people. That was my first number one with the person who gave me my first shot and the young guys who I gave their first shot. And that was my first number one.

and that joint ended up going diamond. Yeah. So it's like, it's like God is in control. And you can't like as creatives or like as artists, even any artists in the industry, you can't get, you can't get discouraged by these guys who's trying to get down get paid for clicks.

Like you feel me? Like, because you didn't put your hard, like hard work, you know what I'm saying, blood, sweat and tears into this project. So just push it. Just let it. Just let it push, just let it go out. Like, people thought Shrem was going to be a one-hit wonder when no flex-zone came out.

They were like, man, I don't see these dude having no career. They damn sure didn't see Sway Lee having the biggest stream song in the history of music. You know what I'm saying? A couple years later, like, they didn't see that coming. And they damn sure didn't think five of the, we had five successful singles off their first album. No Flex-Zone, no tight. Throw some more. Come get her.

and this could be us. They ain't like none of that shit. You're saying they didn't realize the world loved all of that shit. But when the album came out the first week, if we would have been like, oh, the album, white, man, we only did $20,000 in the first week. No, we kept pushing the singles.

And people just kept eating it up. Like, oh, this is what they push right now? Man, we fought with these guys. Now these guys are showing up. They had the parties, they had the interviews. Everybody knows. Hey, man, these guys are shit. And they just kept eating it up.

So it was like, I just say all that to say is like you got pre-marketing and then you got post-marketing. If you don't do a lot on the pre-marketing side or you don't give yourself a major leeway, you might not do as much as you want to the first week.

Post-market. You know what I'm saying? The song with Lizzo that blew her up and put her on the map. That man, that song was some years old. Like, you feel me? Like, it's certain songs from certain artists that might be some years old that just get

shot to just shoot back up. this could be us, might be just up there, like, with Black Beatles now, or, like, up there with no type. And it wasn't up there at one time, but it went viral on TikTok or people started doing a little different things that made it go viral. So it's all about making, like, a timeless product. And then when you make a timeless product, putting it out, and let the consumer consumer how they want to consume it.

And no matter what you, no matter what you move first week, Like if my new album right now comes out and it moves 10 copies the first week, I don't give a fuck because that album right there is smoke. So anybody who hears it today, tomorrow, next year or the year after that, they're going to be like, damn, how the hell did I miss this? You feel me? If 100 people, if 100 people buy my album in the first week, whenever I have a release event, when them 100 people show up

and Envy didn't listen to my album, he going to show up. he gonna feel like me at that NBA Youngboy concert. Like how the fuck I don't know these words? Like I gotta go look this up right quick. You feel me? You know what I'm saying? So I ain't never been nowhere where I didn't know the words or something and everybody knew the words to it

and the song sound good. And I feel like, yeah, I'm cool as hell for not knowing the words. Like, you feel like me? I'm like, you know what? So it's like, I don't know. I feel like the whole game. I feel like, man, that's my part of the game too. like understanding business outside of music

and applying that shit to music. Because as an artist, we'll get so caught up in our craft and we don't understand, like, we might say like, man, the label is bullshit and da-da-da-da-ha. Man, the label is a distribution company. They're not bullshin.

They just want you to give them this so then they can go put it on the show. You know what I'm saying? The label is trying to distribute the product and take it to retail. That's what the label is trying to do. So however you package it up, however you put it together,

however you plan the marketing, marketing it and all that, and you bring it to them, that's what they're going to do. Like, I always tell people, like, the label's like a brand new computer. Like, a brand, like, my brand new laptop don't have more hits than my old laptop. Until I take this hard drive and put it in this new laptop. But this new laptop could probably move faster

and all that different kind of stuff. And that's what the label is. So if you don't, if you don't upload them with all your information, they're not going to push it right. That's going to be them bullshit. But it's, they are. a reflection of you. So sometimes

an artist might be bullshit and if I want to listen to Jay Cole and I would have just strictly just put it on this company that I'm putting out my album with and I would have been like, man, here y'all make this shit go.

I'd have been bullshit but I listen to Jay Cole I packaged this shit up right and I did it all the way right and it's like this. What the hell is this? Carviva wellness. Carviva wellness.

You know what I'm saying? Carviva and healing. So like if Carviva wellness was in another in a candle holder and it just and you just wrote Carbriva Wellness I'm gonna be like man

this ain't the same shit Charlottomaine put me down on the show you feel me? Like but it gotta be shaped like this got to have this point it got to be all of this and that's what make it real you know what I'm saying so

man yeah it's just I feel like man as artists man we got to start being business people too and we got to you know what I'm saying ignore all the noise and and quit having so many high expectations

man just because you see Beyonce do some or like the top artists in the game that have been working for many decades and putting in many work and put foot to ground and sold out small rooms to arenas to stadiums you're not going to get the same reaction as they're going to get. I don't give a fuck what you're saying on the song.

Word. Mike Will gave a lot of game today. A lot of game. Album comes out this Friday. This is a producer's interview right in it. That's right. Appreciate you for joining us, brother. No, I love, man.

What you want to play right fast? Oh, man, any of them, man. Take cold. Let's do it. I'm just going to play. Let's play, I ain't going to lot. Let's play deeper, man. He's on touchdown.

You play deeper. Tees out of touchdown. Play the cold record. Play the cold record. But let's get into it right now. We got a lot of joints. It's the breakfast club. Good morning.

You did. Yes. Hold up. Every day I wake up. Wake your ass up. The breakfast club. You're all finished or y'all done? This is an I'm done.

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