Wake that ass up in the morning. The Breakfast Club Morning.
Everybody is the j n V. Jess Hilarious, Charlamagne the guy.
We are the Breakfast Club. We got some special guests in the build. Clips.
What's up?
Is it the clips?
Or is it clip Clips?
Okay? Because I say the clips too? Clips?
You call that.
Shot, So it's just clips.
What's the origins of the name for people who don't know, So that came from Full of Clips. I came up with it and at the time of Fat Joe had the Full of Clips crew, so we just shortened it the Clips.
Okay.
Now I want to go back right because you guys have been a long time, for a long time, so I want to start from the history. Of course, I know you guys for a long, long, long, long time. So what got you into rapping and to form the group The clip Clips for people that don't know.
Always always been a fan of hip hop like anybody else. You know, My older brother was into the whole cardboard box break dancing, boom box rapping when you had to push play and record and wrap directly into the box and yeah, man, just uh just coming up, just coming up under that and uh we went to Chad's house one time and pusha he wrote his first rap, and Pharrell was like, y'all, should you know be a group? His first rap was incredible, but before that it was just me rapping over there.
Now when you're first met Chad and Pharrell, right, yep, y'all are totally opposite. So how did y'all even meet and even learn each other? Because growing up in Norfolk in Virginia, like.
It's totally two different sides.
So what made y'all even say, you know what, let's connect with these guys who wearing tight shirts at the time and tight pants and looked like skateboards and look nothing like y'all serving them, serving them? So it made you say, you know what, let's link with them and start you know.
Actually, so I was a djuh dj Alex in Virginia. Beach lived down the street from me, and we went out and we rented a drum machine and we got the drum machine, but we couldn't work it, and you know, we had to turn it back in, so and we had paid for it, but you know, we was gonna have to turn it back in before we even had a chance to use it. And he was like, you know, let's take it to my homie's house. And we went over there and it happened to beat Chad and he
knew how to work it. And you know, that's just stuff that we was doing before clip.
And that's where it started. Yeah, so when did y'all take it serious?
When did you say, you know, what this rap thing is is something I'm gonna take serious. I'm gonna get off the street to say this is what it is.
I have to say that was in meeting Pharrell. In meeting Pharrell, and you know it was Pharrell, it was the Teddy Riley coming to Virginia. You know, we began to see that it was a real thing, that that that music was was actually attainable in arms reach. I mean, we seeing the cars, were seeing the Ferraris, We're seeing Michael Jackson in Virginia Beach. You know, we're seeing MC's whole everybody was was coming, was coming down. And then at the same time we had you know, Timblin and
MISSI they was doing their thing. They were you know, they had left home and went to Jersey and was working with Joe Tosy. But these are all our childhood you know, high school school for last thing, so we we got to see it from a lot of different angles that you know, music was possible.
Why why Virginia don't get like the credit for being a hip hop hotbed, just a black music hotbed.
Not just not just music. You remember Alan Evlson from that area, Michael Vicks.
From that area.
Like this, it's so much in that area that people.
Forget I'm the music because you got regions and you know, states that get that love, but y'all don't seem to.
Well. I think I think it's because I think a lot of people have. Everybody who's made it in Virginia actually had to leave Virginia to make it. I don't think any one particular artist of any of us. None of us broke in Virginia. So we always broke like Clips broke in Philly. You know, you know everybody, everybody broke somewhere else. So I think Clip's broken Philly. I never yeah, Clip's broken, Philly. Man shoutow cosmic vow, Yeah, yeah,
Clips broken Philly. I don't know what record was at the funeral or grind grinding broken Philly.
Now do you remember that when Farrell gave you that beat for grinding. I remember the first time I heard it. It was confusing. Yeah, it was confusing. I was confused. So when he first gave it, how did you know that was?
You probably got the CD that I was handing out. Yes, I did, Yeah, I believe you did. You know when we heard it first, we was like, you know, we were it was. It kind of took us back because you got to think at that time, Pharrell was singing on every hook. It was uh, whether it was mister Cool and whoever. Right, So, you know, this is our first joint and he like, yo, this is the one, and we like, we want you singing, like saying you better tap or do something. And you know, he was like,
now I'm telling you this is this the future. This is what it is.
And he was right, and it was confusing because we actually wrote to it twice three times.
I think I think I got three joints on that joint.
I still can't blend it to this day because I don't know where the beating the snare go at.
Wow, actually blend on it. You just gotta go.
That's crazy, that's crazy for you to say.
That to this day. M Me up there, Me up there, I just love.
Vegas with envy, rocking, smoking.
Thanks.
Thanks, you know on the album Malas you said you've been both Mason bethists for people who don't know what that line needs.
Yeah, I just feel like I understand stood and walked a similar path like Mace, you know, to be in this industry and then to have a real live revelation of God and who he is, you know, and then have to navigate your way. As far as navigating, not so much because I knew that I had to chill, take a step back. And I also want to give you y'all flowers too, because y'all were still messing with me during that time. You let me come in here and you know, promote the documentary and you know, uh
my solo projects and everything. So yeah, I appreciate that. But yeah, I feel like I understand, uh seeing a lot of the same things that that Mace.
Uh see.
I bought that up because you know, they actually caught me Mason the club.
It was in the club in DC, and it was like we got to push your ta in Mason.
For a while.
No, No, I'm cool with it all.
Yeah, I'm cool with it all.
That's why I brought it up because that's what ultimately caused the clips to you know, in for that fifth period of time.
That's right, yeah, yeah, So what got your back? What was the call that said I want to do this again?
There were a few baby steps, I'm gonna say, uh, going out to Wyoming and uh, you know, working on use this gospel with ya with my brother. I always knew that we could do it, but I just knew I needed to sit down period, you know what I'm saying? And uh, what else did we do? We did push his album, I Pray for You, We did the Lego album, the album Yeah, I mean those were things I could ask for that I knew, weren't you know, just solid nose and you know, man.
From there, it was just like, what we're gonna do?
What was the exact moment though, because y'all were on two completely different life paths, So what was the exact moment that said, Okay, it's time to do another album?
Okay, So I'll say this. You know, when when we were doing they use this gospel and punch bowl and push his album and whatever, I had to ask my dad. I was like, you know, what do you think about me? Rapping again, and he said, he said, son, I think you've been too hard on yourself. And my dad's a deacon, you know, like he was a deacon. So to hear him say that, I am like a word.
That's how you feel like, you know, And you answered one of my questions.
I was gonna ask you about that because you talk about that on Birds Don't Sink, right, And I just thought that was such a powerful thing, just just to explain like you was going through his you know, dresser drawer, seeing his notes. But then he y'all had conversations about you rapping again. I'm gonna ask you what would those conversations?
Yeah, yeah, we you know, just everything was the way it lined up. It told the whole story, and it let me know that God is intentional. These things don't just be happening to us the way you know, we think. God is very gracious and he sets you up. He knows what you can take, He knows how much to put on you. He knows the order in which to put, you know, things in for you. So I I just
know that He's in control all the time. And the conversations with that record, you know, Pusher talking to my mom and me talking to my dad and being able to document those last conversations. Even those conversations was a type of preparation, you know, getting you ready for what was about to take place.
So like, I'm I'm.
Cool with it all.
Well, condolence is first, and for you know, I was when I was in Vegas. You know, I was with family members of yours and what I like to do is is pull them to the side and just have conversations. I knew I was coming up for an interview and.
Trying to get tea yeah, of course, and one of them was like, now we were talking about the down.
This is before I heard the.
Album, and he was like, he was like, yo, the best thing about it. He was like, I had their mom in the car and he was like, the greatest thing that ever happened is the two boys are back together rapping. So how was that feeling of knowing that mom was just super duper happy that her two sons were backrock.
Uh man? You know she that was that was always a big thing, you know, for me as a soloist. She would always be like I want with them, Yeah, I want your brother with you. I want them back out there with you probably just to you know, look over me, watch over me. But that was that was always her thing. She was huge on like us just being together.
Yea, Now did y'all know y'all had to start the album with a dedication to your parents, like.
Because it was the hardest record to make, Like, it was the hardest record to make. So yeah, So finally, like when we cracked that code, you know, we were you know, we were putting the order in and we was like, man, nah, this this, this has to start, like, this has to start the album.
It was.
It was polarizing the response, you know, just in the creation of it. Man, everybody who heard it, you know, and there were people in there, like you know, we we recorded it in the LV headquarters, so it's a room and it's you know, it's open. The mics are like this, ain't no booth you record like this. You look outside, you look through that window right there, and then it's not a window, it's just an open space. Somebody with a sewing machine, somebody with you know, bag
shoes whatever. And while we're doing this in real time, everybody's in tears, like everybody just you know, they're they're watching it. By the time we finish it, it's like, you know, just like any other record. It's like, man, you know, we we cracked the code on it, like we were satisfied, but it was just so hard to do.
And everybody is always like, you know, everybody want to put the hardest record first, and I'm like, nah, man, this this is the this is the hardest record, and I want to see how it like really touches people. You know, from the jump and the didn't get into everything else.
Did that change you?
Because you know, you talk about on the record of where you were and the things that you should have been doing that you weren't doing. Yeah, and then I've seen a shoe for a couple of years with you when you had your son, like everything is about your son and you show up more than anything else, and that wasn't you beforehand.
So did that change you?
What is my first son? So you know, this is this is this is new to me. But you know, I man, I don't know if it changed me. I would say that my parents prepared me to be a dad, like a real dad, because I had a real dad and a real mom.
Were there conversations that you wish you had with your mom, like in those moments where you talk about you went to Turks for Thanksgiving and.
So no, no, like me and my mom was so straight, like we've been, like we always were straight. And I think that the you know, the whole the Turks thing when you know, and looking at in hindsight, you know, she was like, damn, you're gonna get out of here, you know, you know, looking at it and everything, I sort of feel like she knows, she knew everything, you know. Yeah,
so you know, it's just it's it's it was. It tells the story, you know after you know what I'm saying, like the whole story for me, Like I see it all now, I see it all, but at the time, no, I didn't.
I think.
I think it also says a lot for you know, being in harmony with your people. Yeah, really you really should be, because that is what gives me a lot of peace knowing that, you know, I was there for my mother, a great relationship with my mother and my father the whole time. So if you're out here and you have like a dysfunction or a lot of dis disdain between family members, you should really try to fix that,
you know what I'm saying. You should. You should really try to fix that if possible, because right now with my parents being gone, I get a lot of peace just knowing that everything was straight and always straight.
That's not the only thing.
Yeah, y'all choose who was going to rap about who?
That was kind of easy.
I mean.
And even though we were, you know, just all of us very close knit and tight knit. Uh, you know, my dad and I we always talked about things of the Bible, you know, and just whole even my mom because my mom was you know, over the house every Saturday for Bible study. But I don't know, it just seemed like it kind of made more sense for you know, me talking about my dad. Well, we get a visual for this video.
I mean, it's already shot. It's already shot.
Look at you. It's not like you already.
But I pull everybody to the side, definitely asked.
How difficult is it to rap honestly next to your brother because y'all y'all really know each other, so you could be like, yo, you're lying that ain't happy?
Don't we don't have them kind of issues?
Okay, Yeah, it's cool and getting.
It's real, But is it ever like maybe that's too much, Like maybe we shouldn't say that.
I think I think push It likes, especially now he likes when I curse, you know, try to like all the way there with it, you know what I'm saying. But nah, I mean the rapping is is is just like second nature to us and we've been doing this for a while, so.
Just the funnest rapping has ever been, I'm being honest with you, this go around, Yeah, like this is the funnest rap has been. Like this ain't even like that's not a thing, like it's you know, the roll out and all of that is like the work. This the music, not the music is what it is. Like the music is there.
You feel like you gotta you feel like you got to prove yourself though it's like I see it would hold right people.
Oh you lying? You ain't really do that?
Ah man, you feel like you gotta bro I've been in this twenty three years, like I've been who I've been twenty three years, Like I don't I don't feel like I got to prove anything to anybody, And I feel like I'm the best at what it is I'm doing. Like I don't think nobody talks like this nobody, Like, it's a lot that comes with this and I feel like, you know, people give you that the coke wrap Moniker bro We like it's so much deeper than that. And listen,
I don't even argue. I don't even argue the title no more. It's fine. It's just you know this right now, what we're making is for those who know and for those who understand, and for those who are like you know, into hip hop, into the lifestyle. And I think that's what you're seeing in the whole rollout of this album. This this is high taste level everything, and it's you know it and it shows the heritage of like how and what we've been a part of for all these years.
You know, whether it's you know, high fashion, whether it's car hard, whether it's streetwear, whether you know, whatever it is, it's all hip hop. Like this is we're trying to give the hip hop tutorial of like why we loved rappers, you know the rappers I cut my eyebrows broke, you know, like these things I did, like I did, you know
what I mean? And I want people to love us in that way and I want to show that, like, you know, this is what this is what hip hop means to us, like be entrenched, and that's what we're just trying to show.
You know.
That's funny because.
That was one of my revelations with my departure, everything that we were talking about, the things that we have been through, the things that we were sharing, and then to see how it all came crashing down with friends and family you know, around us and death, yeah, death, indictments even to present day. You know what I'm saying, The same people that we were running with. We we've
lost a few, a few more recently. But my revelation was when I would hear narratives of you know, they weren't into that, or they weren't doing this and that, and I'm like, I know what we've been through, and for anyone to say anything like that, for to have such a sacrifice of all these things going down, just for someone to say that, which doesn't trouble me at all, doesn't bother me. You know, people have their opinions and
can say what they want. But to be fighting for that and talking that and and then then when it happens and then somebody won't say you ain't do that, I was like, oh man, no, I'm chilling.
I'm good. I didn't hear a lot of cocaine wrap on this record, though. Was that intentional? Do you think you.
Should not as the Clips project?
Right?
No?
I think you know, I think it's more reminiscent.
Yeah, if you give a little in the beginning, a little.
Something in the beginning's my favorite.
For who you really they tried.
They tried to scrap it.
I tried to scrap it.
They tried to scrap that.
Yeah, I told him, I was, you know, that's it.
Why the.
Stars about I want to because I was I was actually mimicking Guru, like vocally, and I didn't think I nailed it good enough. And I was just like, man, I didn't get Guru. Oh yeah, okay, okay, I mean, you know, very monotone, very conversational, very then and then and it was like you know that. I mean, I I just didn't. I wasn't sold on the execution can Man, that's crazy, that's crazy because it was gone.
That's my favorite there.
Did you tell him I don't want to do too much of the cocaine thing.
On this No, I mean, I think, you know, that's the good thing between my brother and I things are understood. You know, he knows why stand I know where he stands. I don't try to chang ain't him or he don't try to change me. And it's a it's a good plan field where we come together and it's just real. We don't have to like overcomplish, manufacture anything. It's just what it is.
The the other day, they said, I was glazing the clips right.
Crazy.
That is what I said, was I said, I said something to this fact. I said, push has if he hears anybody go at him, he has five records on the side of five versus just the case.
I said, I just know because I know who he is and what he is. Is that true?
No, man, I'm not listen man, you know he said.
No, he said, Now he looks good like the skins always.
Fresh man like, like I like skin compliments. I do like skin compliments. I'm gonna tell.
You to rap as it.
Sometimes they throw stones that you do you have something in the stass for each and every.
One of them.
Man, I mean, I think you know, just me being a rap artist and me being an MC is that's just second nature. And usually most most people who throw stones, man, I mean nobody's perfect. So I mean I can dissect anybody just like they could dissect me. But you know, man, I try not to. I try not to to engage to my like I've done that. Like I've done a lot of it, you know what I'm saying. I've done it with the best and the biggest, Like I've done it.
So it's like, you know, you can't just entertain everything because everybody and everybody's not good. Like everybody's not good. This is this is a new day in a new era where like you know, just uh clicks and and and and clickbait and and people just say things for for attention, and it's like you just can't entertain everything. Man, you just can't. I feel like you've been trying to catch your body since the story. I've been trying to catch your body.
Were you caught? Think a body? I think those were shots directly at you. You were surgical with you said at the end of peel Back, the lay is real slow. So I feel like you really wanted to go there with somebody for the longest.
Nah, man, no, no, I mean you know it's it's never a.
Man.
I got, I got for real, I have a lot to to to rap about. I got a lot to wrap about. I got a lot, a lot of content. The creativity is is ever flowing and it don't ever have to be about an individual. It don't have to be like not for me, Like I mean, like, I feel like this album is incredible and I don't think it's really dialed anywhere you could getting necessory to murder charge because when you listen to.
You for.
Things that you laid you know, you laid down that Kendrick used for you for it, and I think it's used in the battle period.
Man, you know, I think I think you know great great lyricists just you know, tune into the obvious.
Speak during that battle and yeah, speak during the battle.
I when do you pick and choose when to say something about something because you sit on a lot of stuff for a long time.
Yeah, I mean, I'm I'm always like that, like I feel like and and that just comes with that just comes with like my position in the game and like just where I am as an artist. Like, man, I don't you know, it's not always a radio record that I have. It's not always you know, we don't get you know, it's I'm not putting out music constantly. You know what I'm saying, every five minutes a new record. I feel like, you know, uh, you know, things happen.
You got to store it. You gotta store, you gotta craft, you gotta make it right. You got to set the platform, set the stage, breakdown.
What the hit the situation with death Jam. You guys were on Death Jam, Yes, decided to leave.
You crazy too, man. You can sit up here and tell Death Jam was like, Yo, Death Jam, Death Jam don't care about your project.
You crazy, honest man.
Man, He's.
Like, you're not gonna do that after her?
Like what is You're not to talk about your music? What are we gonna be talking about?
And I actually left that day because we didn't sit down, but he still wanted to do it.
But I was pushing for her because I love Coco. If we've been honest though, because listening to the project now and knowing the background with You're on Jam, you I don't understand why they would let a project like this go.
So what was the call when when when you hit it in the album and they called and said, we can't put this out, we can't clear this record.
What was that call?
Like, I mean, it was you know what it was. It was something that I wasn't really dealing with firsthand. They were like speaking to my management, uh and my team and just like you know, and then it got it got a little dicey to where to the point they weren't they wouldn't text or email send these things an email. They would they would like only talk on the phone, and you know, they would instruct not to email us back and forth these you know, that type
of correspondence. So, I mean, man, you know it's I don't know, like I don't I don't know why. I mean, I can only assume that it was just the optics with everything they got going on with litigation, lawsuits and over that the optics of clips Kendrick together, because that's that's when it all happened. Like we don't we don't we don't really deal with the label that much anyway outside of nothing. Actually, yeah, we don't deal with the label. Like we we go make our album and then we
come and bring the album back. But y'all, you and Rick worked together before y'all got a classic together. If you ask me different, Oh it's a different day. It wasn't you know that was back then, but y'all wasn't even shooting that dude, It doesn't it doesn't matter. That's crazy. Yeah.
So then so when you wanted to leave, you call Hole and then the first room was they just let you go for free.
We was like that can't be true.
No no, no, no, no no no. It had to pay, had to pay.
So you reached out the whole and Hope sit absolutely possible.
Well was my Stephen did Yeah, Stephen, Stephen reached out to him. There were other other labels in the in the in the bidding, and he just called hold, like yo, I think there was a there was a there was an approval process between one of the labels or something took a little long, and he went and ass whole and Hope was like, look, yeah, let's do this now, like twenty four hours, maybe maybe forty eight hours. I never seen lawyer work like this fast. Yeah, I didn't
know it even happened like that. And what record was all supposed to be on on this project ship man there was I mean, we got he was saying changing whibs.
Uh it was Mike Tyson.
Mike Tyson blow to the face, you know. Whole had the album, So you know It. Yeah, it was it was all for him to whatever he wanted to do.
Supposed to be on so be It.
Yeah, that was one of the options. Yeah, yeah, and nothing moved the spirit.
Man.
I don't know, Man, I don't know man.
You know, you know on pov Malas you said that you came back for the money that's the devil.
Can you explain it?
Yeah?
I just thought it was a real fly line, you know. And for anyone who has any questions about me, I'm Jesus inside out, like I'm all the way gone with it, like it it's crazy. But uh, I just took so artistic liberty, you know with that line. And really, to me, you know, money is a good thing. You need money, especially to you know, you got friends and family to be able to help people. It's nothing wrong with money.
I think people put a stigma on money, for the Bible says that it is the love of money that's the root of all evil, not the money. It's how much you love it. What are you willing to do for it or what won't you do for Do you lose all your principles and your morals? So I don't think we can demonize money. But for me, it was just a fly line to the church, right Nah, not because the line is fresh.
That's the devil in me.
Had to hide it from the church. That's the jeckal of me.
But I'm just.
Talking about the duplicity and the dichotomy of you know, uh, the mind and how people think and the two sidedness the people. Sometimes that's everybody, absolutely, yeah, that's everybody.
Earlier, right Yeah.
When Mace came back, it was on his ass right because of the lyrics, because of the type of records that he was on.
But with you, they don't do that with you. Why do you think that is?
Uh, I don't. I don't know, but but I'm gonna tell you for me.
Uh.
And and looking at Mace now, like I get Mace, Like I understand people are judgmental, you know what I'm saying. I've heard a few things about me. You know, I'm not gonna like I haven't seen anything.
Uh.
But you you have to know be solid and who you are, and if you have the word in you. The Bible says that there is none righteous, no not one, so nobody can like truly point the finger. But uh, you better have your heart positioned in Jesus Rice by the end of the day, because when when when the music stop, you definitely want to have a seed.
He taught me that at it because I didn't know. He told me that God, God think we all dirty? That's what.
How do your conversations be with it? Like do you know about forgiveness alone?
No?
You know what, Listen, I'm gonna tell you, Like when my brother listens to me, you know now or he has the appearance of listening. Yeh, he hears me. He hears me. And any time I get to witness to anybody, you know, with with without being preachy or or forcing myself. You know what I'm saying. I the problem is for me is that I happen to know how serious this is. And the thing about not knowing is that you don't know that you don't know, you know what I'm saying.
So when you're trying to uh, when people open the door and are willing to listen, I try to do whatever it is I can. But my brother, he's been incredibly supportive of me, even in my stepping away. He's never you know, was like, Yo, what are you doing? Or this? Like he basically just said, okay, you know, he asked me, was I sure?
You know?
And and that meant a lot to me because I had a lot. It was like a heavyweight. So to have the support of my brother, even through the whole hiatus. He would come to me and he was like, Yo, so and so was offering this amount of money. But what he did, but but but what he would do was he said, I already told them no, but I didn't want this to happen without me letting you know, just in case.
You know what I'm saying.
So but right right, well, you know.
I felt supportive.
So that's all that matters.
Robbed when people never.
Feel never feel robbed.
How do you feel when people leak music? Like when people release your music prematurely?
Yo?
You know, the game goes how it goes, and that's how we maneuver, we navigate everything. I'm not gonna sit up and be upset about anything.
You know.
That happens when we get in there and we create and we make our music and we do what we do. What else you're gonna do? What else can you do other than that? You know what I'm saying. And I stand on our product and I love it. And it's good for fans to get things sometimes, so it's cool, Like as long as they enjoy it, it's good.
Did y'all everythink about trying to get another Kendrick verse once that leaked before the album?
Actually like dropped.
Man, we try to get all Kendrick versus?
Why not y'all.
Knew playing that song in Paris, everybody's phone out it was going.
Y'all had to know that.
Yeah, you know, it's part of it. You know.
MB said something about what you asked about Malice about why you don't get the flack. I think one reason is because y'all have always had like a spiritual thread in your music, especially with the album titles. So how is your personal understanding of good and evil evolved since like hell have.
No fear good and evil?
How has it is your personal understanding of it evolved?
When you're even talking about rap, Like you know, people some people say rap music is secular, it's the devil, you shouldn't do it, But then you know, you went on your journey and you were doing it even while you're on your journey, but now you're.
Back, like, yeah, I think I think one of the things that I have learned is uh, start with yourself before you try to correct anybody matter. I'm not even saying you should try and correct anybody, but you start with yourself and looking within and and change the things that you can change, and work on what you need to work on. And then you can like offer some kind of advice or if if people are even interested, you know what I'm saying, be able to give a
reason for the whole hope that you have. And yeah, I think if more of us looked at ourselves and instead of trying to judge other people, I mean, because you know you you you look, you look deep enough, you'll find.
Something all the time, you know.
So to what you said about when you went to Wyoming to do use this gospel, by the way, the hardest song on on that album. How do y'all feel about Kanye now? Do you feel sadness with sympathy for him? Y'all see him now?
No?
No no, no, no, no no no. I'm going to say and and and and I'm going to say that I think this goes for for anybody.
It's crazy.
When you have a true revelation of God, it is radical because when you when when when you when the scales fall off your eyes. You do you want to run and tell everybody what you what you witness or you know, we've been missing it this whole time. You know, it's it's how it's how I felt. But once you get that, you gotta sit down for a minute. You can't get the revelation and then try to keep going in this world. The epitome of the gospel is denying yourself. That's why Christ got on the cross and.
Gave up his flesh.
So you have to be willing to give it up so you can learn and then let God restore you and rebuild you. You know, correctly doesn't mean anybody is a perfect person, you know what I'm saying, or or you can't even try to have the facade of Okay, I'm saved now now I'm perfect. Nah, it just doesn't work like that.
So how do you deal with it? Push?
Because deal with Kanye because you know you're not the type of person to hold your tongue.
You know, you don't hold your word.
So when some of the stuff that he did that might not have aligned what you thought, did y'all have those conversations?
Well, I mean, you know, I spoke on it. I feel like that's that was the beginning of our fallout. But you know, he.
Sits on a lot of miscarriages of justice. I've seen it, you know what I'm saying. I hear things and things being said, and I see, you know, his reserve. You know, I admire his restraint. People By the time he jumps out the window, you think he's going overboard. But I'm telling you as knowing my brother, he sits on a lot.
And what about all that music, because I'm sure you you got tons of music, but we never hear the stuff that you've done.
Yeah you will, because they leak it all. They leak it all they put out or just sloppy, you know, I don't you know, I don't know. I don't I don't use it. I don't even keep it. But you know, you've you've seen and heard the things that have been out there.
But I saw you say you hate Kanye's leadership and you got away from that, got away from that community that he built because of the feeling over there, right, What was that like last straw of like nah, I can't no more.
I think for me it was I think for me it was somewhere around somewhere around the Atlanta the Dome, the locked in when everybody was locked in the dome, and you know, I, you know, like again, man, when when we squad and we were working and we're doing what we're doing, it's just all about the squad. And I kind of just felt like, you know, I would you know, I would have to leave and go do things shows, whatever the case. Maybe I would come back
and the energy would just be different. You know. There were conversations being had, uh you know, this is this is after Addie Don and everything else, and you know, it was like, man, I was doing self serving things and it was just crazy. It was just a lot of like you know, backbiting and things like that, and I'm like, damn, this is this is for the squad, I thought.
But you know, it publicly negative about you.
We heard him say about Sean. We heard him say legend.
Oh no, for sure he has for sure he has. He put on remember he put on the little mask. He was like screaming in the culturally inappropriate Oh man, yeah, no, listen man, Okay, So during during just the sessions, whether it was a beat, whether it was you know, just the freestyles before and making the songs whatever the case may be. You know, we would get hype about just like man, it's hard or whatever whatever it was at the time, and I forgot who said it, but it was Mike.
Mike.
Mike was like, man, this ship is culturally in appropriate. And Mike also worked on It's Almost Dry, so you know how that had a common thread of like the Joker laugh through the whole album. He was like, yo, say that on the mic and let me run that through a filter, because you know, we just felt like we just kept running that back. It's culturally inappropriate. He was like, say it through a filter, let's find a voice,
and let's just see how it sounds on records. And it actually just worked just to have that, you know, just another thread to keep it, you know, cohesive, keep the album cohesive.
I mean, I like it just because it's something that I feel like we should say something.
Yeah, it could have been a line. What I'm saying is it could have been a line, it could have been a song, it could have been a hook idea. At the time, I just you know, I just can't remember what it was. But that's that's where that that term came from. Something that was just said ignorantly.
And what pissed you off about Travis Scott so much that you had to mention him on a regulard? What made you say this isn't this niggas going too far?
Ah?
Man, it was just you know, it was just that that whole coming to uh coming to Paris. You know, he came to Paris during one of our sessions, you know, played his album and then he you know, when when he left, the album comes out, and you know the record that he played, you know, had a verse up there that was you know, going at p whatever the case may be. And I'm like, damn, you just left,
Like how you how you leave here? You know he was on your album and then you're letting him, you know, play your album for him, you're filming it, and then you come back when the album drops you got a verse you know, going at him. So I just thought that was corny. And again, like you know, that's part of the I think that's part of just trying to
leave all of that behind. And it's like, man, like that's the type of thing that happens over in that yay world and it's okay and they you know, it's all right, they just brush it off and they be friends and they go hang out together and then you know, do whatever they do. Like that doesn't I didn't. I didn't like that that was brought into this fold.
Yeah, gotcha.
One time they said that the verse the drink First wasn't done as a yet.
It doesn't matter when it was done. I don't care when it was done. You you added to it. You actually he actually had a verse after that verse, so you you even added to the verse, like pate etiquette for a situation like that, Just stay the hell away from me, like like I'm not I'm not into you anyway, Like I'm not even into your swag and none of that, Like it's not into none of it. So just stay away, like I only want to mess with the real, Like I'm only dealing with the real. I'm only you know,
doing music with the real. We just I just let's just let's just this is like just drawing a line in the sand for everybody. What are you responsible for what an artist does on your record?
Mm hmmm? Are you responsible for what the artist like.
If it's Travis responsible for Drake's line.
If you if you come and dance around in front of me and and use and use and use footage and do all this and all that. I think you're responsible for anything that you do that you incorporate the people that you know that are that are that are that are that are being you know, uh talked about.
Of course, I can't believe you have to explain this. You know, I'm not just taking size of because my brother.
I'm just saying, you know, like, but I'm.
Talking about the artists who might approach you because of what you push your sex.
I mean, listen, I ride with my brother. You know what I'm saying. And that's the and that's the thing about this having purpose. I know what my purpose is. I'm making music with my brother and I'm glorifying my God. That's what I'm doing. And when you're in your purpose, if anything fall on you didn't follow you, at least you know you were where you were supposed to be. And That's where I'm at right now. So I'm cool with whatever.
When people approach you for things, I say, approach that's all the time. But also also bed you say you got a video of Travis.
Crime, no man.
In front of me?
Oh no, no, that that that wasn't that that's not about crying.
So what's on the video?
Oh man? You know yeah, you know, God damn, I got you.
I'm glad.
Because can't do interviews by yourself. How did you?
Tyler creator phenomenal?
Yeah, hell yeah right, Tyler's crazy man, Tyler ben We I mean since uh Trouble on my Mind, he's huge, uh star trek Neptune for real clips, uh fan like he knows the discography, you know, fromwards and backwards. He's He's spoken a lot about how his influence he's been influenced by things that we've done. But yeah, I mean trouble, I don't even remember the year of Trouble on my Mind came out, But since then, we've all he's been, always been cool, always been tight. And yeah he came
through on POV he came through. How do you reconcile in nostalgia?
Fans will feel for the old clips being at y'all totally different men today.
I'd like to think that they've grown with us. Yeah, yeah, I'd like to think that they have. And I think that, you know, I think that they've grown with us, and I feel like our growth is something that you know, needs to be studied and studied and just you know, maturing in hip hop, maturing in hip hop and just culturally just showing you how to navigate and grow in this game and still be current and still be you know, of the mix and you know, just just not trying
to stay nineteen forever. Like, Yeah, when the last time you felt this safe? Because I can hear it in the music.
You feel like a homecoming, right, Yeah, people with the things that y'all talking about. You got Malice back Live is on the album Yeah for rail production. When I'm watching you in interviews, I'm like, damn, Push is just letting it fly, all of it. Yeah, when did you what made you feel so safe in this moment?
I don't, you know, I just think that I don't know. For me, I look at it like media has always been a big part of the Clips because it's always been a story. The Clips always has a story, and I don't necessarily think you can get up here and lie and play. People see through that, And I'm not want to be seen through, Like I don't like I'd rather just, you know, just tell the truth and call it today versus you know, sitting here trying to tap
dance around things, so you know, I don't know. I think that it's not about feeling safe, it's just about you know, this is this is part of the game, and this is part of the game for us. And I feel like when you got the music to back it up, man, you gotta listen, you gotta you gotta be musty TV, you gotta be you don't enjoy rappers line. I think it was Madles on the album that was one of my favorite, and I wanted to say that you've been entertained by rappers you never believed or something
not have sung along with I never believe. I wish I said that. I wish I said that. That's what that's I wish I wish I could have said the maceline and I wish I said that line. Those are my two takes.
How that I was gonna say, do y'all do that all the time?
Like if you too? If you to switch verses on like a classic Clips song, like he can't give me his verse. They're saying, I'm going to right now what y'all talking about? That's the debate online. I am go into I'm one too. Just off features No Off the Records I'm going to right now.
No, every time, I'm sure, man, I just I just do me, man, And I think I think our personalities and experience lends itself to you know, just different scenarios or whatever.
Different basis. I can't I can't do what push does? You know what I'm saying?
I get that, and all I can do is be me.
So you've never heard a push line and be like, damn, I wish I said that all the time.
Yeah, yeah, all the time. Yeah.
I was going to ask at the listening that we went to, y'all talked about y'all didn't have a ton of music. Y'all are very particular about recording and this is the music we're going to do, and you've always been that way. But it's been so long, So how did you know what you wanted to say?
Like?
How did you narrow it down to narrative?
I think I think the key the thing that we were trying to find in the studio was urgency. Urgency was like the key word that regardless of what it was. It could be birds on sing, it had to be urgent. It had to tug at your heart. You know, if you listen to pov the flow had to be something of you know, or the bars had to be something of urgency. So it wasn't about it wasn't about honestly finding words or topics to rap about. It was just that the music needed to feel urgent the whole time.
I think that was our I think that was our our biggest goal, just to make sure that that sense of urgency was there.
Talk about what Virginia means to you guys.
Because you get a lot of people that leave their city and they moved to New York, they moved to Jersey, they moved to Atlanta, they moved to the West. You guys have never left Virginia. So what does Virginia mean to you?
For me, Virginia is everything.
Childhood, upbringing, where my mother, grandmother and great grandmother hel from friends. You know, we were just talking about this. We have the same friends from you know, way back, and just certain ethics and standards of loyalty, you know that has been bred in Virginia. I absolutely love Virginia. I wouldn't want to move anywhere else. It's my pace, it's my stylus, it's what I know.
It's home. Yeah, I think I think Virginia you know, for me and the fact of like never moving, I always felt like my music would suffered to write and would suffer. I've always felt like that. I don't. It's the comfort, the comfort of being there, and I think that it gives a different perspective. I feel like the Clips, Damn the clips. Clips. Yeah, I feel like Clips. I
feel like Clips is different because of Virginia. I feel like the music that we and the influences that we've been afforded by living in Virginia, a military town, there were things I never knew about musically or would have never ran across if we weren't in Virginia. And you know, the flavor for yous, the mixtape shops, and you know, I was exposed to the Bay sound. I was exposed to Houston because of this town. And it was only because like it was such a military town that all
these different influences came there musically. Even I mean even the late or early eighties, late eighties, the whole drug culture that the New York to Virginia pipeline that brought so much music, so much influence, it brought so much man.
You you know, man, if you just think about if you if you just think, Yeah, if you just think about though, like the nineties, it was it was Mace, it was big, it was Wu Tang, it was everybody rapping about Virginia Beach like you know, just to to know like it was, and it was such it was so impressionable. I think that that that that gave us a lot of fuel, a lot of information, and a lot of different things to take from to create what the clips are today.
When you met your wife, yes, do you know she was the one as soon as she said her name?
No, no, not from Virginia. Yeah, that was crazy though, But from there to yeah, yeah for sure.
So do y'all do y'all like go out in Virginia.
I'm move around the total totally.
Because a lot of rappers after from sorry, a lot of rappers like I have to leave their city because of that.
You know, with love comes to.
Hate, the bigger you get.
Nah. You know, up at the office, they were just talking about what they hear about us at home and how we're out. You know, every time I'm in the grocery store, you know, I'm taking a picture by the peanut butter that I don't want to take.
I'm not doing you know, with the people.
But just you know, they catch me anywhere and they said, I'm out there officiating weddings and people see me at the gas station. Like you know, we go out. We definitely go out. And it feels good to be able to you know what I'm saying, Virginia, don't be tripping.
Virginia's cool, but.
Y'all are like that.
Not everywhere, but like I saw that there was a video you in Miami, Push, and I'm like, where is all the people with him?
Like you just walking around?
Yeah?
And what was the security was? I was one?
Yeah, I had the man, I was. I was I was going to get uh. I was want to get a Mother's Day gift, I think, And you know southside man, he just walked.
Yeah.
But you know you all laid back and chill.
And you gotta be I mean, you know, you know, somebody got a man chill, nobody had a gun. Let's leave it there. What is what is the skin regiment?
Because brother, Push, I'm sitting here, look yeah, and I've never seen the inside of somebody look so smooth like that.
Like what you able to do is the diet?
Is it? Like? What is it?
I think I think it's working out.
I don't know if it's no.
You know what I'm saying that the die is that their diets or diet. Yeah, is that your diet?
Is it?
Like?
What isn't?
I think you know, we work out every day, you know, and we enjoy that. I think that's fine watching what you eat, you know. I think I think we are the first generation in our family, you know, reading labels and calorie counts and proteins and stuff like that. So maybe that's what it is.
I don't know that skin is crazy song.
Your skin too?
All right? All right?
He produced every song? Yeah, Yeah, that's what I feels.
Like he took like a more when he when he produces for it's more like a minimalist approach.
I think it's a direct approach. Yeah, I think it's it's I think it has a lot to do with our vocals being instruments and treating it, treating the vocal like a real instrument, like you know, versus like overproducing so much so much. This this centered around the word. You know what I'm saying when it comes to us that you have to let that breathe. And I think he takes that that direction.
How does that change your well, how did that challenge your pin of delivery?
Oh?
Everything is about the raps anyway, It's always been about the raps. But I don't got a production bone in my body, so I ain't never gonna be able to lean on it. But so much, you know, I think I think that I think there's a standard that just comes with the writing. He just knows that it sounds best minimal with us cutting through. Yeah.
So when the beat changes on a record, like with the record that, do you ever say that's why it was him, That's why he was on it.
He asked for two eights. It was like, Yo, I got this change, give us two eights. When we heard the be we was like, oh, that's for Noads, I mean and just you know, just knowing, like you just know that that no, that that is that he was in a queen's bag of whatever, that was, whatever was inspiring him at the time. I was like, man, that was that was for Homie?
I know DJ clues involved to right, Yeah, talk about in the project.
Again, man, clue was he wasn't. What happened was you know, just again making the records, going through the records. Uh, we actually stole Clues drops from like just awful old mixtapes because we just felt that it fit. And you know, when he heard it, he was like, no, I got to redo these they don't belong. He book the studio, booked the studio and he had to he reconfigured everything he did and did it live. But it was just
some of those records kind of sparked that nostalgia. And you know, when when when we're in the moment, you know whether it's a for real you know, if you hear Foraral singing the hook or you know, we wanted the hook that he's not going to stay on. We gotta kind of finish it just to see what it feels like. So we stole the drops and once Clue heard it, he you know, did it properly.
Yeah.
Talk about the Cousins Festival you got going on.
R oh Man Cousins Festival. Cousins Festival is August thirtieth. It is the best time. It's Labor Day weekend and it is it's an indoor an outdoor festival. You know outdoor you have a Cousin's Festival stage. It's like all the DJs, you got backyard band, you got man, you know, drug food trucks. It's it's clue as its clue is is envy. It's a DJ booth.
Yeah, we need just there.
And then on the inside we have as as the as the day goes on, we have an inside, we have a show and that's gonna be g z T Pain Little Kim. And it's like it is the best one day festival time of of of of of Labor Day weekend in Virginia.
Why don't you perform at the festival though? Because this is the second anyone?
Right, yeah, this is the second one.
Why don't you perform at your festival?
H Well, actually we have a show already booked, so we ruined it. No, not the day of, not the day of, but you know, it just it just didn't make sense. And you know this is this is really about we take real polls, like yo, who y'all want to see? You know we just last year Yeah, last year was Rikabad Larry June, Lion babe host of d j's Jermaine you know, and this year, you know, this year we stepped it up a notch.
The show you got already booked is at the Toy Work Game. Yes, sorry about that.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, I know, I know.
I didn't say it, Kevin was because it's all good, man, It's all good.
I mean, you know, I'm glad. I'm glad that we're going out there with Earth Game. Those guys are awesome, and I feel like the show is going to be incredible. Like what twenty five dates? Twenty five dates?
You know, ga with the handle for a little bit.
You know, I didn't know that. Oh wow, crazy.
I's got a couple more questions, man mouth. How is your journey as a pastor, your spiritual journey?
Why does a pastor?
No, I'm not, I could I could be.
I'm not a pastor your spiritual journey?
How's that helping you navigate this current climbing and hip hop but also this current journey to clips wrong?
It helps me with my journey through life with everything, I feel like I actually don't know how you can do it without God anything. Let all things be done decently and in order, And no matter what you're doing, you need to have the Word of God with you, even if it's only to help you in understanding things around you that you can't change. You know, to have peace? Uh, in peace with yourself. So it's everything to me. God,
God is everything to me first and foremost. And that's not that's not cliche like I need Jesus like I need water and food.
It's a fact.
Yeah.
Well, what's what's the song on the new album? You think people are gonna completely misinterpret?
I don't know. I don't care you know what I'm saying.
I don't I don't know.
It could be the whole album.
I don't know.
Yeah, let's get into a join of the album. What y'all want to hear?
Not the two joints I have been playing fight?
Oh yeah, let's get into that.
You got to send that to me please.
Already?
Or do birds on sing?
Like?
Yeah, two birds on sing? Sure?
That's powerful.
Well, I appreciate you bubs for joining.
Us, thanks for having thank you, thank you very much on y'all. But we're gonna have to wait another fifteen years or nah no, no, I don't think so okay, Yeah.
I don't know, y'all just so happy.
Yeah, that's why when I said the safe space thing, like, I can really see that, I can see how this is like a divine protection with all together having an individual when y'all together.
You can.
I'm with that.
I'm with that.
I feel that, I see that.
Yeah, and this is just that.
Ch'a would question how many people still think y'all twins?
Everybody? Okay, am you?
Growing up?
I was like, they are twins.
I will I will all get people down.
Because they was right from down the street.
I'm from Baltimore, you know they right there.
But I got a family in Virginia, and I was even telling the Virginians, Yo, they're twins.
Were like, no, they not, so my bad.
Okay, but people do say that it wasn't everybody exactly.
Let's get into the record.
One last thing.
Is there ever a problem you say, like, I'm not going there with push It Like if pushes going to a spot.
A strip club to host it or he's going to strip like that.
I'm not doing that, yo.
Everybody keeps putting you in the strip club.
For every in the strip club, I usually don't. I mean my book. But work is work, work is work.
It's clips its morning.
Wake that ass up in the morning. The breakfast club