INTERVIEW: Havoc Talks New Mobb Deep Album, Prodigy's Legacy, 50 Cent, Jazmine Sullivan + More

Don't know.

Every day up waiting up the Breakfast Club, finish for y'all done morning. Everybody is DJ Envy, Jess Hilarious, Charlamagne the guy. We are the Breakfast Club. Law La Roses here as well. We got a special guest in the building. We have hav It here.

Having what's up brother us going on?

How you feeling real good?

Real good?

Having from Mob Deep of course, new album Infinite out on this Friday.

That's right.

So many questions, so many questions. So let's start off with with first, how did you put this album together?

Oh?

Man, it was It was a long time in the making because, you know, after the untimely death of Prodigy, you know what I mean, It was something that I wanted to do, but it took me a minute because of you know, the family was in the grieving process. But to make a long story short, linked up with alc Alchemists and we knew we had to start, you know what I mean, start the album.

So flew out there.

I had a couple of songs already, you know what I'm saying, some verses from a Prodigy's family, and Alchemists had a ton of verses already, so we just started putting it together and just breaking it down.

How did you I was gonna ask, how did you pick which verses? Like when you're going through Prodigy, you know, verses that we've never heard? How you picked which ones? Because we were anticipating hearing it, right.

I mean it was kind of hard because I mean, to me, you know what I'm saying, all Prodigy verses is dope, you know what I mean?

So it was hard.

I mean because we ended up with like what twenty five songs and you know, ended up with fifteen, but.

I don't know, you.

Know, just the best ones, you know what I mean, out of Prodigies versus if I could pick, it was really hard thope.

Now with any of these songs done already from y'all already, Oh, these were all you had to get every new verses from you know, whether his daughter I see his daughter raps, his family or alchemists.

I mean, you know, I thought that I was getting most of the verses was like unheard verses, but like one of them was like you know, released like fourteen years ago.

So you know what I'm saying.

We took wipe the dust off and you know, rocked with the songs or whatever, but most of them is just versus that nobody never heard before, especially you know what.

I'm saying, something Al has like it's like crazy versus like for real.

But you know, I was giving some verses from the family and I just you know, technology, you could just take a verse if it's like ninety two bpms, you could put it down an eighty eight, or you could speed it up to one hundred, so it's like kind of seamless.

How was the family were doing this? Did the family want a new mob Deep album out where they cool with it or they were like they was cool with it.

They was cool with it, but they just wanted to make sure that they was part of the process and

It's crazy.

How was your relationship with before he passed?

It was actually I feel like I got my friend back, you know what I mean, because right before he passed, like real talk, we was shopping in Whole Foods, you know, trying to get on.

A healthy path.

And he after we did that, he knocked on my hotel though, like he never comes to my room.

Came to my room, and we was just kicking it, like just trying.

To go down a healthy journey because you know, we had had, you know, a little dust up before that.

What was that dust up for? Because I always was saying, like Mob Deep is that one crew r like them? They are never like they just so from the same area. They didn't been through beefs and this and that and problems with money, like they didn't been through it all. So I figured they outre have one group that like Nah, but y'all had a little situation at one point.

I just say this, like when it comes to alcohol, just stay away from social media.

You know what I'm saying. It just lay that alone.

Some things like brothers go through things, but that's supposed to be behind the scenes, you feel me. So it was just built up frustration and me taking to social media, like I wasn't taught to go to social media, and they are all my differences. So that's something that I did. And Prodigy kept it like real classy like with it. He was, you know what I'm saying, a class general where that he didn't even engage in that little dust stuff. But you know, it was a little strain on a relationship.

And after that breakup, how did y'all get back together? Like what was that conversation? Who reached out first or who put y'all together?

Because we both got friends in common, right, so it wasn't like yo, okay today, y'all go to meet up.

It was like that.

Gradual, gradual, graduate, graduate, and then we just end up in the studio together, you know what I'm saying, And it was like nothing never happened, right, Like the beat is up and we just like, yeah, you know what I'm saying, So we're gonna through X, Y and Z and you know what I mean. But we did get a chance to kind of like talk. You know, you know, I know him since I was fifteen, you know what I'm saying. So that was like my brother brother for real,

And y'all were in Vegas when we passed, right.

Yeah, we was in Vegas.

We had just did this, like, you know, one of those shows I think iced t be throwing those tours.

With a lot of the old school artists or whatever.

Nordy was did ray Kuonic Ghosts and he wasn't feeling well, and you know, I just thought it was just like one of those regular Sigacell crisis and he'll be back home in New York.

Yeah?

Is there because I know that this is uh you work with Master Pil to drop this. Is there anything just because this is also people are looking at this as like a comeback project or like a return project, but it's also a tribute as well. Is there anything when people are listening to the music from Prodigy that we haven't heard, like when you were putting together and producing all of this, Like what was the message you wanted his fans to get from him in hearing him again.

Well, you know, I don't think that it was so much of me, like wanting a message to be put out there about Prodigy. The fans know what they wanted, you know what I mean, Like I'm constantly getting harassed by the fans, like yo, when you're putting out that Mam Deep album. I mean, look, I don't got no control over that, you know what I'm saying, Like I don't own Prodigy versus.

So it was a process, you know what I mean.

But you know, I hope that you know, the supporters get from it, like Yo, you know, p was one of the illest MC's out there, and I think that you know, he had some unfinished business, was there.

What was the pressure like for you if any, because this has been what since twenty fourteen since you're.

Yeah, the pressure was crazy, you know what I'm saying, because of course, you know, the music landscape been changed, you know what I'm saying, Oh Ma all Deep, But we stay in our lane.

You know what I mean.

And I just kind of like, that's all I wanted to do, is just stay in our lane. I try to go above and beyond and trying to sound like I'm doing some drill music or something like that, you know what I mean.

I just wanted to stay mall deep.

Now you did this still with NAS's Mass Appeal. She just mentioned, Yeah, how involved was NAS with this project? And why did y'all decide to sign with the NAS to do the collaboration with Massapell.

Nas kind of like took the hands off approach, you know what I mean.

We trusted Nas, you know what I mean.

We know, of course obviously since the beginning, you know what I mean, from the top, and he in position right now, you know what I mean, So we, like tons of people would have did them all deep album, you know what I mean. But at the end of the day, it was like who do we trust? I trust NOAs you know what I mean. I'm like, okay, he over there, Mass Appeal. We sat with them and it wasn't about the money. It's just more like who would do justice to the project, you know what I mean?

He did two verses on it as well three three verses on Yeah, I mean three verses for nas.

You know what I'm saying.

I think that's a good way to go out, you know what I mean. On the ma All Deep album and that was cool, you know, featuring her, Georgia Smith, you know, due two phenomenal artists, and Porter Henny y.

You know Clips as well was on the album as well. I wanted to I see a lot of your stories have been going viral.

The last couple of days.

Right, of course, the Park stories always go viral, the jay Z stories go viral. But the mind frame back then when you felt like the West Coast was taking a stab at the East right, and y'all said, nah,

Like when you in places like Minneapolis and you see people throwing up gang signs and holding up TUPOC posters, you don't even know if you're gonna make it out of it.

You understand on what I'm saying. So that's that, you know what i mean.

Never mind going to the West Coast, you know what I'm saying. But you know, back in those days, we was in our twenties.

You know what I'm saying. We invincible.

We like what we got beef is on. I'm surprised more artists in New York didn't come out swinging. You understand what I'm saying. This is NYC, and yeah, we love our West Coast brethrooms for sure, but we gonna let you know. If you clap with us, we're gonna clap back.

You know what I'm saying.

You know, a couple of artists came represented New York, but not in a way where were like, yops, y'all kick Adella, Like nah, you know what I'm saying, We're not letting.

You do that.

But it was it was it was a test, you know what I'm saying, Because it was it was serious back then.

People was getting shot and things of that nature. But we came out. We we survived it.

And you never ran into anybody on the West Coast. You never ran into a park back and it ain't nobody.

Nah, And it's not like we was hotting, you understand what I'm saying, Like we went, we was in La.

We had to be in La, you know, to promote the project.

But he passed you know what I'm saying, Like when the People was about to be on we came out with a project that's we was about to Hell on Earth and he got shot, you know what I'm saying.

That kind of just made everything like.

And y'all like to switch singles because they said the single was La La Right he got killed or.

Shot right, because it was no, it was drop a gem on them, drop a gym on it was drop a gym on it. We put that out and it was going on fire, like you know what I'm saying. You know, quite saying another station, but I'm.

Just this history.

Yeah, so it was it was going viral so to speak for back then, you know what i mean. But then he got shot and it's like, yo, son, let's pull the record, like me and Pete like, yo, let's pull it. Not even the label saying that, And we pulled the record and then eventually he definitely passed away.

So it was like damn, but we put it on an album.

And pulling the record. I mean, I know it's common sense to be like, okay, you're pulling it because now things are like so serious. But in that moment where y'all made that decision, the conversations, like I think a lot of people hear these stories too, and it just sounds like it's not kind of like almost like a folk tell to us. But you were like in that moment,

Like what's the real like like for real, for real?

Yeah, like why pull it? Because at that point, y'all are already like we hear we doing this, like we're poking out our chest.

Look, at the end of the day, he was a brother. He was our brother.

Like we might have beef with them and all of that, but we don't wish death on nobody.

You understand what I'm saying.

And we're not that thirsty like to be like shit, whatever he did, like keep a movie like that would have been bad taste anyway, you know what I'm saying it have been tasteless, so we.

Just like, nah, this just pull it, you know what I mean? You know your relationship with Big was not the best, but what you mean was it good? Because I thought the relationship wasn't necessarily the greatest. You and Big, oh for real?

Me me and BMG we got the same birthday.

Oh, I didn't know that. Did y'all ever have conversations to say, because y'all were both getting shot at like crazy? Did y'all ever have conversations like let's do this together right now?

Unfortunately? That's another one that passed away so early.

You understand what I'm saying, because you know, Puff said, Yo, come to the studio. I need you to do some music with Big. I didn't even know the locks gonna be on the song last Days. So I'm in there doing that. He in another room because I guess he was recording like crazy back then.

You know, you know what I mean.

So we never got a chance to really have a conversation. We went on tour together, you know what I'm saying. The last memories I have are Big is being in Ohio and were supposed to go on but Big was like f that I'm going on before y'all because they spraying Mason the crowd like like like you know, like the gang members is wild that I ain't even know Ohio had gangs like that, but those are the memories I have on him. So we didn't get a chance

Same birthday, Gemina to me.

How did watching you know the depth of Tupac and then a Biggie change how you felt about just being an artist at the time, Like were you scared?

But didn't change cause y'all ain't stop beefing. Y'all kept going. Y'all never stopped.

Nah, you know what. To be honest with you, it was like I felt it was mad disrespectful. You understand what I'm saying.

For Like, it's like, no, like you just killing artists like y'all just you know what I'm saying.

I understand, you know what I'm saying.

Artists is human beings, but it's like no respect for the artists, like y'all just murking the artist.

So that had me super.

Concerned, Like you know, I'm like, wow, like it's you know, you already got your concerns when you going on to making sure you're safe, but now just people just get out of here, like by you going you nah, that was crazy?

You know what I always wanted to ask. I always tell everybody if we have a hip hop conversation, my favorite beat EV and I think I told you before, it's shook Ones. Right, It's just when you think of hip hop, there's nothing that out hip hop shook ones. Just the raw, just uncut. It doesn't sound like it's ever filtered. It was just doesn't feel like it's never mixed,

I mean, you know, it could get frustrating, you know what I'm saying. It gets frustrating, you know, when your name is not being mentioned when you feel like it should be mentioned. But at the same time, we never got nominated for Grammys. And I'm sure we had albums that was platinum at gold during the time when the other artists wept gold and that, you know, and we never got nominated.

So I just feel like it's in the same vein.

But you know what, my piers, you know what I'm saying when I see them, Like I just seen Doctor dra the other day, he like, Yo, you inspired me.

And I'm looking at him like, like, you know what I'm saying, like you inspired me? But I feel him.

I understand what he's saying, because we all inspire each other. So things like that kind of negate the frustration I feel of not being mentioned because I could see somebody like Doctor Dre and they be like, yo, son, like you know what I mean, And that's all I be needing.

That's all you need say. They were Prodigy with lyrics. I think a lot of people don't necessarily understand how nice he was lyrically, and he doesn't get into a lot of those conversations as well either. He don't.

But then you have somebody like Jay Z.

If you ask him a question about Prodigy, he'd be like, Prodigy was one of those ones, you.

Understand what I'm saying.

So when people don't involve him in a conversation, but they rapper's favorite rapper is screaming their name, like not screaming they name, but giving them the credit. I think

This sounded crazy. I didn't know all that other stuff. They're supposed to be top forty, you know what I mean.

And how you mentioned Jay? How did that beef ever start? And do you ever regret never producing for a whole? Is that one of the things?

Off top? Of course, you know what I'm saying. As a producer, you want to produce for the best.

Of producer for every New York great, but right.

Right, that's that's the one I'm chasing, you know what I mean.

But shout out the whole. But look, when that beef happened, I had to stay with my brother.

How did it start?

Oh?

It started because back to what we was talking about with the you know, stupid crust, the buildings, and then we came with La La, and then I think Prodigy seen an all the cool with uh.

Matter of fact, I.

Think jay Z said something in his line about New York and sought since he didn't appreciate it. And then he says something in a magazine that called hold out his name.

Oh is it? You know what I'm saying, This is a call tax sport. He you know what I'm saying. He and his prolem he going right back at Prodigy. So it just started right there.

Do you feel like that beef hurt Bob Deep.

I'm not gonna say that it hurt mall Deep, but it could have did a little nice little delay, you know what I mean, Because when you got somebody like that just coming at you, you know what I'm saying, it's like it's start chipping away at you know that Almah.

I always wanted to know what Na said during that time when you because y'all all be fing together right the nads ever say yo, let's do this together. Like what was that conversation?

Like, nah, he was on his lone wolf real quick, you know what I mean. He came out with that ether. It was like, you know what I mean, nobody saw it coming, you know what I mean, we never ever had a conversation about like Yo, yeah, man, let's let's go get them.

Let's jump them, let's jump them.

Now that said, what what myths about mob deep do you hear and you don't correct or you hear you kind of laugh at I know, there's the one with the high hat sound and like the burner and still I'm still kind of confused about that. Was it a real burner?

Was?

And I saw two different answers at one point in time. But there's a lot of myths out there about you guys that you sometimes you say are better than the actual story. So you just let it rock.

I mean the one that you just said with the stove, like you know what I mean, Everybody keeps saying like, it's the stove, it's the stove. I'm not going to tell them if it's the stove or not. I just love the mystique of the stove. It's like that's a people like what.

The hell y' so?

And shook Ones part two. There's the flicking sound and it sounds like you, you know, you crank up the stove and like kick. Yeah. So at one point I thought I saw an interview from you and you said that it was a stove and you recorded it. I think I was drink champs. And then I saw another interview where you were like it was a high hat.

That you used, right, yeah, yea. I'll be mestling with them, you know what I'm saying. I just I just be messing with it, like I'm never going to reveal that one. Why because just the you know, it sounds better, you know, than the than the actual truth.

So, and I know, you guys got the comic book series that kind of leans into all of the myths about mob Deep is you guys, slick Rid ghost Face Nas. It's like a one time only series. So are y'all talking about more of the myths in that limited comic book series or is it just something that.

Well when they was making it, they was asking me, like what you think your strengths would be if you would be you know what I'm saying a you know, a superhero or whatever, and it was asking me what I think prodigy strengths would be, and I just kind of gave them that, like, you know, everybody wanted to fly, be like Superman or have some kind of secret power, you know what I mean. So I don't think it added to us like any kind of myth, but more along the lines of, like.

If you had superpowers, what would which one would you pick?

Got you? I thought it was going to lean into like all of the old, like the hip hop stories that we hear that we don't ever get real answer.

That's a good angle.

I like that might have to massive pill love to start, you know what I mean, revamp.

Some of the I did with the rollout right now that you're doing because a lot of those conversations are coming back up, people are learning it for the first time. How different is it for you now promoting your music and having these conversations with social media versus you know, not even the last album, but like early on days when y'all were running around.

I mean, it's way different because now you know, back in them days, we didn't have no social media.

We didn't have none of that.

So you know, the things that we're doing now, like hitting mad, podcasts up and things of that nature. Is like, it feels kind of different, but it's the work that you put in when you're putting out a project.

You know what I'm saying.

I love doing it. I love this time, you know what I mean. I get to really, you know, show what mab deep is all about.

What artist came to you for a beat and you turned them down and then you kind of went back and like, damn, I should have did that beat? Was there any one of those artists?

Uh? Damn, I don't. I don't think so. I don't think so.

You know, when I do work with artists, you know, not out of ten, I'm feeling them, you know what I mean. But if I didn't want to work with the artists, they definitely didn't hear back from me.

You know what I'm saying?

What beat did you give away? You wish you didn't give away? You would have kept to yourself?

Nah, I or every track there that I gave away I was fine with, you know what I mean.

I don't think I gave away anything now.

I always I always like to ask because these are my two favorite beats, My two favorite hip hopp beats. I want you to break down when you created shit ones and when you create a choir star right? And whose choice was it to put of every artist out there while little chmp. So let's start off with breaking down ship ones. So where were you when you made it? Create? When you made shit ones? And did you know that was gonna be what it was?

Shook Ones?

I made that in my in Queen's Village, in my mom's apartment where I grew up at right, thirty records all over the floor, scratch pop, vinyl. Didn't even really know what I was doing. Then the crew came in the crib Prodigy all in this, say what's this? I was like, Oh, it's whatever, whatever. I'm about to turn the computer, you know, the drum machine. No no, no, no, no no, don't don't don't turn it off.

Keep it. Kept it. We did a song to it.

Actually we had to Shook one part two, and then part one, and then this became part two and it took off. I had no idea what was going to do that quiet Storm. I ran out of samples, you know what I mean, I ran out of anything to sample. So I'm just looking at this sugar Hill Gang record, Like, damn, let me just try you for now, because that's a record that I always passed, like you know, white lines and all of that. Nobody's not putting that on, you know what I mean. So put that on, sampled it.

Didn't think nothing of it.

Prodigy used to come to my house go in the basement to the studio while I'm sleep and then when I went down, he's like, yo, have what's this. I was like this whatever, It wasn't nothing, and he did a whole solo song to it, and then we ended up making it the first single on I believe it was Murder Music. And I was kind of a little upset by then because Chris Lighty, God bless the day.

He was like, yeah, we making this the first single. I'm like, yo, I'm not on it. You know what I'm saying. He was like, you made the beat.

And I think that was the time when now everybody's just looking at me as a producer and not even a rapper. So that was a that's another story, you know what I mean. That I'm getting looked at it just as a producer when I just be trying to, like, you know, write my life away on the paper.

But it's all good.

And then how did y'all get what was the decision to put Little Kim? Why Little Kim of all the at that time? Why Kim?

I mean, come on, ever, you know what time it is. We go to the club right now, I'm mall deeps in the clubs. It's a saucetrege sveets right, you.

Know what I'm saying.

So we like, yo, we need to we need to get the chicks involved. Who could get who? We could get Little Kim? And she agreed to do it.

That I went to the studio, I seen her in there writing her verse. She sung a hookover. I'm telling you that record took off off like you couldn't.

It was genius. It was to the day where you could put out a street record and it could be a single. And this day is Kim's one of Kim's biggest verses. It just connects hot, damn hole, here we go again.

And she got that little the dance that she do to this day, to this day, to this day.

Yeah, I was thinking about you. You mentioned like going in the club and like using that and bringing that back into the music. Maybe some artists do that now, but I think a lot of artists are geared toward like TikTok and numbers and research because the industry has changed. And he always talks about how lit the club scene in New York was, and all the artists and all the things.

Like I was tell her that everybody used to be outside. Yeah, when we were always columbing like it was, there were no I would say, Richard broke it was. It would be the dude from the block on the left side, right mob deep on the right, in this corner, kimming them on this side. You would see Knaves was always in the cup by himself somehow, some way, wiggling in and out. You would see the lost boys. You just see so many. You would see everybody in the club,

I mean, it was an amazing time, you know what I mean. Like when Street Records was you was able to dance to it. You didn't have to make a radio record, you know what I mean. But once your record took off in the clubs, you was kind of like pretty much out of it. I think the clubs dictated hits, which.

Is not as much anywhere. And I know you got the tour that you're going on with Ray Kwan.

Yep, we got that the thirtieth anniversary of the Cuban Links and the infamous album We're Gonna do the US, you know about like eighteen.

Dates or whatever, and that's dope.

Actually got rehearsal with Ray Kwan later on today, you know what I mean, because we taking it serious, like you know, we some ogs. You know, she gotta do our two steps, make sure we're good.

I wanted to know too when you signed with fifty, When y'all did the deal with fifty, Yeah, break that down. And while y'all decided to sign that deal, and where were y'all at that point as far as.

Mob deep to you.

I mean, if you get off of some ferraris, you gotta go side the deal absolutely, but nah, fifty called me.

We was free agents at that point. I think we had been on jove.

If we sold one hundred and fifty thousand records the first week, that wasn't good enough for job today. I mean that's like probably platinum or something like that.

Absolutely, but it was.

Happy with exactly, So I guess we was ahead of our time or not whatever it is. But fifty called me, and I had already worked with fifty, like maybe a year before that before he was bubbling on the mixtaps, I remember, and he was one of my favorite artists, you know what I'm saying. We did bump that and clapped those things or whatever, and that was supposed to be for my solo album, loud Folded never came out.

He swept us up into the g unit. Umbrella went on tour and restless history.

Why how come you never signed more artists? Because you you were the producer, you were the artist. How could you could have I'm sure signed fifty early on besides Bennoy, who did y'all true? You know what it is?

I guess I haven't ever found the artist that I truly like, yo, like I can.

I just don't want to sign somebody just to sign somebody, like I guess my my bar is high, you know, I really want to sign that artist. Now, this is an artist that I did want to sign that she wasn't signed at the time. It was a Jazmine Sullivan. She just came into like right because back then I was like getting people to throw reference vocals and Steve I was working with stevebej and he knew her and got her to the studio and I.

Was like, god damn. I was like, Yo, she's nice, you know what I mean.

But she's one of those artists that you know it's going to get a major record deal and get signed. You got to come with the business if you want to sign a Jazmine cellibent. But for instance, like, I don't run across artists like that all the time, and those are the artists that I really would have, you know what I mean? And they feud fall between.

So you didn't sign her only because the deal situation was gonna be what you thought should be. Like, how did that not move?

I wasn't ready, you know, I'm saying, I ain't gonna lie for you know, female artists is like hot maintenance.

You know what I'm saying. It come with a lot, you know what I'm saying, not to you know what I'm saying.

I mean cause you got gam and branding. And I will say, although Jasmine Archie is a little different, but Jasmine Sullivant is one of the best singers period in the game, right. But I feel like it took people so long. It was hotels for me when people even started recognizing her the way that they should have. And she had been working for so long before that, so I'm sure a lot of money was poured into that.

I had the conversation in my mind, you know what I'm saying, Like I wish that I you know, because I was just you know, I was in my own way, you know what I mean. But the artist in me wanted her to shine, you know what I mean, and not even you know, try to get in her way. But you know that's what it is, like I never come across.

All this or that caliber. It's really hard, right, Like you know, so I want.

To go back to the fifty sign y'all conversation. I know when you guys signed with fifty and drop music. A lot of the fans were happy about that, yeah.

Because you know what I always say it like this, fans are like your parents, right, they never want to see the kids grow, right.

Oh, I want you to stay my baby, Please don't get older. And that's what artists are to the supporters and fans, right. They never want to see them go.

Outside the box or grow a little bit commercial, right, because it is just ruined, you know that that relationship that they have. And I believe that the our fans, right, because it probably was a mix of the audiences together.

But it couldn't have been further from the truth, because.

The point of y'all sign of that deal was you wanted that expansion of the of the business. Do you feel like at that point, y'all make it? Because when you released from the contract, there was no more business with fifty after right?

No?

And was that because of the way that the fans reactor or.

No, no, no, No, It wasn't because of that.

I think it was a lot of different factors surrounding that whole G unit In the scope thing, you know, I think fifty was getting pushed back at in the scope regardless of anything because he was just so you know,

They was like, play what mall deep with? You know what I'm saying, And he would just sneak us.

On TRL with him. You know what I mean, Like, come on, you know what I mean. They didn't want us, did Why because we don't fit into the job of music y' yeah we don't. We We from the streets, like you know what I'm saying.

They like, you know, they you know, they gate keeping a little bit up there. They like, Nah, were good. You know what I'm saying, Give us somebody else.

Do you feel like because I asked a question to get here, do you feel like because of the box? I guess that the fans kind of put you guys in. It hurt my deep as a business looking back then to where things are now.

Man, it's different ways to look at that. I would say no, right, because staying true to your fan base, it's cool, you know what I'm saying. I mean, you don't really want to do nothing outside of that. Like I'm not trying to make no pop records with like Christina Aguilera and all of that stuff. I mean, you know what I mean, because it's not who I am now. The music just becomes fake, you understand.

But if I was of that, then sure we'll make it.

Like certain artists was able to do that, but that wasn't mall deep now, and if we was gonna go that direction, we should have started that early on.

But that wasn't mal deep. We started grassroots from the bottom.

Like you know, I do. Got a question. You produce for Big fifty, Nas, Meth, Kanye, Wes, Eminem, ll, Mariah, just the name of a few. Who is your favorite to work with besides producty? Who was your favorite to work with with with production? And why?

Uh?

My favorite artist to work with that I produced for, I would have to say, Uh, probably was like Jadakiss, Wow, a little Kim, because those are artists that I really respect and revealed. I mean, like Jadakiss is like one of the best lyricists out there, so like to work with him. You know, it's a pleasure because he compliments your beat so well. You could give him a trash beat and he make.

It sound good. You understand what I'm saying.

So it was it was really a pleasure because he and he you know, he's kind of humble when it comes to you know, being in the studio and the artist. He he wanted the producer to take him in that direction.

Now you're very humble and now with production what was your favorite beat to produce?

Why?

You know what I'm saying by Jada Kiss because I just you know, it wasn't really too much of a big deal for me when I made the beat. I mean the beats not don't got crazy bells and whistles, but as you can see it, it's minimum production. But he just turns it into this whole big production, you know what I mean. With Anthony Hamilton. Then he's questioning, going why why this is why that? You know at the times when we got a lot of questions.

So I love doing that for him.

Also wanted to ask, right, besides why, what was the most difficult track to get cleared?

To get clear?

To get clear?

Uh, the most difficult tract to get cleared probably was, Uh we did a print sample one time.

Uh hell.

So you had to send it to Prince.

Yeah yeah, yeah, we said there and he was like, hell, I was at the studio with you and every day, but little bro, we ain't clear that Prince. Yeah yeah, yeah, it was me and Snoop was there too. Snoop made the post to what happened. So I was in the studio with time Electric Lady, Electric Lady.

I think he even owned the studio at one point. It's right there on West Fall Street or whatever it was. So I'm in there, we're working on the album. I figured what album it was. And one of my homeboys that I used to just have driving me around was like, yo, princes outside, I'm like, get that out of there.

You're crazy, you bugget yo. Prince walked in my session, yo.

Like pants on and he didn't.

He didn't have leather pants on, but he was like my height, and I'm sure, like you know what I'm saying. I was like, damn, but you know, but his presence is just like crazy. And he started helping me.

With the keys and playing on the keys and then just whist the way he just left. That.

Didn't even get a picture with him, No nothing back then. I don't even think the phones was ready for pictures back then, you know what I mean.

But that was my Prince story.

So what was the beat? So he so, y'all, Actually it was some song that.

Ended up I think that should not kill Yeah.

Yeah, I forgot where it ended up at, but you know, it was snoop on the record, prints on the keys and we just wrap it and you wouldn't even be able to tell that Prince placed any keys on it because it was just really simple. But the fact that he did, you know what I'm saying, is something that I definitely would never forget.

That's crazy. I thought you're gonna say god Fall the Part.

Three, Well, that was a hard tape for the Clad too.

That How did you because that was my movie.

I mean, that's that's Steve Rifket magic. You know what I'm saying.

Steve Rifket, he know how to do business to clear some samples. So we definitely cleared that.

I saw a report that that song actually wasn't that on the Infamous Archives, but you guys didn't improve it.

Maybe it was.

I it's so long ago, I don't even remember. But you you're probably right, you know what I mean?

So fuzzy.

Yeah, I got some memories.

No you got I wouldn't you? Do you get paid every time I see one of these stores sell a Mob Deep the infamous Mob Deep shirts. Do y'all get paid over that?

Well, if it's official merch, yes, But I combat infringement every day, yo, I mean, they just they I mean, and it looks so good and so like I want.

To buy it.

I'm like, wow, you know, sometimes I go to shows and they be having on this merge that I know, mall deep diss sanction.

I don't want to say nothing to them, but if we have a problems imagined wu tang, it's the most know. So these are things that we got to combat every day that people don't even understand.

Like they said, oh, it's so easy to be an artist and you y'all just sit back, you go to the shows. Nah, there's a business aspect where you got to protect the trademark. It's serious.

What's the fright? I mean, it is very serious, specially because you have so many years of so much history and y'all fans spend across so many age ranges. What's the fight like right now? Though? Like are there certain stores or people like where you even aiming to because y'all stuff is everywhere everywhere.

I mean, look, we we do license deills with certain brands, whether it be you know whoever like Supreme or thing, and that's another.

Story, you know what I mean.

We had a horrible time over there that something happened and they used the image and we got sued.

It was like crazy, But those are things.

That you have to like kind of watch out for. But we license out the brand sometimes, you know what I mean. But more than not, infringement is rampant.

What Supreme y'all used the picture that y'a didn't taken. The photographer came back.

And it was the dragon image, you know what I'm saying.

And I kind of forgot about it because I got the tattoo, so I'm not even really thinking about it. I think in the late nineties early two thousands, they had used the image in some group I'm not going to say they name, said oh that's out and nobody knows them. They probably got like, no, lie, two hundred followers on Instagram. Nobody knows them, you know what I'm saying. But they took advantage of an opportunity. It is a

So pre was like, yo, is this yours?

I was like, oh yeah, yeah yeah, But you know, the lawyers was like, okay, we're gonna check it, right, that's the lawyer's job.

They didn't check it. The lawyer said, like, I'm gonna check it. You understand what I'm saying. I'm like, all right, cool, you know, go check it. I'm making beads, like you know what I mean. Go ahead, But you gotta really be diligent because getting sued is not fun. It's not funny. It costs a lot of money. You have to answer it.

And we settled, of course, and it's just you giving away free money. You understand hard working money.

So and I meant to ask, you know, with all the stuff that you produced and all of the records that you've done, do you get all your money from that stuff? Cause you had a lot of times that when artists do something, they don't get their money. Somebody else gets the money. Do you get all your money from them?

I was fortunate enough to do a publishing deal early that was super fit, right, I didn't sign away all my publishing, And I'm down with people that collect diligently.

You know what I'm saying things.

But you know, of course, there's going to be corners pockets in the world where you're not collecting, and then new forms pop up. They like, oh yeah, back in the days, y'all didn't know that this was over here and y'all could collect the back and there's a bag sitting over there like overseas somewhere for whatever it is.

But for the most part, we get our bread like for real, you know what I mean.

I hear horror stories and I feel bad for all this and whoever took advantage of them, you know what I'm saying.

They need to be you know, it's a special place for them.

I was gonna ask, what's the biggest bag you ever you ever missed out on, because just business wise, you didn't plan for that.

The biggest bag I missed out on was for a super Bowl commercial. They wanted to use the Mab Deep music in the super Bowl commercial and for whatever reason, a lawyer took too long and we missed out on the opportunity.

So yeah, that hurt still hurt with this album as a passion project, because obviously you don't need the money if you're still getting paid.

I ain't say that.

Infinite is out this Friday, and we appreciate you for joining us.

Man.

I love these stories and I just love to see the growth because I was a kid in Queens and I watch what y'all did, and we we admired that, you know, I mean from the driving the cars, the shooting the shook Ones video to all that we got a chance to see it. So the fact that you're still heavy and you're still doing it, man, we appreciate you.

And this is we got a date for the method Man Covid Covid album.

Oh yeah, the memphd Man Covid.

We don't have a date, but me and him are actively in the studio and he tried to put me in the head like I didn't let him, but he said, we gotta.

Finish this album for a couple of months for a date, but okay.

We'll have one. So though, thanks for joining us, though, thank you, thanks for having me.

The album comes out this Friday. It's Havoc. It's the Breakfast Club. Good morning, every day, Breakfast Club.

Finish y'all.

Dump