Classical Art Memes I Tried I Really Did but Now Im Back Onmy Shit

Hit-Boy Thinks Nas' 'King's Disease' Has Some of the Best Production Since 'Lookout the Throne'

Shirley Ju Shirley Ju is a Los Angeles-based author who grew up…

Hit-Male child performs onstage during TIDAL X: 1020 Amplified by HTC at Barclays Middle of Brooklyn on October 20, 2015 in New York Metropolis.

Striking-Male child is having a real moment. Then we caught up with the producer to break down how exactly his collabo anthology with Nas, Rex'due south Disease, came together.

Drake was serious when he famously rapped, "I should probably sign to Striking-Boy cause I got all the hits, male child" on " 0 To 100 ."

Hit-Boy, a Southern California native, has been consistently putting in work, proving his talents as i of the most gifted, well-respected, sought-afterward producers in the game. His impressive resume includes credits on some of music's greatest songs, from JAY-Z and Kanye West's Grammy-winning " Niggas In Paris " to Beyoncé's " ***Flawless " to Kendrick Lamar's " Backseat Freestyle " to  Travis Scott and Drake's " SICKO MODE ." Striking-Boy's work last year on Nipsey Hussle's " Racks In The Middle, " which features Roddy Ricch, landed him his 2d Grammy.

The beauty in all this is Hit-Boy'south actual production; over the years he has showcased his power to go from pop to R&B to hip-hop and everything in between.

Insert Nas' 13th solo album Rex's Illness , which was released on Baronial 15th, debuting at the number five spot on the Billboard 200 charts this week. After initial studio sessions with the two legends, where the two bonded and fed off each other's energy, they compiled 13 tracks that brand up what some have called Nas' all-time project in years. Nas sounds reenergized, and this is based largely on the nuanced sound Hit-Boy — who produced every rails and serves equally executive producer — provides.

There'due south a timeless nature to the album. Nas collaborates with legends, such The Firm on "Full Circle" and Brucie B on "The Definition;" tried-and-truthful vets like A$AP Ferg, Anderson .Paak, and Large Sean; and leaders of the new school, like Don Toliver and Fivio Strange.

Hit-Male child is having a real moment. And so we defenseless up with the producer via FaceTime to intermission down how exactly King's Disease came together, the call he got from Timbaland, his work with Nipsey Hussle, and more.

How did Hit-Boy and Nas come together to create a whole album?

I saw him in the studio because he was doing some business organisation with my homeboy Double . I told him, "Man, you need to go him over hither to my studio." This is where me and Nip did "Racks in the Middle," right here at Beaker [in Los Angeles]. He came through the adjacent twenty-four hours, cleared his schedule and pulled upward. We had already linked in [2012], nosotros tapped in. I played him some beats, he played me some music. We were vibing but we didn't piece of work on anything back then. Once I saw the homie in the studio with him, I'yard like "shit, might also tap in at present." Considering I've been having a crazy energy with the beats. Afterwards he came through, nosotros made something crazy and kept going. Information technology became a high, it was super organic.

What was the first Hitting-Boy and Nas session similar?

We were gelling. I had multiple ideas I set to the side: some beats, some hook ideas. He was open and in a artistic zone. He was ready to hear this shit, ready to build on it. Everything I was playing, he'southward having his input and we turned it into something.

Did you lot whip upwards stuff for him specifically before you got in together?

Yes for sure. Definitely the mean solar day before, I went through ideas and made beats. I put some hook ideas I had to the side.

I know yous've worked with everyone, but was it any different preparing for an East Coast artist — being you're from the West Coast?

Nah. If you look at my discography, I got artists from everywhere on my shit. It's never been regional for me, I'm a music fan. I listen to everybody's shit: Southern music, East Coast, whatever. That'southward in my Deoxyribonucleic acid, to be able to go to different places and go far sound like it belongs. It doesn't sound out of place. Information technology doesn't audio like a West Coast artist reaching to work with Nas, information technology just made sense.

Hit-Boy produced all thirteen tracks on Nas' 'King's Disease.' Photograph Credit: Artist

How did King's Illness evidence your versatility?

If you listen to information technology, you'll see. I heard a lot of people say, "I thought Striking-Male child made club records." Simply when y'all heed and hear all these songs, information technology's stuff I've been doing my whole career. You don't really connect information technology because it'south been then all over the place. I had [a tag] when I first started, then I stopped using it. Once I seen everybody going crazy, it's a slap-up way to make so I've been going in with it lately.

I feel like producer tags are fun in a way, is there a reason why Striking-Boy doesn't have one?

 I came up in the pre-producer tag era when it wasn't that super heavy. My era was a piffling scrap earlier then as far equally really being in the game. I merely wasn't on information technology at the time.

At what point did yous and Nas make up one's mind to make the whole project?

Shit, after the first two or 3 sessions. Nosotros're like, "Nah this shit gotta be an anthology, everything we're making sounds crazy." He kept pulling up. Nosotros started working on this earlier the pandemic. People thought King's Illness was playing off the whole Corona shit, merely this was pre-Corona when we came up with it. That happened, so it gave us time to really dive into it more: brand the production amend, make the lyrics better. He took his time with sure verses, it turned into this moment.

[The album's title] was a vision Nas had. We made the bodily song "King's Disease" and once he said it, it has a ring to it. That should be the title, it's heavy. When yous hear it, it sounds like a pic. When you listen to the album, information technology sounds like a movie.

How did the Firm collabo come about?

Ane of the verses was just him on the vocal, I said "we should get AZ on it." I asked him twice. The first time, he wasn't really hearing me. The second time, he's like "OK, fasho." That's when his mans said, "y'all should get everybody else on it, turn this into a motion picture." When they got Dre on, this a real real existent moment fasho.

How did y'all mold "Full Circle" to this Due east Coast group?

Man, my musical sensibilities. I know what sure artists should be rapping on. When I give somebody my music, I'm not but giving them anything. This is some shit this person belongs on.

The idea that Nas picks bad beats — practice yous concur or disagree?

I disagree. He got endless classic beats he rapped on. People might experience how they feel about certain songs on certain albums, but he got some crazy beats he washed rapped on. "Nas Is Similar," "Got Ur self A…," "Ether," all blazon of joints.

What kind of beats compliment Nas?

You have to have a classic feel. I endeavor to get in classic, just still audio new to where it'due south non feeling like a super dusty ass pulsate loop. Information technology nevertheless has that feeling, simply it sounds fresh.

Talk well-nigh using the If Beale Street Could Talk music in "Til The War Is Won" with Lil Durk.

Information technology was a prune Nas sent to me around when everything was happening with George Floyd — rest in peace. He sent me a clip of a guy talking, some Blackness Lives Matter type vibe with that music behind it. He said, "homo we gotta sample this." I couldn't detect information technology at beginning. In one case I looked into it, I found the sample, chopped it up, and made the beat. When nosotros did the song, I said "man, we should become Durk on information technology."

I texted the Durk and said, "Nas wants you to rock with this." He did information technology the next twenty-four hours. He texted me back like "I'm virtually to become crazy on this."

What kind of production were you looking to give Nas?

Some classic shit, but with a fresh approach. When you listen to "Blue Benz" and "27 Summers," the beats switch upward, come up on human being. Nosotros're already in 2021 with the sound for real, it's different levels to this shit. It's seamless. It's non a crush switch where it fucks your caput up, damn this shit belongs in the vocal. There really hasn't been skilful-level production like this since, fucking, My Beautiful Nighttime Twisted Fantasy or Sentry The Throne . Male monarch'southward Disease is a derivative of what I learned listening to them projects.

Did you push Nas to go outside his comfort zone and vice versa?

Yep. You lot listen to "27 Summers," y'all listen to "Spicy," he took it there but this shit sounds right still. It doesn't sound outdated or similar bullshit, he really dialed in on keeping shit modernistic — but even so sounds similar him.

What is a Hit-Boy and Nas studio session that stands out?

All of them! Anytime we got to record or made something, him being like "this some of my all-time work." Those type of comments. For him to be so deep in the game — for him being here like "this some of my illest shit I ever fabricated." That gave me a whole other energy. That made me want to go harder.

 There weren't too many cooks in the kitchen. For the most part, just me and him in there. I was engineering him. I didn't record all the vocals, but most of them on the album. Me and him in the room.

How were collaborations picked?

Organic. Homies I fuck with. Big Sean, I'm already working his album so he pulled up one day. Nas was about to leave and he'due south coming for his session, shit might as well lock in a verse. I already had the Don Toliver hook because me and Don accept a agglomeration of joints. I'one thousand like, "T his hook would exist crazy for Nas." When I played it, he went crazy and did his verse. With the "Full Circle" with Dre, that's Nas and his team putting it together. Anderson .Paak, I got hella music with him coming out so nosotros put that play together. Everything was organic.

Y'all low key play the A&R card.

Nah for sure. That what people don't know. I got Polo Chiliad's biggest streaming song right now, "Flex" featuring Juice WRLD. I put that play together. I saturday in the studio with Juice, my concluding time seeing him when we did "Flex." I stayed in that location till 6 in the morning because he wanted to keep recording. Every beat out I played, he wanted to keep going in. We ended up doing "Flex" at 5 in the morning. That was a real moment for me, for that to be the terminal fourth dimension I see Juice then the vocal's going crazy at present. Fifty-fifty "Racks in the Middle," that was my song too. I was about to driblet information technology, that'south when Nip came through and nosotros put the whole play together.

How was information technology enlisting A$AP Ferg and Fivio Foreign for "Spicy?"

That was the modern vibes for the album. Fivio had rented a room across from where I'm working at. We did three joints that day, I had him hop on "Spicy." Ferg, that's my nigga and so he pulled up. I said, "you lot should hop in this shit with Nas and Fivio." He did that shit real quick. Information technology's all the homies, they pull up. When you come up to my stu, information technology's like going to the homie's crib. Bedchamber set up, we're really making some shit. Information technology makes you want to work when you pull up.

What does a song similar "Ultra Black" mean to the current times?

That shit's amazing to me. Well-nigh of the Black songs are heavy and make you sad. "Ultrablack" is a celebration — just it'southward still some real. People blow up the Doja Cat line but he said, "Black similar Kaep' blackballed from the Super Basin." Nobody's mentioning that though. That's trash people would option out the bullshit line, simply totally skip over that line which is fucking legit. That vocal'due south amazing, I don't v a fuck what nobody'southward saying.

Were there whatsoever songs left off?

We had a bunch of ideas, we actually tried to narrow downwards the tracklist. It was originally an actress song on there we ended up taking off final minute because information technology was more cohesive without information technology. You never know what the future'south going to hold.

You beginning previewed Big Sean'due south "Deep Reverence" on VERZUZ. How are you feeling now that it's out?

Great because everybody'due south fucking with it. They're really listening, everybody likes the beat and what they're saying. You feel similar Nip's alive when you hear that verse, it doesn't sound like he went anywhere. That'south special for real.

[Earlier we made the song me and Sean] had an hour-long conversation. A lot of stuff he said in the vocal, he had told me in conversation. I said "yous gotta put this shit in a song, everything yous just told me. Man I got this Nip verse that's been sitting…" Pulled it upwardly, and he went crazy. He blacked out on that shit.

Heard you're producing Benny The Butcher's album too, what'due south your relationship with him?

Shit'southward fire. First vocal we fabricated turned out crazy, nosotros kept going. Same shit, people be coming in here to hear a beat and leave with an anthology. I'one thousand trying keep that whole wave going.

Does Hit-Boy feel like he's finally getting the recognition he deserves?

Hell aye. When I woke upward the next forenoon after nosotros put Male monarch's Illness out, I got a FaceTime from Timbaland. Him showing his love and respect. Obviously I got dumb respect for him, so that was a moment for me. That's like [Michael] Hashemite kingdom of jordan calling Kobe [Bryant] later he wins the Championship.

Homo, him proverb, "This shit'south burn down, you lot're that guy right now. You really did a whole Nas album, that'due south large." Bigging shit up, man that shit was unreal.

Purchase Nas' King's Illness on Vinyl here.

__

ShirleyJu is a Los Angeles-based author who grew up in the Bay Area. She lives, breathes, and sleeps hip-hop, and is literally on superlative of new music the moment it is released. If in that location's a bear witness in 50.A., y'all can find her in that location. Follow the latest on her fomoblog.com and on Twitter @shirju.

Share this post