YP made headlines last week after signing a recording contract with Universal Republic. Over the weekend, I was able to catch up with YP at a Los Angeles recording studio, where he played some new music and talked about all that’s happened in the last few months. “It’s fast hell, but I love it,” he said, in between new cuts from his forthcoming mixtape, as well as a debut album he is working on. YP also spoke about the surreal nature of his new record deal, what it means for Chicago Hip Hop, and what it’s like being able to get advice from some Hip Hop legends.
On The Reality of A Record Deal:
“This shit is like a fairytale, I didn’t even think this shit was gonna happen at all. You set out to do the biggest shit, otherwise you don’t do it. Of course I set out to reach the iconic status, that’s what you set out to do, but when it’s becoming realistic, it’s surreal. You expect motherfuckers to rock with you, but you don’t expect it to go the way it’s going, when it really starts to happen for you it’s unbelievable. Certain shit you don’t even want to talk about because it doesn’t seem believable to the next motherfucker.”
On The New Music:
“When I listen to the new shit… I see the growth. The way I do it is, I’ll listen to a couple new joints, then I’ll listen to some old shit just to see how much I’ve really grown. I’ll listen to some real real old shit, something nobody has and compare it to now. I know where I’ve come and I still know there’s a million more ways to go. I love the sound and I love the direction and the way the music is going. It reflects what I’m on right now. It reflects my situation and what I’m seeing, what I’m doing, how I’m viewing shit and how I’m living.”
On What Universal Saw In Him:
“It was different. It was relate-able. They said I wasn’t trying to follow the trends of everything going on right now, but at the same time, I gave them something new and something that was reminiscent of a different era in Hip Hop. That’s what they real rocked with. They didn’t really want me to change anything about my sound. From the very first meeting I’ve never heard, “what if you did this type of record?” They’ve given me nothing but access and resources to make me successful. I’ve played all my records for them and they keep me in the lab. Every time I do something, they’re gonna hear it and they hear it and it’s green light go. I really have creative control over what I do. At the end of the day, it’s my decision and you can’t ask for nothing else.”