“Kinda Like A Big Deal” serves as the buzz track for the Till The Casket Drops. Why do you think that was the perfect lead-in for this particular album?
“Kinda Like A Big Deal” is Kanye West, one of the biggest names in hop hop, and the return of the Clipse. It was never intended to be a major single, but we have a real rapport with Kanye. The song just kind of carried itself. I think it’s a perfect lead-off for the album though, just because the beat is so raw, so street, and produced by DJ Khalil. It’s just a dope street record.
Your first two albums, Lord Willin’ and Hell Hath No Fury, were produced solely by the Neptunes, who have been an instrumental part of your career. What prompted you to let more people jump on board the production-side of things?
I just think it was real interesting to see other producers, how they see us. They were fans of the Clipse. We met with a lot of producers just to get their input on where they thought we should go. There are a lot of producers that enjoy what it is we’re doing and were like, “Man, if I can work with the Clipse, I’d do this. I’d do that.” So it was interesting to see what else was available to us and what would add flavor to the album. It was cool to really work with these guys. These guys are producers, not just beatmakers. They come with the whole theme and the whole look. We really appreciated it. Then come the Neptunes again. They’ll hear the music and they have the competitive vibe. We brought out the fire in everybody.
There’s a lot of buzz online about a book that you have in the works. What details can you share?
Wretched, Pitiful, Poor, Blind and Naked. It is the title of my book. This book is a phenomenal! When I read this myself, I get chills. It’s basically about my life with the Clipse. It gives you a great, in-depth view of the industry and my personal life at home with me and my family, the effect hip hop has had on my life. I think it will be very beneficial and very helpful to anybody trying to get into this business.
Why did you select those particular words to be used in the title?
Because it’s just the lowest of the low. I really get into the lowest point of my life. Those words are about as low as you can get – wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. As much as you think you’re in Fendi and Gucci and Prada, and as much as you think you’re driving the hottest Porsche, you can really be at your lowest with all those things. I also have a website, maliceoftheclipse.com, and five true-to-life blogs. If you sit and watch those blogs, like a movie, you’ll see the direction the book is going to. It will let you know the inside of the relationship between me and my brother, Pharell, my wife, and my kids, and hip hop. It is just extraordinary.
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