BLACK MILK  (July 2007) | Interview By: Eddie Gurrola

       Dubcnn recently linked up with Detroit-based producer/MC Black Milk for an exclusive interview. In this in-depth feature we cover many topics, including a look back into the early days of his career working with Slum Village, and his search for a trademark sound with his production. We also go into detail about the highly anticipated “Caltroit” duo album with Bishop Lamont. Milk shares his experiences in the studio making the album, tells us about how he originally met Bishop, and gives us some insight into what can expect from the project. We also talk about his upcoming international tour, and how hip-hop reaches people from all over the world.


As always we have both the transcript and the audio for you to check and please feel free to send any feedback regarding the interview to: eddiegurolla@dubcnn.com

 

Interview was done in June 2007.

Questions Asked By : Eddie Gurrola

Black Milk Gave Dubcnn.com A Shoutout! Check That Here

Full Interview In Audio For Download : Here

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Dubcnn: We’re here with Black Milk. How’s it going man?

What’s good man, I’m good! Workin’, workin’!


Dubcnn: So, we’re gonna start out with this. What made you first decide to get into music?

Oh man, just being around music, and being around people that was into music. [Being around my] family that was into music – hip-hop, producing, [and] all that, it inspired me to do it myself. I think it all started with me having an interest in how to create and produce music, and on the hip-hop side, start to be a lyricist and [get my] rhymes [right.] That’s basically how it all came together – just being around a lot of people who were into it.


Dubcnn: OK, definitely. So, was it always the plan to be a rapper and a producer, or were you first just into making beats?

Nah, I was an MC first. I was with a pen and a pad first, and making beats came afterwards. That’s basically how it went down. I was already an MC.


Dubcnn: I didn’t know that! So, you’ve done a lot of work with the legendary group Slum Village. Do you feel that having a lot of experience working with a veteran group like that really shaped you as an artist?

Oh yeah, man! That was the first group I sold my first few beats to, back in 2002 for the “Trinity” album. Ever since then, I’ve been working with those dudes all the way up to now. So, it’s definitely helped me. Being around the group – you know, especially T3, , he was in the group with one of the greatest producers in hip-hop, Dilla. So, it was like, after Dilla went on and did his own thing, [it was a challenge] getting other cats to come in and produce for Slum. [With] me being one of those producers, and when some of those producers left, it was just me and a couple of other people, it was like you really had to step up to the plate production wise just because them cats was used to having great classic beats from Dilla.

That kind of moulded me into working on my craft all the time, just to make sure that I could be consistent at putting out good music, and producing good music. We wasn’t trying to do Dilla’s sound, but we just [wanted to] make sure we could keep Slum Village’s legacy alive, by continuing to produce good music. Working with T3, it was hard at times, because he’ll cut a lot of beats out of his, and make you go back to the drawing board. It really moulded me [toward] what I’m doing right now.


Dubcnn: So you had to step your game up to keep up with Dilla’s previous production work. I see what you’re saying…

Right, right. I don’t know what my beats would be sounding like if I worked with any other group that put that type of pressure on me. It wasn’t a lot of pressure, but it was in a way, just because, like I said, T3 was like, “Now I’ve got to make sure this Slum Village shit keeps moving! Even though we don’t have Dilla, we’ve still gotta keep putting out dope shit, so I’ve gotta make sure my producers is on point.” That’s how it basically was, man.


Dubcnn: You’ve cited a variety of different artists as influences, all the way from A Tribe Called Quest, to D’Angelo, and Prince. But, you still have your own sound. So, how did you go about creating your own trademark sound, and carving your own niche into the hip-hop game?

Some of my biggest inspirations, producer wise in hip-hop, were, of course, Dilla, Primo, and Pete Rock. Those are the three main dudes that inspired me the most to do what I’m doing. So, it was like, when I first started, [there were] different elements that I took from them that I incorporated into my own sound. From the soulfulness of the beats, to having hard drums, and having a certain swing on the tracks – that’s how I put my own style on it. To tell you the truth, I don’t think I have a signature sound. I know I do a lot of soul shit, but I really like to change up my sound, whether it’s changing up the drum sounds, or changing up the high-chopping samples. So, I really couldn’t say what my sound is yet. It’s just good music. Man, I’m still trying to find out what my signature sound is going to be.


Dubcnn: What would you say is the motivation that drives you to keep making music?

I would say old records man! I like old records. [Also,] surrounding yourself around other producers, and musicians, and artists that produce good music. I keep in contact with certain producers that’s doing stuff, and I might get inspiration from them, either with something I hear that they send me, or a conversation where we’re talking about music, or something like that. That’s where a lot of my inspiration comes from, you know what I’m saying? keep creating and stay motivated, and just try to make something better than my last beat. That’s what motivates me.


Dubcnn: So, from your experiences, what advice would you give to new artists that are trying to get their music heard?

The best advice to get your music heard is, when you’re first starting off, keep trying to build your own buzz, and build something with your own fan base. Just put out dope music yourself independently. The industry is hard to break into, so that’s what most people have to do most of the time anyway, just trying to put out dope music independently and build that fan base and that buzz. If you’ve got some dope shit, the buzz is gonna come, and the people are going to come and support you if you’re creating dope music, regardless. So, that’s the best advice I could give a person that’s trying to get into the game. You know, just get on your grind and put out your own music, instead of waiting for someone to come and pick you up.

You’ve got to have so much patience in this game, man. It’s a grind, it’s a hustle. So, that’s basically how I had to do it – putting out my own projects. “Sound Of The City” was my first project I put out independently back in 2005. Right after that, it opened up a few doors for stuff that I’m doing up to this day. It’s just a domino effect, that’s all.


Dubcnn: That’s good advice. So, now we’re gonna talk about the duo album with Bishop Lamont, “Caltroit”. How did you and Bishop originally meet up?

Slum Village had a video shoot out in Cali, and they had invited some people out. Bishop was one of the cats that was at the video shoot, and this was in 2005 also, [so] I was grinding my “Sound Of The City” CDs out there, giving them to certain cats and whatever. So, that’s how I met Bishop – he was one of the people I gave a CD to, and we kicked it for a little bit. I didn’t even know he was working with Dre at the time, but we kicked it, and I was feeling what he was doing, and he was feeling what I was doing.

The idea had come [up] later on, while we were doing projects, [to make a record] on some Cali Detroit shit. Bishop will tell you that he is a big fan of a lot of Detroit music, and I’m a big fan of what cats are doing out in the West. So, it was surprising to hear him naming Dilla, and everybody from the D that was doing their thing. So, I’m like, “Hell yeah, that’s what’s up!” So it was like, “Man, let’s do it!” Now, we’re doing it – we’re making it happen, and “Caltroit” will be coming real soon!

We’ve got a lot of dope features on the album. We sprinkled some cats from the East Coast on the album too, so it’s not all Detroit/Cali. But we’ve got cats like Royce Da 5’9”, as you know everybody from the D is on the album, we’ve got Elzhi, [and] my man Phat Kat. Out on the West, we’ve got Rage on the album, which is crazy! Ras Kass is on the album. [We’ve got] some cats from the East Coast that we’ve sprinkled in. Our second single is gonna be me, Busta Rhymes, Guilty Simpson, and Bishop, all on one joint! So, be on the lookout for that.

There’s a lot of people. I can’t even think of everybody on the album right now. But, you know, it’s gonna be a real dope, new kind of…it’s more than just an album, we’re trying to make a certain movement, and bridge the gap between mainstream artists and dope underground artists. Like I said, I’m on the underground doing my thing, and Bishop, of course, is on the major level doing his thing. [It’s about] having the best of both worlds, and just doing good music.


Dubcnn: Yeah, it sounds like you’ve got a good mix of a bunch of underground people and some mainstream guys too. So, would you say that the “Caltroit” project is going to have a certain, distinct sound to it? Are you trying to capture the fusion between California rap music and Detroit rap music?

Yeah man, to tell you the truth, it’s just good music. It’s not really trying to [do that.] There’s Cali MCs and Detroit MCs, but the actual sound is not going to be like, “Oh, it’s a West Coast sound,” or “it’s a Midwest sound.” It will be dope hip-hop shit. Of course, you’re going to have the best of both worlds just because of the producers that’s on the album. But yeah, it’s gonna give you a taste of both sides. Like I said, you’ve got the Cali cats that spit on the D type of beats, and you’ve got cats from Detroit that’s spittin’ over the West Coast-sounding beats.

But, it’s still gonna have a separate sound to it that separates it from other projects that’s out right now. I can’t really describe the sound that it’s going to have in words. You just have to hear it. The first single that’s out right now is called “Caltroit.” I produced the beat, [and] it has a West Coast feel to it, but it still has a certain swing to where you can tell….I don’t want to say that I did it, but you could tell that it wasn’t just the Cali shit. I tried to blend both worlds when I produced the track. So, yeah man, that’s the type of shit that’s gonna be on the album.


Dubcnn: Can you tell us about a couple of memorable experiences you and Bishop had in the studio creating the album?

There’s nothing that’s really sticking out in my head right now to tell you the truth. We’re normally in there just working. I was out there for three days, and each day we didn’t leave the studio until 10 AM! But the shit was crazy! That was like the craziest shit to me, because I hadn’t done that in a while. So, it was basically all work, no play! There was stuff going on in the lobby and shit, but me and him were in studio, just writing the rhymes and picking beats.

But it was dope to finally go out there and kick it with cats from his circle. I got a chance to meet a couple cats that he’s down with that’s producing some stuff for him, like my man Focus. [He’s] one of the dudes that works with Dr. Dre, and it was cool to kick it with him for a little bit, and show him what I was doing. I heard some shit he was doing, and I was loving it! That was one of the dope moments from the last time I was out there. Nothing’s really sticking out in my head right now! It probably will in a few minutes, but not at the moment. *Laughs*


Dubcnn: The “Caltroit” project is now going to be a retail album; you’re not going to put it out as a street album anymore. So tell us a little bit about the plan for the release of the album…

Well, it’s going to be a street album, but right now we’ve got a couple of situations [from labels] that want to pick the project up. We’re still trying to wait; we’re not 100 % sure who’s going to put it out there for us, but we’re moving along. It’s looking real good, it’s got a nice buzz right now, and a lot of cats are trying to pick it up, so it’s dope man! But as of now, it’s all up in the air. It’s just talk, like politics and shit.


Dubcnn: So, you’re about to go out on an international tour, with stops in Sweden, Germany, and Denmark…

Yeah, our first show is on July 5th. It’s my first time going to Europe. It’s going to be my first experience over there, so the shit should be dope!


Dubcnn: Does it surprise you how many international fans of hip-hop there are?

It does surprise me. The love they have for it over there is different than cats up here. Like, we love hip-hop, but they [are] straight up live for that shit! It’s for real over there! [People are that] far away, and still listening to mid-90’s shit. It’s crazy how much love, and how much appreciation they have for it. There’s more love over there than there is over here for cats – especially cats in my certain genre of hip-hop, the underground or whatever you want to call it. They love this type of shit over there. So, I can’t wait to go over there and experience that shit, because I know it’s going to be crazy as hell man! I get a lot of hits on the web from different people over there, people that love what I’m doing, so it should be real dope.


Dubcnn: Yeah, it really speaks a lot on the power of hip-hop that it can reach so many different people from around the world…

Word! That’s the crazy thing man, how the shit reaches all the way over there. But yeah, I can’t wait to see it with my own eyes.


Dubcnn: Yeah, it should be exciting! So, are there any other projects we can catch you on in the meantime, before the release of “Caltroit”?

Pharoahe Monch’s album just dropped. I’ve got two tracks on there. One of the tracks is called “Let’s Go,” [and] the other track is called “Bar Tap.” Go support my man Pharaohe Monch. He’s back, and the album is classy, so check that out. That’s the only thing I can think of that’s dropping before “Caltroit.” But, also be on the lookout for the Sean Prince and Guilty Simpson record, which will be produced [primarily] by me. So, be on the lookout for that! It’s coming along real dope, we’re about 10-11 songs deep already. So, yeah man, that’s what you should be on the lookout for from me.


Dubcnn: Is there anything else you want to say to the readers of Dubcnn, and all the fans out there?

Yeah man! Shout outs to everybody that be checking out Dubcnn. Support the site, man. They’re supporting real hip-hop! Support Black Milk, [and] support real artists that’s doing that real hip-hop shit for y’all. That’s what’s up.