Slim Thug Interview

[Lunatic]

http://raptalk.net/website/content/view/1466/54/

Raptalk.Net hooked up with Slim Thug a few weeks ago for an exclusive interview. We keep it real with our readers, this interview was scheduled to drop on March 23rd, a day before Slim Thug put out his sophomore album, "Boss Of All Bosses." Unfortunately, the interview was temporarily lost but we've recovered it and decided to put it out there regardless, for all the Slim Thug fans around the world!

 

 

Raptalk.Net: We’re here with Slim Thug!

 

Slim Thug: What’s the deal? What’s good?

 

Raptalk.Net: It’s good to hear from you. You’re on the promo run right now for your new album, “The Boss of All Bosses.” When does the album come out?

 

Slim Thug: The album will be in stores March the 24th (tomorrow).

 

Raptalk.Net: Why should the fans go pick up the album when it’s in stores?

 

Slim Thug: It’s been a minute since I’ve dropped. It’s really a classic album in my opinion. It’s giving you the entire view of the whole Houston movement, from chopped and screwed to me working with legends like Scarface and UGK. This is the Slim Thug before the deal. I have some big producers such as Jim Jonsin and Mannie Fresh; I think it’s definitely worth a listen.

 

Raptalk.Net: We’re going to get into all of that in a minute. I just want to do a little world play on the title real quick. A lot of artists nowadays claim to be the “boss” – what makes you any different? Why do feel you deserve that title?

 

Slim Thug: Because I am a boss. I run my company. I do everything that I wanna’ do. I’m really a boss. I’m in control of my situation. I’m in control of everything that I do.

 

Raptalk.Net: Ok. It’s been four years since you released your debut album. How does it feel to finally get that sophomore project out?

 

Slim Thug: It feels good. I was in a situation when I signed my first major deal or whatever, the people at my company changed the whole staff up. We never got on the same page. I tried to work it out or whatever but it we could never get on the same page. I ended up leaving and going back independent. I’m at my most comfortable position with this music because I can do what I wanna’ do. I can be in control. I can be a boss. I’m feeling good right now.

 

Raptalk.Net: Would you say that this album is better than your debut? If so, why?

 

Slim Thug: I would say it’s definitely better than my debut because it’s me. It’s not controlled by anybody else but me. There were no A&R’s involved or none of that. This is me working with the people that I wanna’ work it, me doing the kind of music that I wanna’ do. Not taking anything away from my first album because I loved that too, I love the work we did on there. At the same time, I cherish this a little more.

 

Raptalk.Net: Let’s get into the single, “I Run.” When I saw a Jim Jonsin produced single, I expected you to use auto tune or to sing. What made you stray away from those strategies?

 

Slim Thug: (Laughs) I don’t think it’s me. That’s not my style or whatever. I’d use some play-away but not any auto tune or anything like that. I ain’t down for that. I don’t hate on it either though. I like T-Pain. I like how Lil Wayne and Kanye (West) do it. I don’t think it’s something that I can do.

 

Raptalk.Net: Where did you shoot the video for “I Run” and tell us about the theme behind it?

 

Slim Thug: Houston. I shoot all my videos in Houston. The whole concept of the video was thought up by Boomtown, he’s the director of the video. Really what it is, I’m going to meet with Bun B, a legend in the game and he’s putting me up on game; accepting me a boss just like he’s a boss. At the same time it’s an overlook of the city in a night time shot. We never really get the night time visual of Houston. I wanted to capture that because it was different and stray away from what I’ve been doing in my other videos.

 

Raptalk.Net: Has a second single been picked out?

 

Slim Thug: Nah, it hasn’t been 100% picked out. We really want the people to pick it. We’re waiting until around the time the album comes out for us to drop another one.

 

Raptalk.Net: What kind of guest appearances are on the album?

 

Slim Thug: Like I said I worked legends like Scarface, UGK – RIP Pimp C. I worked with Mike Jones, Paul Wall, Chamillionaire – everybody from Houston is on the album basically. Some artists that you never heard of are on the album as well as some old legends in the game – that’s basically what I wanted to do. I wanted to try and get the city on and give this world the best vision I can of how it is in Houston, Texas.

 

Raptalk.Net: I feel that. That’s a pretty big guest appearance line-up. It’s a bigger list than most artists that release albums on E1. I know you have the Houston connections, but you also have Akon on there. How did you land many of the artists on there?

 

Slim Thug: I have a good relationship with a lot of the people that I worked with. I knew Akon before he even put his first album out. I have a few friends of mine who work over at SRC Records. I have a lot of good relationships with good producers and great artists.

 

Raptalk.Net: You’re debut album was mainly produced by The Neptunes. Who handled the production on this album?

 

Slim Thug: The one that did the majority of the production was Mr. Lee out of Houston. He’s the one I was working with before I was signed and previously on other projects. I wanted to give back and give him an opportunity. At the same time, I worked with other producers out of Houston such as Bigg Tyme, Cory Mo, and Mr. Rogers. I also worked with some different cats that you’ve probably never heard of but they actually got a lot of talent. I also worked with Jim Jonsin and Mannie Fresh. I have all kinds of production on there.

 

Raptalk.Net: How would you describe the overall sound of the album?

 

Slim Thug: It’s got a Texas feel to it; from the chopped and screwed to the Scarface type of music – timeless. If you listen to a Scarface song, it’ll probably still make sense today. That’s because the music he makes is timeless. I wanted to get in my zone a little bit, show them what chopped and screwed is about and just do me. This is that Slim Thug music. Slim Thug music is like really unapologetic. It’s sensitive at all and has a lot of cursing. There is a lot of “fuck you” shit on the album. It is what it is. That’s Slim Thug.

 

Raptalk.Net: Did the Dr. Dre produced “Bitch I’m Back” end up making the cut?

 

Slim Thug: It did, but not the Dr. Dre produced version. Mr. Lee had to re-do a version. We couldn’t get the Dr. Dre version cleared.

 

Raptalk.Net: So you re-did the beat and kept Devin the Dude on there?

 

Slim Thug: Yeah I still have Devin the Dude on there. We re-did the beat.

 

Raptalk.Net: Will there be another four year gap for solo albums from Slim Thug?

 

Slim Thug: (Laughs) Nah. The reason that the four year gap happened was because of me trying to go from one situation to the next. I have over 200 songs recorded. I’ve had all kinds of different places for this album ready to go; it was just me going from one label to another. That’s what held me up. I plan on dropping something this year again; towards the end of this year.

 

Raptalk.Net: That’s good to hear. You’re talking about the label situation; you went from Interscope Records to E1 and even earlier in the interview, you mentioned that this album is really you with no A&R over your shoulder. What’s the main difference between the ways you saw how Interscope promoted your project and their involvement in the projects in comparison to E1 and what you’ve seen from this album?

 

Slim Thug: E1 is not really hands on with it. The artist is pretty much in control of your situation and you bring to them, and E1 will push it. It isn’t so much “rap on that” or “check out this producer.”  It isn’t any of that. You bring a product to them and they’ll push it. That’s good business to me. I appreciated my old A&R on my first album or whatever; we had some good work out of each other. He brought me some good stuff. I just rather do it like I’m doing it right now. That’s just the main difference. On Interscope, they have more influence on what’s going on with the album.

 

Raptalk.Net: As an artist, I imagine you prefer the creative control and space to work with.

 

Slim Thug: Yeah I definitely do. It calms me a little when I do it myself. I could probably do a bigger record…but I know what the people want to hear, I could probably go farther but I just want to do me. I don’t like to be sensitive. I don’t having someone tell me what I can’t say. I just want to give the people the real me. I wish it was more like that in Hip-Hop. I wish more artists could just do what they want to do and not be so sensitive about Hip-Hop radio stations or video stations or whatever. That’s what happens instead of letting them be a true artist.

 

Raptalk.Net: That’s some real talk right there. What are your overall thoughts on the Hip-Hop scene in Houston?

 

Slim Thug: It’s good. Dallas is starting to pop a lot because they have a lot of new artists doing good or whatever. We have to keep the Houston scene going. Texas can really hold something down for us.

 

Raptalk.Net: What’s next up for Slim Thug? Will we get another Boss Hogg Outlawz album shortly or are the group members working on solos?

 

Slim Thug: Both. I’m a boss so my dream is to have one of my artists to have more success in the business than what I’ve had. That’s what my dream is. I’m working on that. At the same time, I stay working all the time anyways so I’m gonna’ be able to drop more projects. I think I should drop more at a faster pace. I think that’s the answer to what’s going on in the music business. People are not selling a lot of records anymore; we need to put out more music. I want to try and drop at least twice a year.

 

Raptalk.Net: I agree with that because fans have short term memories these days.

 

Slim Thug: Exactly. And not only that, I don’t really know too many people who listen a record for longer than three months. We need to give them more.

 

Raptalk.Net: Those days are over. I appreciate your time Slim Thug! Raptalk.Net here is telling everybody to go pick up the “Boss of all Bosses” album March 24th! Do you have any last words for Raptalk.Net before I let you go?

 

Slim Thug: check out www.myspace.com/slimthug and be on the lookout for a lot of different internet stuff right now. That’s what it is.