Killer Mike is fervently championing his most recent album, MICHAEL, as deserving “Album of the Year.” In an exclusive interview with SOHH, the Atlanta rap icon expressed his appreciation for the album’s warm reception and divulged personal anecdotes that shaped its creation. ‘Album of The Year’ Atlanta rap legend Killer Mike passionately advocates for his […]
The post Killer Mike Pushes His Latest Album, ‘MICHAEL’ As ‘Album of the Year’ appeared first on SOHH.com.
Killer Mike’s 2023 record, MICHAEL, has been a big success. It will surely end up on a lot of critics and listeners’ end-of-the-year lists for best rap albums. Mike put out one of the most personal projects of the year as well. On top of that, there is no shortage of bangers and standout performances. Some of the best songs land on here, too. You have tracks like “MAYNARD VIGNETTE,” “SCIENTISTS & ENGINEERS,” and plenty others to name.
However, easily the most passionate song on the entire LP, “MOTHERLESS,” just got some amazing updates. Even though the song is already pretty flawless, Robert Glasper worked his magic. For those who do not know, Glasper is a big contributor to some of the best rap albums over the past few years. He has lots of credits on Kendrick Lamar’s jazz rap classic, To Pimp A Butterfly. Now, he just turned “MOTHERLESS” into even more of a tender cut.
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Glasper strips down the instrumental to a piano ballad. There are no drums, bass, or any of it. It allows for Mike’s lyrics and emotions to shine through perfectly. When the rapper gets into his spoken word bit at the end, you will break down like he does. Glasper really did his thing with this one and it is one of the best musical moments of the year.
What are your initial thoughts on “MOTHERLESS – Robert Glasper Rendition” from Killer Mike, Robert Glasper, and Eryn Allen Kane? Is this the most emotional song of 2023? Do you prefer this version over the original song? We would like to hear what you have to say about all of this. With that in mind, be sure to leave all of your thoughts and opinions in the comments section below. Additionally, always keep it locked in with HNHH for all of the latest breaking news around Killer Mike, as well as all of the hottest song releases.
Quotable Lyrics:
I asked Betty for her prayers over my generation (Mother)
And I asked Niecy, “Keep me through my trials and tribulations” (Sometimes)
Death’ll come like thief in night and steal your joy away (And sometimes)
Have you askin’, “God, why You forsake your boy, today?” (I said sometimes)
Is this a blessing or a curse, or just some other s***? (Sometimes, I need)
No matter what, I’m numb as f*** ’cause I’m still motherless (You)
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The post Killer Mike’s “MOTHERLESS” Receives Tear-Jerking Remake With Robert Glasper & Eryn Allen Kane appeared first on HotNewHipHop.
Killer Mike’s sixth studio album Michael has been out for around four months now, but true to his independent spirit, the Atlanta rapper is still finding new ways to promote his most personal project to date. The latest is a live studio reinterpretation of standout track “Motherless” remixed by Grammy-winning jazz revivalist Robert Glasper. In the video they shared today, Mike, Glasper, and guest vocalist Eryn Allen Kane perform the tender remix in the recording studio, with Glasper’s gentle keys enhancing the loving tone of Mike’s ode to his late mom.
In a statement about the remix, Mike wrote:
Two years ago I was asked to get on a “Black Superhero” by Robert Glasper. The song was incredible and he’d go on to win a Grammy for that album. My only regret was that we weren’t in the same room together when we made it. So when talks of him remixing “MOTHERLESS” came up it was a no brainer — only this time we wanted to be in studio together along with Eryn Allen Kane.
Someone was smart enough to have cameras there capturing us making this tribute to my mother, Druzella Denise Clonts aka OG Mama Niecy and Rob’s mother, Kim Yvette Glasper. Performing this song is never easy. I wept every night on tour.
The outpouring of emotions has been part of healing. To all those who belong to Motherless Club I pray this helps and to all those who are lucky enough to have their mothers: call them!
The song has been a go-to for Mike: On Friday, he performed the track with Glasper and Kane on The Tonight Show.
The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon is back on the air this week after the WGA received a fair agreement following a months-long writers strike. However, since the Screen Actors Guild is still on strike, actors can appear as guests but cannot promote their projects.
Because of this, the late-night shows are also bringing on some fun musical guests to entertain the audience. Here’s who’s been scheduled so far for this week.
John Mayer appeared as Jimmy Fallon’s musical guest for the show’s return on Monday. He followed Matthew McConaughey on the night’s lineup, and Fallon had some jokes about it. “And Matthew McConaughey will sing too,” he said. “I haven’t asked him yet, but… Matthew will you?”
Tonight, Jelly Roll is the musical guest. For those not familiar, he is a country musician and rapper on the rise. He took home three CMT Awards earlier this year and just dropped a new album, Whitsitt Chapel, in June.
The Tonight Show will keep the country vibes going on Wednesday with Carly Pearce as the performer. The Grammy Award winner is also a member of the Grand Old Opry as of 2021.
While there currently aren’t any actors scheduled to appear on the Thursday episode, according to TV Guide, Maluma will be there to bring the energy. His latest album is this summer’s Don Juan.
Finally, to close out the week, Killer Mike will be joined by special guests including the Grammy-winning jazz musician Robert Glasper and Eryn Allen Kane for a not-to-miss performance.
Just last week, Atlanta’s very own, Killer Mike put out a deluxe version of his first album in over 10 years. MICHAEL originally came out on June 16, 2023, and it did not let down many people. There are stellar cuts all over this record. Some of them include, “SCIENTISTS & ENGINEERS,” which was the second lead single to the LP. The song features the likes of André 3000, Future, and Eryn Allen Kane.
Tracks like this one have a very uplifting and gospel inspired theme to it. According to Genius, Mike sat down with Zane Lowe, to discuss the inspiration behind it. The annotation says, “Killer Mike called the album both his “come home moment musically,” due to it being influenced by gospel, soul, funk and hip hop, and his “submission to God, like, ‘Okay, you got me.’” It goes on, “He also characterized it as his way of honoring “the civil rights movement, the abolitionist movement, which gave us some of the most beautiful music ever.”
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While that is a deep and profound explanation of the record, Mike also sat down for another interview to discuss some of the deluxe. Fader found some footage from Rough Trade N.Y.C. and how he was able to track down Young Nudy for, “ACT UP.” It was a funny and wholesome story as he got a hold of his mom, whom he also went to school with. Mike hilariously retells the story, “So I’m chasing Nudy. Nudy’s a street kid, right? He ain’t got time to sit still for no 40-something-year-old rapper to be calling him, talking about, ‘Will you feature on something that’s gonna be on my deluxe?’” He then calls Nudy’s mom and she said, “‘Yeah, you’re gonna do that and you’re not even gonna charge him.’” Mike was grateful for her and he even said he would repay the favor with a nice purse.
What are your initial thoughts on this interview with Killer Mike saying how he got Young Nudy on his record? Is this song the best one on the album? Is MICHAEL one of the best LPs of 2023? We want to hear what you have to say about all of this. With that in mind, be sure to leave all of your thoughts and opinions in the comments section below. Additionally, always keep it locked in with HNHH for all of the latest breaking news around Killer Mike, as well as the rest of the music world.
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The post Killer Mike Reveals How He Got Young Nudy On The Deluxe Version Of “MICHAEL” appeared first on HotNewHipHop.
Killer Mike is the definition of an artist who uses their platform for the greater good, and his contributions to the rap game as a whole do not go unnoticed. Born and raised in Atlanta, real name, Michael Santiago Render, exploded onto the scene after his appearance on Outkast’s critically acclaimed Stankonia album… and he’s been making waves ever since.
While it was Big Boi who initially heard Killer Mike’s mixtape in the first place, and proceeded to sign him, things come full circle as Andre 3000 delivers a rare verse to Killer Mike’s most recent project, MICHAEL. The self-titled body of work serves as his most vulnerable work to date, even deeming it one of the best projects Hip-Hop has seen to date — and fans and critics alike can’t help but agree.
And while Killer Mike’s solo career carries its own weight, what he did with Run The Jewels speaks volumes in itself. It’s his ability not only to spit, but create substantial, meaningful music with a positive message that has allowed him to tour all over the world.
The Source spoke with Killer Mike at the GRAMMY Museum moments after his standout performance. This included shedding tears to “MOTHERLESS,” dedicated to his late mother Denise. Read below as we discuss his favorite artist, getting that Andre 3000 verse, relationship with Gangsta Boo, key to generational wealth, and more!
Hip-Hop celebrates 50 years this year. What was the moment you fell in love with Hip-Hop?
It was my mother’s music first, because she was only 16 years older than me. So hers was Kurtis Blow, Houdini. When I heard Fat Boys, Run-DMC, I was going crazy. But when I knew I was in love was Roxanne Shante. She was a 15-year-old girl, standing next to boys and men just rapping her ass off. She’s been my hero, to this day she still is. So Roxanne Shante. She sent my mom a signed picture of her, a picture that she went and got developed back to me. It let me know nothing was impossible.
I just interviewed The Pharcyde…
The Pharcyde, I done learned Spanish because of them. We had Ms. Blaze for Spanish class, and Pharcyde had dropped a year. Me and Ernest, all we did was listen to Pharcyde and talk Pharcyde all day. Man, “that shit keeps on passin’ me by,” I felt that way. That’s how I felt when my wife turned me down first time. She said “no sex on the first day,” so you doing something. [laughs] She could have gave up that ass.
I love that you and your wife go to the strip club together. What is the key to a healthy relationship?
Just be into the same things. If you’re into church, be into the same church. If you’re into cars, be into the same cars. If you’re into girls, hopefully you’re into the same girls. But you have enough likenesses to keep you together and you have enough things apart from one another to keep you occupied, so that you appreciate one another. You just try your best, then still be a stubborn, determined motherfucker too.
Who’s the current Queen and King of Hip-Hop?
I’ve never recognized kings and queens. I love the fact that there’s so many queens in Hip-Hop. Because again, one of my biggest influences was Roxanne Shante. The king of Hip-Hop, for me, one of my best friends is the King of the South. That’s T.I. I’ve seen him carry that throne and crown well. I love the fact that the guys who say their kings carry themselves like they that, and the queens are winning. I don’t know who the king and queen is, I just know it’s a lot of them out there.
What’s your favorite Ice Cube song?
You listen to Ice Cube by albums. You listen to AmeriKKKa’s Most Wanted and Death Certificate. But in terms of the hardest diss record ever, Ice Cube was not lying. “No Vaseline.” I would not want “No Vaseline” written about me. He really did break up my favorite rap group at the time, N.W.A. [laughs] So I gotta agree with Cube on that.
Speaking of albums, MICHAEL is incredible.
Thank you so much.
How the hell did you get Andre 3000 and Future on the same song?
Well, I was in the Dungeon family so that’s a cheat code. There you go.
Andre 3000 is a bit of a unicorn. Did you have a convo with him when the record dropped?
No, with Dre man. Once he told me he loved the record, he gave me the verse and helped put the record together. I was amazed just because it’s been 20 years since they gave me a deal. It’s been a hell of a long time since I was asked to be on a record with him —
Everyone wants an Andre 3000 verse!
But everybody didn’t get a record deal from him. He didn’t shape their early career, so it meant something to me on some big brother shit. I really, really appreciate that in a deep way. Him and Future.
What does it mean to get those text messages from Jay Z?
It means that I’m friends with someone I really respect and admire. Since the first time Shanti Das, who no longer is in music — does stuff around mental health now, thank God. Silence The Shame, shouts out to Shanti. She introduced me to Jay, took me to the studio with him for the first time. He’s been a consummate gentleman, and a player at every step of the way. To y be able to engage on a friendship level now is pretty cool and amazing, because he has a great mind. It’s cool conversing.
I saw someone say they called their parents on the way home after the LA show.
That means a lot.
What’s been the best fan encounter on tour?
The best fan encounter is every fan encounter, because I remember when I didn’t have many fans.
I love that you shouted out Lola on “TALKIN THAT SHIT.”
That’s my girl, I love her.
What was your relationship with her? Walk me through your decision to bring her on tour, because that’s so dope.
She was like a sister to me. She was an elder in terms of artistically, because Three 6 Mafia was on before me. But you never would’ve known, she was one of the most kind and humble and loving and connecting people I’ve ever met. She gives and wouldn’t ask much. Us getting an opportunity with Run The Jewels…
Run the Jewels is like the uncanny X-Men. El and I are the central characters, but they’re all these other characters that contribute. From her to Josh Homme to Zack de la Rocha. Big Boi’s popped up, 2 Chainz. There’s always someone in and out. Knowing that she’s never going to be back in, it breaks my heart a lot, because she was an important part. I love taking her on the road. From what I’ve heard, she really was honored to be and had a good time. She’s just a badass chick man, and I miss her.
What is the key to generational wealth?
Buying a house.
What if you don’t have money?
Then you have to figure it out. My grandmother’s parents were sharecroppers. They were the sons and daughters of enslaved people. They sharecropped, they managed to save. In 1948, they bought their farm. My grandmother had grown up on another farm they were renting before then. My grandmother came as an 18-year-old girl in 1950 to Atlanta. By 1952, she saved enough to get her first home. It is not easy. It may mean you may have to move. You have to go to Birmingham, Tampa.
But the key to generational wealth is to first own a piece of land, because that’s something that allows you to get a loan. That’s something that allows you to leave something for your children. We still own every home my grandparents own, I bought my daughter a house in the same one. That’s not to say you can do it too, it’s going to be the easiest. I remember me and my wife are living in an apartment. I got my first $60,000 royalty check, and we were trying to decide what the fuck we’re gonna do. The first thing we did was bought a house.
We bought a rental property that we couldn’t live in, but we bought it. She got it up to her standards, we rented it out for the next decade. You gotta figure it out. There’s a way to figure it out. I’d like to encourage more people to get focused on doing it together. If you and your cousins all live in an apartment, you guys are paying $2K a month. Which is cheap rent out here, but Atlanta it’s expensive.
I pay $3K for a one-bedroom.
Alright, you pay $3K right? You have three friends that also pay $3K right? So that’s $12K y’all pay. At some point, you gotta do the hard shit and say “we’re going to fucking live together. We’re going to save…” No bullshit. When I was growing up, my friends that were Korean and Asian, commonly known as East Indian, they taught me something about group economics that I hadn’t seen.
Friend of mine said when his parents got here, they all lived with their brothers and sisters. So everyone was in his big fucking house. Instead of paying an apartment complex one grand a piece, they were paying $200 a piece and saved the rest. My grandmother moved to Atlanta and all of her sisters and brothers lived with her for one year, saved all their money. She would not allow them to pay so that they can own something. We have to get unique. We have to get creative. We have to start to cooperate and collaborate so that we can save money.
Do you have your Grammy speech prepared?
Yeah, I won. I told y’all n*ggas! Me, Tom, and Ryan told y’all n*ggas. [laughs] I’m playing. I’m gonna very humbly — I’m gonna thank the people that are on my team that have worked for me. I want to thank God and I want to thank my ancestors.
The post Killer Mike Talks Love For Gangsta Boo, Jay Z’s Text Messages & Key To Generational Wealth first appeared on The Source.
The post Killer Mike Talks Love For Gangsta Boo, Jay Z’s Text Messages & Key To Generational Wealth appeared first on The Source.
Back on June 16, 2023, one-half of Run The Jewels released their first solo album in over 11 years. That would happen to be the Atlanta, Georgia native Killer Mike. It was a follow-up to his critically acclaimed R.A.P. Music and it delivered on many fronts. For example, Mike gathered a massive list of A-listers to help make a grand return. Some of those names include André 3000, Future, Young Thug, CeeLo Green, Ty Dolla $ign, and a plethora of others.
Mike also laced the stacked tracklists with great writing and storytelling on tracks like “MOTHERLESS” and “SCIENTISTS & ENGINEERS.” Finally, the production credits here are more than respectable. DJ Paul of Three 6 Mafia, André 3000, El-P, Honorable C.N.O.T.E., James Blake, and more assisted in the diversity of sounds. It was a tour de force for Killer Mike and he just added some more heat to the record.
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Mike first released one of these new tracks on September 8. “MAYNARD VIGNETTE” with T.I., JID, and Jacquees, was put out to promote this new version and it is a stunning track on all fronts. We also have a feature from Young Nudy on “ACT UP.” “YES!” and “GET SOME MONEY” are all Mike and all fire. These songs do not disappoint.
Whar are your thoughts on this deluxe version of Killer Mike’s MICHAEL? Do the four new songs make it better or worse? Which song is your favorite? We want to hear what you have to say, so leave your thoughts in the comments section. Additionally, keep it locked in with HNHH for all of the hottest album releases and breaking news in music.
MICHAEL (Deluxe) Tracklist:
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The post Killer Mike’s Deluxe Version Of “MICHAEL” Adds JID, T.I., Jacquees, And Young Nudy appeared first on HotNewHipHop.
Killer Mike has just released the definitive version of his acclaimed 2023 album MICHAEL DELUXE on 2xLP vinyl, CD, and digital. The album – now expanded to 17 tracks on the physical editions and 18 tracks digitally – arrives alongside a video for the new song “YES”. The album details were announced last week with the release of “Maynard Vignette,” a huge multi-generational Atlanta anthem with features from T.I., JID, and Jacquees, with Mike explaining that “MICHAEL was originally longer and now we’re starting to release the rest of it. These songs are some of my favorites from the album sessions, but we needed more time to get them the way we imagined them. We finished three of them in time to make the vinyl and one more for the digital.”
Killer Mike hosted a global album celebration party for his fans on his YouTube channel on the eve of the album last night where he premiered WHAT MADE MICHAEL (A Conversation with Elliott Wilson), a mini-doc where he breaks down his album and gives fans a guided tour of his upbringing in Atlanta, followed by the premiere of the music video for his new single “YES.” Mike also joined Anthony Valadez and KCRW for a special evening at Apogee Studio in Los Angeles that aired as a Morning Becomes Eclectic session yesterday to celebrate the release (watch it here). This Sunday Mike will host a Record Store Revival at Rough Trade NYC at 4pm, an in-conversation event moderated by Carrie Colliton (Co-President of Record Store Day) followed by an album signing event for fans in attendance. The conversation from the event will also livestream via his and Rough Trade’s YouTube + META platforms, so that his fans around the world can join – tune in here.
The post Killer Mike Releases ‘Michael Deluxe’ LP, Visuals For “Yes” first appeared on The Source.
The post Killer Mike Releases ‘Michael Deluxe’ LP, Visuals For “Yes” appeared first on The Source.
Just about three months removed from the release of his sixth studio album Michael, Killer Mike has announced the impending release of a deluxe version of Michael alongside a new single, “Maynard Vignette.”
An ode to one of his heroes, former Atlanta mayor Maynard Jackson, “Maynard Vignette” features fellow A-Town rappers JID and T.I., along with singer Jacquees, as Mike reflects on the impact of Jackson’s tenure — and his own.
“I’m a young, Black Maynard, mama gospel singer / Daddy dope slanger, born from the anger,” he raps, while his collaborators also look back on the unlikelihood of their various successes.
Jackson’s success was also unlikely; as the 54th mayor of Atlanta, he was also the first Black mayor of Atlanta and of any major city in the South at a time when sentiments against Black folks in leadership were… let’s just say, “shaky.” He served from 1974 to 1982, then again from 1990 to 1994. His terms were marked by his commitment to public works projects and his work to improve race relations in and around Atlanta.
Mike just wrapped up his High And Holy Tour, while JID is working on multiple follow-ups to his album, The Forever Story. Watch the “Maynard Vignette” video above.
