By Matthew Bridge
Hip Hop Vibe Staff Writer
Anyone who follows hip hop on the internet should be familiar with the name, Roosh Williams. Representing Houston, Roosh Williams has seen a major boost in his popularity. Suddenly, Roosh Williams is everywhere and he has a lot of music out.
Roosh Williams is currently riding a lot of momentum, as his upcoming album, Unorthodox, is coming on February 24. With the new album coming, Roosh Williams is buzzing with the “Deep End” single, featuring Scarface. He also has a show with Wale tonight in Houston.
With his career certainly picking up, Roosh Williams took some time out to talk to Hip Hop Vibe. In this exclusive interview, Roosh Williams talked about the new album, Unorthodx, and doing his show with Wale. Of course, Roosh Williams also talked about the “Deep End” single with Scarface and his experience working with the legend.
Read the entire interview below:
You have been on a roll with the new music releases, what has inspired you to keep working the way you have been? Man, a lot of things play into it when you’re doing something like what I’m doing. A lot of times you can get down and question yourself, such as why you are doing this. You really want people to take in your music and be into it, fortunately for me, a lot of fans hit me up all the time, letting me know they like my music. That shows me there’s something big out there, I can remember being young and being a fan of different artists. Now, seeing people feeling this way about me is amazing, coming to my shows, buying my albums, downloading my music. It’s an adrenaline shot and it gave me the confidence I needed to gain the momentum.
The new music you have is all leading up to your upcoming album, Unorthodox, what should fans expect from you on this new project? On Unorthodox, you can expect to see my personality shine through. I chilled out on this project, which is different from my previous aggressive projects. But, on this one, my humor shines through and I talk more, instead of rapping. On this one, I have songs talking about my life situations. I’m at a weird place in my life and I speak on it. Expect personality.
Which song off the album is an early favorite for you? “R Double.” This song is kind of like how Eminem had Marshall and Slim, so this is kind of like Roosh and R Double. If you see the “Unorthodox” intro video, you’ll see some of this play out. This is my other half, my serious side, and my side where I goof off, something like Eminem’s “The Real Slim Shady.” But, this is “R Double” and it’s track number four, it samples and Indian track and the song is fun.
One thing is for sure, you will have tons of promo for this album, seeing how you’re touring with Wale right now. How did you end up on tour with him? Well, I’m just doing the Houston show and we are doing some other shows. But, I have a good relationship for Simple Mobile and, in October 2013, they selected me and put me in a room with Like from Pac Div, he is one of the coolest people I know in the industry, we made an EP in a day and I continued having a relationship with Simple Mobile and they are presenting the tour for Wale and they linked me up for this.
Should fans expect you and Wale to do some work together? Man, I would personally not expect that. I’ve done enough shows now to know how it goes down. When you get into an environment with an artist when they are ready to perform, they are very busy. Granted, I’m not an artist on Wale’s level, but when an artist is getting ready to perform, they are just focused. As far as working, I’d love to, but I’m going into this with the mindstate of promoting my work and keeping my name popping out there.
Can you tell us about your single, “Deep End,” featuring Scarface? Yeah man. Dude, I’m loving the momentum it is having, first off it was an amazing experience. When we made the record, you know when you get someone big on your record, people call it a single, but a single is considered what’s popping in the clubs. I think this is an awesome record and everyone I know loves it, but I was scared because people are really expecting commercial music, nowadays. It’s funny, when you do a song with someone like Scarface, you begin to hear from people you haven’t heard from in a long time. Next up, we have a music video coming up for it on the 16th of this month and I’m excited for it. When you hear a song like this, it’s cool, but for an artist like me, the video is going to be a big thing to give it more exposure. I’m glad to put it out, it’s a blessing, because I can always look back on this moment, no matter what happens next.
What was it like to work with a legend like Scarface, especially as a newer artist? Man, it’s just one of those things where you almost feel guilty because you are the one who gets to be in the studio with Scarface. There are a lot of people in their thirties who are grinding and don’t get chances like this. But, when you get into the studio with Scarface, you realize this is a once in a lifetime opportunity. The first feeling I had was “do I deserve this?,” so I was like “hell yeah I deserve this,” and after you get past that feeling, you realize you’re sitting in the room with a twenty-five year veteran and he was giving me game that I was soaking up. Scarface was telling me what’s up. When I’m talking to you, it’s all one level, but when I rap, I get all aggressive and he is the same way, just like when me and him spoke on the phone for the first time, he was like “yeah, this is Brad.” He has this one record, where he goes “don’t fuck with me, cuz you know I’m bout it,” that was him rapping like Jay-Z, which is amazing because that’s his buddy and that’s crazy because it’s my record. It was a surreal moment, but I understand there is a lot of work to be done after this. Staying focused and soaking the moment up.
Where can the fans find you on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram? If you ever want to find me on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, look up Roosh Williams. If you’re on Facebook, make sure to add my real page and also like my fan page, I mainly use my real page. If you want to see anything about me, type my name in, or hit me directly and I’ll send things over. Soundcloud is also Roosh Williams.
Follow Matthew Bridge on Twitter @dgfxla.
