B.o.B. a/k/a Bobby Ray has come a long way since Cloud 9, most recently performing at a fundraiser for President Obama in Los Angeles, California. The Decatur, Georgia-born rapper is preparing to release his second album, Strange Clouds, which is already being heavily anticipated by fans of the crossover artist.

As the title track , (complete with a feature from Lil Wayne) steadily climbs up music charts, we’re admittedly already curious about his upcoming work with the Grand Hustle Records patriarch. HipHopDX was able to ask him about the rumored project between he and T.I. – from its conception to the reasons Bobby Ray believes it will work.  

HipHopDX: Talk a bit about The Man and The Martian album that you and T.I. are reportedly working on…

B.o.B.: The Man and The Martian is something we’re talking about, an idea that we’re playing with. We just kinda wanna let it happen and record as we see fit.

DX: That idea’s kind of crazy though.

B.o.B.: Mars and Earth aren’t too far apart. [Laughs]

DX: So you’re Mars.

B.o.B.: I mean, they’re interchangeable.

DX: Your styles are vastly different from one another. Will the album be you and T.I. playing off of each other or more of you meeting in the middle?

B.o.B.: I feel like when me and [T.I.] get in the studio, we can organically make music and Tip actually co-produced one of the songs on my [The Adventures of Bobby Ray] album, “Fifth Dimension.” A lot of people don’t even know that, so I have a lot of confidence that we’ll show people just how close Earth and Mars are.

DX: When did you start talking about doing a collaborative album?

B.o.B.: It’s been something that’s always been in the air, but it’s kinda has to materialize at its own pace but I would be prepared to see some music coming from The Man and The Martian.

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