In celebration of tonight’s taping of Vh1 Hip Hop Honors, Zune announced that they made a custom 80gb device in honor of the event. Naturally, Zune‘s Hip Hop spokesman, Bun B [click to read] received the first such device before they go public after taping.

An avid sneaker and clothing collector, Bun told HipHopDX this afternoon about the bragging rites he gets having the exclusive model early. “I’ve been hittin’ boys off all day with it. In the Hip Hop community, which stems from the inner-city community, people treasure what they get. They hold things very dear and close to them, especially when you get something new. If you get something before everybody else, that makes it even more special and you hold onto it that much tighter.

Having a strong partnership with Zune, Bun spoke on why he thinks Microsoft‘s portable MP3 company sought him out as their in to Hip Hop. “Throughout the course of my career, I’ve not only been able to set trends but maintain trends, as I maintain my fanbase. The people I deal with, we never really tried to sell them anything other than the music. A lot of people try to over-extend themselves a little too early.

AD

AD LOADING...

Having remained underground throughout much of UGK‘s career, Bun B also told DX about his evolution towards the limelight and corporate recognition. “We were never in a position to break bread with people, because people didn’t understand the movement in [UGK‘s] music early on in our career.” “For a corporation like Microsoft to reach out to a corporation like me, and touch into my fanbase, it lets me know that the people that I talk to are people that these corporations, they want to know what they think, how they dress, what they eat.

Zune has also marketed Bun‘s recent album, II Trill [click to read] and pushed his brand simultaneous to his performances and vast endorsements for them. “The collaboration with Zune has been full force on both sides. They promote [II Trill], my music, my movement, as well as me being out on the road, helping to promote them. Fifteen years ago, when I started rappin’, I never thought any corporation would want to do business with two boys from Port Arthur, Texas. Now, you’re looking at Zune‘s MP3 division, of the biggest corporations on the planet, it’s just a credit to hard work that Pimp [C] and I put forth.

Before preparing for Hip Hop Honors, Bun also spoke exclusively to HipHopDX regarding Scarface‘s comments earlier in the week [click to read], suggesting that he will continue to release albums, only if joint efforts with artists, including Bun B. Asked about the potential of him and Scarface [click to read] doing a duet album, the rapper said that it has been urged before. “[Rap-A-Lot Records Founder and CEO]J. Prince has been trying to get me and ‘Face to do an album together for years. Years. It’s something that we toyed with a couple of years ago, but we never really went into it. We did maybe one or two songs towards it. At the time, I was in what I consider to be one of the greatest duos in Hip Hop in UGK. He was a Geto Boy, still doing his solo thing. I really wasn’t in a position to start doing anything. I was very happy and very comfortable being in UGK, and I still am.

AD

AD LOADING...

However, having released two solo albums, as Jive Records prepares to release UGK‘s final album, Bun closed in suggesting merit to the rumors. “I’m a lot more open to something like that than I ever would have been before.”