Appearing on B Real’s Smoke Box Internet series, Wu-Tang Clan member Raekwon recently spoke about his plans to release a new album.
“My next move is this next album I’ve been working on,” he said. “It’s called Fly International Luxurious Art. It’s a long title but that’s how I felt right now. It’s a fly album though. You know me. That’s my thing. I like to make a body of work that I could put in people’s cars and they could just listen to it.”
Earlier this month, Raekwon told DJ Whoo Kid that F.I.L.A. is tentatively scheduled for a late Spring release. “We shooting for May right now,” he said. “We got like an early May release. Like May 6 or May 11 or some shit like that.”
In his interview with the Cypress Hill leader, Raekwon described making an album accessible to a range of audiences.
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“This album is well-rounded,” he said, “I wanted to show people that I’m still at my best, but I’m into making now more stadium style music and catering to every audience. I want to give him a slice, him a slice, you eatin’. You over there in the corner that really don’t like me, I made something for you. Really just to give everybody that…stew pot that is me at my perfected level. You know, ‘cause I feel like I’m perfected…because of the fans, the way they salute me, the way they speak of some of my classic albums and shit. They make me feel like the hero. So this album is Fly International Luxurious Art. It’s nothing but me just really just showing niggas like, ‘Yo, his pen game is right. He’s being smart about the records he’s making. He’s catering to every audience of music.’ I have nothing to prove. I’m already in the books, so all I can do is keep giving people quality music. I went out and merged with some killer producers.
“I don’t know if you’re familiar with Jerry Wonda,” Rae said of Jerry Duplessis, “you know, he was a part of The Fugees project and working with Lauryn Hill and made a lot of bangers. I got a couple of the swordsmen and producers that I been fucking with and some new cats. I’m always looking for that fresh batch.”
Raekwon Says He Likes Kendrick Lamar & Meek Mill’s Material
Speaking to artists other than himself, the Only Built 4 Cuban Linx… emcee described younger emcees he’s currently listening to. “I may feel them for the reason of their movements,” he said. “It ain’t necessarily a crazy hit maker. But, at the end of the day, I respect what they created. It’s a lot of them. You know you I like the Kendrick Lamar fellow. Meek Mill, he came in and carved his way in. You gotta couple of these other young cats that’s making commercial music that’s being successful too that I respect.”
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Raekwon qualified his choices by adding that he likes to see artists passionate about their work. “A hit is a hit,” he said. “A lot of these cats is really just excited about their passion and I see all of that. Only one’s that’s really gonna prevail is the one’s that’s really working hard. You know what we tell motherfuckers all the time, ‘You wanna fucking eat nigga, you gotta know how to fucking go out there and grind.’ So the one’s that’s grinding. My hand is up to them.”
In the same interview with DJ Whoo Kid, Rae described his respect for recent Grammy winner Macklemore. “I fuck with Macklemore too though,” the Staten Island rapper said. “You know what I mean? I respect Macklemore for even just going back and really looking at the demographics of how that Grammy shit work. We know and all that he’s the popular—more popularity based on the fact of how he came in. But he still recognized that Kendrick—he felt Kendrick had a better Hip Hop album than him. So, for a man to just feel in his heart that he feel like he ain’t the winner or however the case may be, I respect him for that because niggas would have questioned that like, ‘Yo, hold up.’ You know what I mean? But he was a man to admit that…So, in all reality both of those niggas won to me, man.”
Before the end of the interview with B Real, the Wu rapper touched on his own group’s close relationship with fans. “I love it,” he said. “That’s what I think people really respect about Wu. Because not only they seen every individual in they eyes and say, ‘Yo, I know a nigga like that. I been around and held guns with niggas like that.’ But then to see us and know that we carry out the same situation. It’s like, ‘Yo, them is not fake rappers. Them is real rap motherfuckers.’”
RELATED: Raekwon Says Collab With Jay Z Is “Tucked” Away & Discusses “F.I.L.A.” Album Release
