Bun B [click to read] spoke with HipHopDX Friday evening, about his March 31st release, the final of UGK‘s albums, 4 Life. An avid fan of Hip Hop throughout the decades, the Port Arthur, Texas star spoke that due to Pimp C‘s 2007 death [click to read], this project is a first for Hip Hop. “I have to believe, in least in the Hip Hop community, that this is a precedent, in the fact that [UGK] is a duo. We’re both members who are active. It’s not the same as a relationship between a [KRS-One] [click to read] and a Scott La Rock, where Scott was really more of a deejay in the background. Then, you have to look at the longevity of the group. [UGK] recorded together for over 15 years.“
Faced with the challenges of finishing the Underground Kingz‘ final work-in-progress, Bun actually stated that while he lacked the instructions of his former production partner, the pieces were all there. “There was no guideline or blueprint to follow, as far as putting [4 Life] together. Thankfully, Pimp was the kind of person, who… we never just made beats and put something together. Pimp always liked to make sure that we had some kind of a theme, and that is was coming from a very real place that people could relate to. A lot of the structures and themes for this album was already set up. It was really more-so just a matter of filling in the blanks with the key pieces.”
After the Top 40 and chart success of the Underground Kingz release [click to read], carried by way of “International Player’s Anthem” [click to read], Bun was asked about whether the final release would appeal more to crossover than the gritty, early ’90s street anthems like “I Feel Like I’m The One That’s Doing Dope” or “I Left It Wet For You.” Bun explained quite the contrary, “Just to clear that up, one of the songs on this new UGK album is called ‘Harry Asshole’ [sic]. [Laughs] When you see that and you hear it, it’s obvious that’s nothing’s changed. I’m not here to take this group in a new direction. That would have been something that we mutually would have had to agree on. Then it would have been something that we would have had to sell to our fanbase.“
From guests to themes to production, Bun assured fans that the cherished UGK sound and style will come true to form. “I’m not trying to reinvent the wheel with this album. I’m trying to make sure that this m’fucka rolls, just like it always has. There’s ‘Harry Asshole’ [with Webbie and Lil Boosie]. You’ll hear Pimp C say ‘bitch’ on this album just as much as you’ve ever heard him say it – but as usual, it’s not from an ignorant place. We keep things very real. There’s a song [‘Steel Your Mind’] about pimpin’ on the album, that’s got Too Short [click to read] on it. We got a song [‘Used To Be’] dedicated to the streets that’s got E-40 [click to read] and B-Legit on it.”
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1. Intro
2. Still On The Grind featuring Raheem DeVaughn
3. Everybody Wanna Ball
4. Feelin’You
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5. The Pimp & The Bun Featuring Ron Isley
6. She Luv
7. It
8. 7th Street
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9. Interlude
10. Swishas & Erb featuring Sleepy Brown
11. Purse Come First featuring Big Gipp
12. Harry Asshole featuring Lil Boosie and Webbie
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13. Used To Be featuring B. Legit, E-40 and 8 Ball &MJG
14. Steel Your Mind featuring Too Short
15. Texas Ave Interlude
16. Hard As Hell featuring Akon
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17. Da Game Been Good To Me
18. Outro
4 Life is in stores March 31.
