Interviewing legendary Richmond rapper, Nickelus F, is an unreserved journey into a huge and uncharted imaginative wilderness. From the second you begin chatting — you converse — about every little thing — from tradition and politics to theology and mystery histories to quantum mechanics and the growing universe. The length you can vacation in conversation with Nickelus F is as unpredictable as it is limitless. Nonetheless, the time experienced occur to leave the oral traditions of Mali’s Dogon Tribe powering and concentrate on MMCHT, his very long awaited 11th studio challenge which can be additional to a formidable catalog of over 20 mixtapes.
We caught up with Nickelus F at our studio previous week, not only to speak about the new album but his legacy as a single of Virginia’s most prolific artists.
Landon Shroder: Congratulations on the new album, we’ve been listening to it all 7 days, its awesome.
Nickelus F: Thank you. Thank you.
LS: On the intro keep track of for MMCHT, it appears like there are a large amount of factors on your intellect. What’s the environment searching like to you right now?
NF: Ideal now, the earth is hunting like a significant chance for me to develop and cement my legacy. You know what I’m expressing? I’ve spent a lot of time honing my skills as an artist and getting ready myself to attack — to assault the entire world. Truly putting myself, and my songs out there, and placing a conventional of excellence that my fans can be expecting, you know?
LS: Are you locating issues inspiring or cynical these times? Since there is a specific heaviness to the new album.
NF: For me, it’s completing the objective. This is what I said I was heading to do with my lifetime from the time I was young. I mentioned, “one working day I’m going to be a expert recording artist” and I’ve experienced the same vision for my lifestyle since a child. This time around, my approach is to do it how I want to do it. On the lookout back again on the previous, even though I did my greatest, I come to feel like I by no means seriously maximized the prospective I had. But this time about, I will.
LS: I sense like your albums have generally been deeply observational, but this album looks virtually testimonial. To paraphrase the keep track of Just F, “Fuck Petey, Fuck Nickelus, fuck all of that shit… its just F.” There is a great deal to infer from a lyric like that.
NF: I would say which is shut to the mark, it’s certainly testimonial. My very last album was Caught in 2018. At that point in time, I was in a fully unique place and had a fully different outlook on lifetime — I felt defeat down and practically stuck. But I was back in university, and I was hopeful about the alternatives in the potential.
I’m in a way greater area now, and a great deal of the positioning on this album was surely testimony. I did a whole lot reflecting on daily life, and what is been going on with me around these previous several several years.
LS: Do you experience like you obtained every little thing you needed out of this new document?
NF: In conditions of the artwork, yeah, and the variance is how I approached this album. This time I thought, what is the information that I wanna get throughout? What is it that I want persons to feel? What am I speaking to my contemporaries — to other rappers? What am I expressing to the sport — to the lifestyle?
LS: So what message are you striving to ship with this album?
NF: My statement is this: “Yo, I’m rapping at a seriously higher level, and I don’t feel a great deal of y’all are on par with me.” Ideal? In phrases of possessing a tackle on the craft, the specialized features of rap, and the selection in track type and shipping and delivery.
LS: The way you really feel you have mastered the artwork sort?
NF: Mastery of the art sort, that’s the statement. And I’m continuing to further master all features of this, no matter of the variety of tune — regardless of the bounce, the defeat, the topic, the matter make any difference.
Yo. I’m slaying shit. So I’m listed here to push the ranges, set bars, and shatter expectations of what a rapper at my age could do.
LS: That is fucking wonderful. Can I talk to you some questions about remaining a rapper in your forties?
NF: Of training course.
LS: On Ziplocs, there’s a lyric, “They questioned me about my age and I say I’m everlasting.” How’s your resourceful evolution unfolded now that you are in this new lifetime stage?
NF: As a artistic, I really feel tremendous highly effective. I sense like I can execute regardless of what it is I have to have to achieve creatively. As very long as I know what I wanna say and what stance I wanna get, I feel like there’s no roadblocks.
LS: Do you truly feel like your priorities have transformed as an artist?
NF: For guaranteed, I imagine a lot more so proper now. I’m at the age where by I want to exhibit my progress. I wanna continue to elevate the stage of my composing, hone my artistry, and go on carving out my lane — I experience like I don’t sound like any other rapper. I established this entire technique, this is F shit. I have analyzed what it is individuals like about me as an artist, what I like most effective about myself as an artist, and I leaned into that.
LS: What have you uncovered throughout that course of action of self-assessment?
NF: That’s super intriguing. I’ve recognized that men and women like me for my writing. There are rappers who have fantastic beats, interesting voices, distinctive appears, you know what I necessarily mean? But I experience like my greatest offering position is the genuine lyrics. So that’s one matter I honed in on I also altered the way that I generate, document, and deliver my tunes so that I could have a great functionality without killing myself on stage.
LS: The rap push is declaring you’ve acquired a new imprint — Trick Dice. Are there ideas on making out a roster or expanding into new music publishing?
NF: Finally. I’ve been getting that question a good deal. Owning a label was never ever seriously a matter that I considered about. But as I’m maturing and obtaining the items and people today about me that want to assist. And this is my possibility to maximize on the possible I pointed out before. So correct now my aim is getting it off of the ground, off of the back of my tunes and my catalog. But eventually I would like to increase the roster and perform with a pair artists.
LS: A couple a long time ago you occupied this truly intriguing house, performing as a bridge amongst the rap and punk scenes in Richmond. Do you believe that bridge nonetheless exists or was that a selected time and position mainly because of venues like Strange Subject?
NF: I would like to believe so. That’s just Richmond lifestyle, ideal? Our city is particular, and that vibe transcends any a single musical genre, and more so speaks to the essence of the metropolis. But not all people can stroll that line. So, I imagine there’s a ton of prevalent ground and there’s a ton of opportunity that’s still nevertheless to be thoroughly explored.
I also want to give a large shout out to Phil, Mark, and Bobby (ed. be aware: previous entrepreneurs of Bizarre Make a difference) for every enjoying a significant job in environment up a good deal of displays and bringing individuals crowds with each other. We observed mutual contentment in the audio and made excellent encounters.
LS: Any strategies to tour to aid the new album?
NF: Unquestionably. We have a large amount of displays coming up, some place dates around the summer months, but we’re setting up a tour for the fall and winter time.
LS: Where’s the tour heading to acquire you?
NF: That I can’t say proper now. There are dates that are booked, but it’s anything that’s still staying place collectively.
LS: For all the vinyl collectors out there, are you gonna press the new album?
NF: Unquestionably. Unquestionably. And you can also hope vinyl releases for some of your beloved assignments in my back catalog.
LS: You go on to encourage, thanks for taking the time to chat with us.
NF: Thank you. Oh and before I go, I want to tell everyone to check out out my web page www.weneedf.com, thanks once more.
*This job interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Pictures by Landon Shroder
Electronic illustrations by R. Anthony Harris
The article Attacking the Earth: An Distinctive Q&A with Richmond Rap Legend, Nickelus F appeared initially on RVA Mag.