I saw a photo of you on the computer and him standing behind you. Did you guys get a chance to work together musically at all?

Yeah, but like I said, it was all over the place. Everybody was working with everybody. I did get the chance to go with him two days. But for the most part, I was just like working with all kind of producers, catching them vibes.

Word on the street is that you also have a record with Khaled. What’s up with that?

Shit, it’s gonna be crazy. Khaled is always in good spirits, just a helping hand. He's helping to get me on a different platform, too. Much respect to Khaled.

Everyone knows he has an album coming out in May. Did you guys working together have anything to do with the album?

Possibly.

Is it a big record?

Possibly. You just never know what records might... It could be a record that people put a lot of time into, but it’ll be a hit or miss. But on that note, I don’t ever make music like, “Oh it’s gonna be a hit.” I had to stop getting in that mindset. Because then I start feeling like I’m working. I don’t want to feel like I’m working. I want to feel I’m having fun. I’m creating vibes, man. It’s better for me, instead of just like, “Man, I gotta hurry up and keep doing this, so I can keep up.” Because of course there’s ups and downs. It’s the game. But I don’t want to feel like I’m working for the game. I want to feel like I’m having fun.

Another person who said that once he got off tour, he’s coming to work with you, was Drake. Have you guys begun cooking up yet?

Man, we never stopped cooking up. I don’t know what fools are thinking. It ain’t stop. It’s just timing. You don’t want to just drop all your shit in one day.

Are you guys actively still working together? Or do you have such a big library of stuff that you’ve already cooked up?

Bro, I just told you. We never stopped. It’s going. Shit ain’t stop, bro.

What was the backstory behind [Drake saying that about you at his show]?

He came to Tennessee to do the show. It was my birthday weekend. I wanted to come to the show and we chopped it up. His whole family was there. We just vibin.’

And then, he stops the show and says to 50,000 people that he’s ready to work with you. What goes through your mind when you hear something like that?

I mean shit, he was just letting everybody know. We been working. He was just letting everybody know.

Are you with a label, or are you independent still?

Yeah, I’m independent still. I’ve been meeting with people. Everybody wants my masters.

But you don’t want to give it up.

I don’t want to give up my masters. I got so much shit.

Every label that you’ve met with wants your masters?

Not every label. It’s just about finding the right situation. You can meet a label and everybody who you come across at the label, and then the paperwork might not be right. I’m still independent, though.

Is it something that you’re willing to do? Are you willing to sign if it’s the right fit?

Yeah, of course. I’m willing to sign. I got a lot of stuff, a lot of labels on the table wanting to sign now. It’s just about finding the right situation.

I know that you’ve signed a couple producers.

Yeah, my producers are here. I got IV Beats right there, and I got Denaro Love.

What can we expect from those guys?

Man, they got some crazy shit on the way, too. I’m just hippin’ ’em, getting their foot in the door. You know, placements and shit. Denaro is in Memphis, and IV is from Nashville. So I got two producers from places that mean something to me, that helped me grow and get to where I’m at. I’m gonna eventually get more talent from the cities in Tennessee. But, yeah, they got some crazy shit on the way.

What’s your relationship with those guys like? Is it like a mentor relationship, like bro and little bro? Or are you guys just all creating together?

Yeah, both. I signed them to let them know they can have the opportunity to do whatever the fuck they want. If they want fly to work with Gates or any [other] artist, they got the opportunity to. A lot of producers, they want to work with people they don’t got the opportunity to. It was more about the support and the opportunity with them to do whatever they want to do.

I feel like for the past few years we’ve seen larger-than-life producers who are poppin’ for a year. Mainstream hip-hop will have a sound and they will dominate that sound for a year. Then that sound expires and then they’re not poppin’ anymore. How do you ensure that you’re sitting in this seat again next year as the Best Hip-Hop Producer Alive? How do you ensure that your sound or your skillset doesn’t get stale?

There are a couple things that play into that. For one, the whole sound that I had was the wave, which I had already moved on from by the time I had made it to the industry. So the shit that I’m working on now, it has showed that I moved on from what I was doing. Like I said, it’s about timing.

I feel like another thing would be the relationships. I don’t know how other producers’ relationships [are like] with the people that they were working with, or even if they had relationships. With me, I got a lot of strong relationships. I network a lot, and I know they play a big part in [me] staying in the industry. There’s going to be ups and downs with anybody. It’s just part of the game. But for the most part with me and my longevity in the industry, there ain’t no question, because of the shit that I got going and my networking and the opportunities I have with people. I’m good.