On “Let the Money Stay,” off of his recent EP, Masterpiece Theatre, Willie the Kid states “I’m rather blatant, so blending in never been my strongpoint, point taken.”
The aforementioned statement describes Willie’s style of lyricism extremely well. His witty, complex but confident flow separates him from the large crowd of emcees in the rap game these days.
Initially gaining popularity as a member of Aphilliates Music Group, a collective spearheaded by the world-renown DJ Drama, Willie the Kid tasted success with his 2008 single “Love for Money,” which featured Trey Songz, Gucci Mane, La the Darkman, Bun B, Flo Rida, and Yung Joc. This was followed by his debut album, Absolute Greatness.
A few years later, although not a prominent figure in the mainstream eye, he continues to release solid projects consecutively that stand out. He was even named by Drake as one of 2011’s “Hottest MCs in the Game.”
Buzzing off the recent release of his Masterpiece Theatre EP, a seven-song collaborative effort with reputable producer, Alchemist, Willie the Kid has no plans of taking a breather. He will drop his long-awaited installment Aquamarine later this month. He also has plans of delivering two more projects this winter—his album, The Fly 3, and his short film, “The Fly.”
The Grand Rapids, Michigan native took some time out to speak about his upcoming projects, working with Alchemist, and what artists give him inspiration.
AllHipHop.com: What can fans expect from your upcoming project Aquamarine?
Willie The Kid: It’s a project that’s theme-based with reference to the ocean, or the sea as a metaphor to life and the journeys that you take. It’s reflective of the things you go through in life, and staying afloat is the objective [with] reaching your destination of success.
It’ll be between 10 to 13 records. I have “Goodness Gracious” with Smoke Dza, “Marina” with Jon Connor, the “Mainstream” freestyle…those are records that you can expect to hear on Aquamarine. I got a record with my man Los from Bad Boy. It’s a real dope project. It’s about having fun, but at the same time it’s introspective on life.
Listen to Masterpiece Theatre in its entirety below.
You’re planning to release a short film, ”The Fly,” this winter. What will it be about?
It’s based in Grand Rapids, Michigan. We shot it all there. It’s about a guy, a bartender, who bar tends at a local, underground hip-hop rap venue. He has a secret identity. Secretly, he’s this big rapper named The Fly. His identity gets uncovered through a love interest thing he was involved in. It’s basically a story about love and chasing your dreams and being courageous enough to follow [them], and facing the fears, risks and consequences that may come with it.
I wrote the film. I co-produced it. I starred in it. My man Kevin Budzynski, he directed it. He’s an Emmy Award-winning director. It’s going to be a really dope project.
How will people be able to view the film?
We’re working that out right now. Perhaps, what we’re going to do is pay-per-view through Vimeo, or maybe YouTube where you pay to watch it. It’ll be available on iTunes as well.
You’re also planning to release the third installment of you’re The Fly series this year. What can fans expect from that?
I’m dropping The Fly 3 and “The Fly” at the same time. The themes and the concepts that are entwined in the film will be the records from The Fly 3. Whether it’s the romance, the courage to chase your dreams, dealing with disappointments, or celebrating success, all of the emotions and the things that happen in the film will play themselves out song for song on The Fly 3. [It’s] going to be for sale on iTunes with the film. You can buy it packaged together or separately.
You recently dropped Masterpiece Theatre. What was the best part about creating the EP to you?
I think the best part was working with Alchemist, because Al is like a mad scientist. He’s a genius. He’s like a natural when it comes to making a whole other unique sound to this rap s###. It’s so natural for him. But further, even more so, he complimented my style without me having to conform it in anyway. I could be myself when I was working with Alchemist.
You possess a distinct style that doesn’t resemble any other hip-hop artist out. Who inspires you?
I’m a big Wu-Tang fan. I’m a big Jay-Z fan. I’m a big Nas fan. Growing up, that’s all I needed. I think me developing my style, it definitely came from listening to them, but maybe the last two to three years or so, the inspiration has been coming from what I’ve been going through in life.