yU the 78er and Slimkat of the Hip Hop group The 1978ers first met back in 1998 at a show in Northwest Washington, DC called “The State of the Union.” At the time yU was part of the Remainz collective and Slim was rolling with the Khemystery crew. A mutual friend, Mr. Hu, connected the two musicians, and in a short amount of time the emcee and the producer began working together.

Then in the mid 2000’s the DMV natives moved in together. It was during those days as roommates that Slim and yU realized they possessed the same values needed to create exceptional music. The positive daily interaction led to a considerable number of tracks being recorded.

Some of those songs would make up the yU albums the EARN and Before Taxes (which were initially slated to be full group projects), but the end of their common living situation put a hold on releasing an actual joint LP. But after nearly eight years, enough material with a similar theme was generated to finalize People Of Today – the first official 1978ers album.

People Of Today is a true musical representation of the organic union formed between the duo. Slimkat handled the bulk of the beats and yU tackled the rhymes. The pair even oversaw the mixing of the album. The 1978ers also tapped live instrumentalists and vocalists to add another layer to the soundscape presented on the 18-track collection.

With People Of Today now available, AllHipHop.com reached out to yU the 78er and Slimkat to see a different side of the producer-rapper partners. In “Three Questions,” The 1978ers present one of their favorite artists, reveal an unknown fact about the other, and describe exactly who are the people of the world today.

[ALSO READ: EXCLUSIVE: Diamond District Returns To Encourage Washington DC Hip Hop To March On]

If you had to be trapped in an elevator for six hours with one famous musical artist living or dead, who would you pick and why?

Slimkat: Todd Rundgren, I’ve been listening to his music for years, and I always find something new to like in his compositions and song structure. He was always not afraid to discover a new sound and use it as an addition to the way he writes music.

yU: I’d say Gil Scott Heron, because I like the fact that what he stood for was in each word of every song. No matter how great the band was, his poetry was at the forefront of every composition. He stood at a time when many kneeled in the realm of expression. Ecstatically humane, an honorable approach in my eyes.

Can you each share one thing about the other that your fans probably don’t already know?

Slimkat: Ok, my mans yU, first and only time I ever seen him go crazy on stage was maybe the first time we performed together. Cat slammed his hat down on the floor when he was kicking a verse, crowd went crazy! [laughs] I think that was probably one of the moments that solidified my mans could stand alone as a dope emcee to the public eye of the DC area.

yU: Most folks don’t know that my man Slimkat used to rhyme. Dope too! He was part of a crew called Khemystery, which got the spelling of their name from KRS-One. There’s footage floating of Slimkat rocking rhymes at a Roots show back in ’95 with Malik B and them. It actually makes sense now though, because he has a good idea of how he wants somebody to rhyme over his joints. You can tell by the head bob when he’s creating.

Describe the actual people of today’s world in five words or less.

Slimkat: Uniquely Conscious By Choice…

yU: wide perspective, colorful, everybodyish, melodious