When Future released Pluto in April of this year, he already had a fan base and a built-in support system. The first cousin of Atlanta legend Rico Wade of Dungeon Family, Future a.k.a. The Astronaut Kid had a sound that was distinctly ATL-ien. It would come to be known as Outer Space Swag. Since the release of the album, on Epic Records, Future’s auto-tune assisted rapping/singing flow has polarized rap fans.
You either love or hate him. And if you check the charts, love is in the lead.
“Turn on the Lights,” got major airplay and secured Future a place in the heart of female fans. “Same Damn Time” was the monster hit (and catchphrase) of Summer 2012. Yet, with just 200,000 copies sold, album sales have yet to catch up to the momentum.
In an ambitious move, Epic is repackaging Future’s Pluto into Pluto 3D. The re-release features several new songs including the “Same Damn Time (Remix)” featuring Diddy and Ludacris, as well as the new single, “Neva End (Remix)” featuring Kelly Rowland.
Talking with Future in an Atlanta recording studio, we met an introspective artist who is thankful, not just for the benefits that Hip-Hop has brought him, but for the salvation it has been from his street life past. His mixtapes, which were focused less on sales, are where some of his deepest lyrics lie. Songs like “Deeper than the Ocean” tell tales of pain and bad decisions. Yet, as Future straddles a proverbial fence between the streets and the studio, underground and mainstream, his rap name defines his direction.
AllHipHop.com caught up with Future at Triangle Studios in Atlanta to talk about his re-release, family ties, and what it was like getting a call from Diddy:
AllHipHop.com: I was doing some research on the Dungeon Family and was kind of surprised when I saw that you are considered a part of it through your affiliation with your cousin, Rico. Tell me about how he has influenced your career.
Future: A lot of people think that Rico hooked me up with L.A., but he didn’t even know Rico was my cousin until we walked in to do the deal. He’s not working with me, but it’s like he’s working with me because he loves me so much, and he wants to see me do good. His actions speak louder than words. Everything that he does, it’s not to gain benefit off of it or talk to the media about it.
He was always so busy from Outkast, Goodie Mob, Talib, anybody he might be working with, he never even had time to pay attention to me as this new artist, his cousin. So it was years and years of just being in The Dungeon, squeezing out two or three hours after they might finish up for the night, and not even complaining, but just being around. Being around something great and using this knowledge as leverage. The first time I flew was with Rico, first time I ate at Houston’s or Benihana, first time going to Buckhead was with Rico.
AllHipHop.com: How does it feel to now be that person in your family and your crew that has the influence on people coming up behind you?
Future: It feels good. I think they are getting a chance to understand because they saw where I was at and see where they can go.
AllHipHop.com: At your listening party, a lot of debates were jumping off like, ‘Future has one foot in the streets and one foot in the industry.’ What’s your response where someone says that? Where are your feet right now?
Future: I’m trying to put two feet in. But you gotta understand, I’m one of the only ones that’s legit around me. Everything else is what it is. I’m doing good, I’m doing shows, I’m doing interviews, but everybody else is still doing a lot of the same things we were doing and they can’t even imagine the things I’m doing. So it’s a constant battle. So, when they say I got one foot in and one foot out, they right, because I know I can’t turn my back on none of them.
AllHipHop.com: When you think about how big some of your records have gotten, like “Same Damn Time (Remix)”, are you ever surprised? What was it like to get that call from Diddy?
Future: Diddy was calling since I did my third mixtape, but I don’t move for nobody because I feel like can’t nobody change my life but me. Me and Diddy is good. He a Scorpio just like I’m a Scorpio. We want to work for ours. When I earned it, that opportunity, it felt right. Now our relationship is good. We locked in.
AllHipHop.com: Tell us about Pluto 3D, why people should go pick it up, and what’s next for Freebandz.
Future: It’s timeless music. “Turn on the Lights” is my fourthsingle, “Neva End”, my fifth. We got a record called “My” that’s gon’ do real well at radio. Same producers, Sonny Digital, Mike Will, but it’s a whole new vibe just to get people back enthused, get ‘em pumped up. 3D will go into the top of the year, then I’ll have my first single off my 2nd LP. Freebandz is a label; I just closed my label deal, Freebandz/Epic. I’m ready to be a CEO. The spotlight is cool, because of the shows that it brings and the endorsements. But, I love to get behind an artist with the same ambitions that I have. I want to be one of those CEOs where, if you believe, I believe, and we do what we gotta do to get it done.
Pluto 3D will be in stores on November 27 on Freebandz/Epic Records.
Follow Future on Twitter (@1Future), and wish him a Happy Belated Birthday – he turned 27 yesterday (November 20).