Flip is coping with success the best way he can. After a decade’s worth of grinding, he moved to major status and has dealt with the roller coaster called fame. With a local following threaded in street credibility, there was beef and rap tofu knocking on his front door.
In a recent interview with AllHipHop.com, Flip updates us with his work schedule. He continues to make tracks upon tracks for the albums and the mixtapes. Flip expands his talents in new realms such as beverages and directing, and you’ll also get a sneak peak at the forthcoming album with female act Clover G. If that wasn’t enough, Lil’ Flip expounds on the T.I. debate, and he unabashedly credits Scarface as the “King of the South,” you know where this is going…
AllHipHop.com: We’ve talked before, but a lot’s changing. So take me through a recent day in the life of Lil Flip.
Lil’ Flip: A typical day is getting up and going to the studio to try and knock out at least eight tracks.
AllHipHop.com: Per day?
Lil’ Flip: Yeah, I do mix tape stuff too; like I’ll do eight real tracks, and then I’ll do like three little mix tape freestyles or whatever just to keep some new stuff out. After that go eat, go check out my family and see what’s going on. Go meet with my movie man and get my movies and I’m back at the crib.
AllHipHop.com: Movie Man?
Lil’ Flip: You know the movie man, so I can go get the movies and go watch em at home.
AllHipHop.com: So why do you still worry about doing so many mix tapes?
Lil’ Flip: Because I feel like that’s what I owe to the fans. I been doing mix tapes since high school, since I was 18. I have over 35 mix tapes out that average between 30 and 50 thousand units each, I had one that did 80 thousand.
AllHipHop.com: Right now your just busy promoting the album?
Lil’ Flip: Yeah, I’m promoting the new album which is already platinum at 1.4 million units, and I’m doing a group album with Clover G, and I’m almost done working on my next album; I only have about 5 more tracks and I’m done.
AllHipHop.com: Who’s on the new album?
Lil’ Flip: So far, I got Mario Winans, Ghostface, Nelly and Twista.
AllHipHop.com: What do you think separates you from the rest of the fiends coming out of the South right now?
Lil’ Flip: For one, to last in this game you gotta stay humble. Every time I do an album I get the budget to go get tracks from the high, A-class producers, but I always go find new people. Every album I go find new hungry producers like these new cats Play & Skillz, they produced the majority of my new album; and the new single “Sunshine” with my girl Leah, she’s a new artist so I just believe in helping people out and giving em a chance.
AllHipHop.com: Speaking of Sunshine who’s yours?
Lil’ Flip: My music.
AllHipHop.com: Why? Does your work get in the way of you finding her?
Lil’ Flip: You gotta find the right person. Because you got people not in the industry that don’t understand and can’t deal with the fact that your always gone, and with people in the industry it’s kinda hard to decide if you want to deal with someone in the industry also.
AllHipHop.com: So what’s the right woman for Flip?
Lil’ Flip: I need somebody to understand that you get what you put in, and if I sit back and be comfortable with what I got instead of working doing the stuff that got me where I’m at right now, I’m gonna fall off so one she gotta understand I gotta work. I gotta put in extra work now so I’m not trying to rap till I’m 50.
AllHipHop.com: Though I personally hate beef, I would be remiss in my obligation to the Ill Community if I didn’t ask you your side of the T.I. beef…
Lil’ Flip: Basically the dude is just jealous because we did a photo shoot for the Source cover and we had to do it two times because they didn’t like the first pictures. He was in my trailer telling me how he wanted to get on the, “Game Over” remix and I told him no because I was already done, I had already got a remix with Young Buck and Bomb Beats and that was that. So they called us back the next week to tell us they didn’t like the pictures. But by this time, he was already locked up so when we did the pictures over, and it was me Cassidy, J-Kwon and the Young Gunz. And I guess when he got out and saw the cover he got jealous and tried to diss me at a show in Atlanta. I had a show the next day with G-Unit, and I got him back way worse than what he tried to pull. He tried to show a picture of my first album with the Leprechaun, my first independent album, and that’s the album that sold 200,000. That’s the album I was selling for 10 dollars a disc so I had two million before I even got to Columbia, I don’t even think he knows what two million looks like. So basically, it’s just a jealousy thing and he’s running around saying he’s the “King of the South”, when everybody knows Scarface is the “King of the South” but when you only have a gold album you shouldn’t get the big head, he’s even beefin’ with Ludacris, and his first album only did like 150,000.
AllHipHop.com: So how do you handle all the jealousy, has it affected any of your friends in your inner-circle?
Lil’ Flip: Naw, because I keep my family around. My dad told me early on, “Everybody ain’t gonna like you so you can’t go around trying to please everybody.” Because at the end of the day if I ain’t got a hit, I got my family. I feel all the beef stuff is stupid, too. Because this is the year the South is finally coming up with Lil Jon and everybody finally getting our video’s played, but what he don’t understand is I’m a part of the Screwed Up Click so when he disrespect me; he disrespect the whole Screwed Up Click, and people in Texas ain’t trying to hear all that. But I guess he just trying to get him a platinum plaque and to get over that hump of going gold I guess he feel like he gotta diss me.
AllHipHop.com: So when do you stop responding?
Lil’ Flip: I’m not gonna keep going back and forth ya know. I said what I said, and I speak about it briefly on my new album but I keep it professional. I feel like all these white people. they get scared of you if they know your tied into beef and I’m trying to get that Pepsi money. I’m not trying to have them scared to deal with Lil Flip because this dude right here can’t stay out of jail. Everybody knows Scarface is the “King of the South,” so that’s really that.
AllHipHop.com: So what do you have going on outside of the music?
Lil’ Flip: I got my own liquor, it’ll be out in about 2 or 3 weeks it’s called Lucky Nights. I’m directing, I directed my “Game Over” video with Benny Boom, I wrote the treatment to Sunshine, basically I’m just trying to do everything.
AllHipHop.com: What bothers you about your fame?
Lil’ Flip: Just people coming up to me when I’m eating, I feel like that’s disrespectful. You know what they say about messing with somebody’s food. But other than that I’m good with signing autographs.
AllHipHop.com: What’s in your immediate future?
Lil’ Flip: I just shot this video with Mario Winans and I’m about to do this tour with G-Unit.
AllHipHop.com: You don’t ever worry about traveling with groups who have so much drama attached to them like G- Unit?
Lil’ Flip: I feel like with God whatever is gonna happen, is gonna happen so I don’t really look at it like that. I’ve been down with Young Buck for like five years, I know him from the struggling days when we were both trying to come up, that’s the ties I have to him and it doesn’t bother me because I don’t associate with a lot of people. I mess with the Diplomats. I mess with G-Unit and that’s about it. I’ve been doing this awhile. I’m about getting this money. At the end of the day, that’s all that matters is paying these bills.