Photo courtesy of Andy Cantillon
Underground powerhouses Awon (Don’t Sleep Records co-founder) and production duo The Other Guys (HiPNOTT Records) teamed up for an album called “Solidified.” The release is a gift to Hip-Hop heads. Awon’s smooth vocals perfectly complement the soulful boom bap production of The Other Guys on Solidified.
Solidified is a 10-track album released jointly by Don’t Sleep and HiPNOTT Records. The project features appearances by Rob Cave and DJ Eveready.
Awon talked to The Real Hip-Hop about going to different places with his music, who Hip-Hop’s greatest story teller is, teaming up with The Other Guys, and their new album, Solidified.
TRHH: Why’d you call the new album Solidified?
Awon: I guess because both myself and The Other Guys, we’ve been doing this for a long time and we feel like we have a lot of quality music under our belt and Solidified was just a way of saying that this is a strong outing for us, it’s solid, and you’re gonna walk away feeling satisfied. So, just a way of saying “solid” and a way of describing the work.
TRHH: How did you hook up with The Other Guys to do the album?
Awon: The Other Guys, the production crew and myself, well at least Joe, we live in the DMV. I’m originally from down in Newport News, but I moved to the DMV maybe nine years ago now. It’s been a long time and time flies. So, I met Joe about six, seven years ago. We worked on a couple things and we always said that we were gonna work together. Him and Isaiah had some time and we all linked up and made the project because the time was just perfect for right now. I mean, I wasn’t doing anything, he wasn’t doing anything, and we got it done pretty much quick.
TRHH: How fast was it?
Awon: I’ll say I was done recording maybe in like three-month’s time. It was a very fast process for me because I just was feeling what they were sending. I was feeling the music, so the writing was very fluid for me. Life is the inspiration. I’m in a good place, so the storytelling, just the writing in general just was much more fluid than it has been in the past for me.
TRHH: How was doing this album different from doing an album with Phoniks?
Awon: I would say this album was different because I didn’t have the pressure to live up to what Phoniks and I had done. I only had to make something that people thought was good that I appreciated first and foremost, that we, The Other Guys and myself, were satisfied with. And then it just had to be good. As long as people like it, that was the only bar that I wanted to make. Seeking critical acclaim, seeking the satisfaction of fans is always important to me first and foremost. But outside of that, the weight was just off because Phoniks and I had a very significant run over the past decade and it comes with a lot of pressure to live up to something that with our music, for a lot of people it takes a little while to digest. And after people get to listen to it and sit with it and experience it, they hold it in a high regard. So, that comes with a lot of strain and a lot of, “Ugh, I don’t want this to be the one that derails it.” You know what I mean? So, I didn’t have that pressure this time.
TRHH: One thing that stood out to me about Solidified was the storytelling. When you’re writing a story in song form what’s the process like?
Awon: Well, it depends on what the beat makes me feel. So, a lot of times what makes it easier is the Gang Starr approach. That approach is keeping the song concepts and the titles the same as the beats. So, you already go in with the thought of what this is gonna be about. Then when it’s obscure, like for instance the title “Lots of Pockets.” So, I saw it and reading the words “Lots of Pockets” I thought of what can this be about? I didn’t want to make it about me. I didn’t want to come across fake, phony, or anything. I wanted to make it about somebody else. So, immediately I thought of a villain and the first villain that I thought of was Lotso Huggin’ Bear from Toy Story. I think it’s Toy Story 3.
I was like, “OK, Lots of Pockets can be a person.” This could be a guy. I thought that that was a cool name, almost like a crime novel. And then I just built the story around this particular guy and his operation, and what he was going through, and then betrayal and all of that. Just your typical crime story, but a little bit of Toy Story, a little bit of Fatal Attraction, For My Man, The First 48, all of those the crime joints tied into one. That’s how I came up with that, but then other things like when you have “To The Sky” it just was emotional. So, I decided to go deeper, and more introspective, and to a place that I never been before.
TRHH: How long does it take you to write a song like “Lots of Pockets“?
Awon: I wrote that in probably about thirty, forty-five minutes. I’m a stream of consciousness writer. I have to finish. So, a lot of people don’t understand that style of writing, but I have to complete the song or I’m gonna go somewhere else and do something different and I’m just gonna leave it alone. I rarely go back and tinker and mess with things. I typically like to finish the work and then I’m done with it and on to the next. Just to keep creativity flowing. It’s just my process. Everybody doesn’t operate like that. But they happen really quick. The writing is really quick, it’s fast because it’s my thoughts. Yes, it’s coming out of thin air, but some of it is personal, some of it is introspective, and some of it are my observations.
TRHH: There’s always a social media question about who the greatest storyteller in Hip-Hop is. Who do you think is the greatest?
Awon: First and foremost, I have to give it up for Slick Rick because he’s the father of storytelling. Maybe not the first rapper to write and have that story point of view, but he made music that was cinematic, that was very visual, that you could see, and he did it early and we still enjoy his style of storytelling. He’s very charismatic and he creates worlds. This is the 1980s, Great Adventures of Slick Rick is out and he created complete worlds for you to immerse yourself in with his debut. And he would continue to create those worlds throughout his other albums, like The Rulers Back, or even Behind Bars, or The Art of Storytelling. So, I think that every storyteller would say that, from my perspective.
TRHH: I agree 150%. But you know, there’s been so many over the years. That’s why the debate comes up. You know, I like Biggie, I like Nas, I like Ice Cube, Ice-T. There’s so many, Andre 3000, Fresh Prince. We’ve had a lot of great ones, but I’m with you, Slick Rick is just next level.
Awon: Absolutely.
TRHH: “Snickerdoodle” is a song about your wife, Tiff the Gift. What was her reaction to hearing that song?
Awon: She loved it. When I write, I have to make my life or life in general inspiration because it’s easier for me to be myself. I always tell people there’s not a lot of separation from the artist and the person. I am who I am. That’s just it. And that’s rare these days. We have a lot of characters in Hip-Hop. And I think it allows me to have a longer career, and it allows me to age gracefully, and it allows me to make records like Snickerdoodle and be comfortable and in my own space, vulnerable, and just open about what a relationship is like. And I mean just being as honest as saying my wedding ring don’t fit, I don’t wear it because I can’t fit it.
That’s life, and I think that is relatable for a lot of people of a certain age. That’s where I didn’t care about if that line is over somebody’s head that may be younger, that may not understand what I mean, but it was for those that are listening, that are my peers, that understand exactly what I’m talking about. And it’s about simplicity — she loved that. It wasn’t all crazy. It was just simple as being at home, taking a ride, watching TV, or watching bad TV, and just enjoying each other’s company. So, she really enjoyed that.
TRHH: Listening to you made me think; I interviewed Kwamé last year and I asked him about a song where he sampled an old TV show theme, Diff’rent Strokes. He used some references and I asked him if he was worried about the younger generation even getting them and he was like, “I don’t care. I’m not doing this for them.” And it made me wonder, do you have the younger generation in mind when you write?
Awon: You know what’s funny about it is I never did. Never. I wrote for people that like Hip-Hop. The people that like my style of Hip-Hop and the Hip-Hop that I grew up on. So, I’m doing the best version of the music that I love. So, it didn’t matter who gravitated to it. It just so happened that a lot of younger people when I first came out and first hit the scene were listening to me and I was like amazed. And I was so happy to see that. I’ve had 13-year olds come to shows with their family member, I mean, really hit me up like, “Hey, there’s an age limit on your shows, why is that?” Then you make concessions.
You decide to make sure that they get to see it when they’re that adamant about coming. I’ve had fifteen-year olds come to shows, abroad. Sneaking in, fake IDs, the whole nine, and it’s a beautiful thing. And now those same kids are adults. They started listening in middle school, now they’re adults. I’m happy about it. But even at this point, if younger people catch on, cool. If they don’t, that’s cool too. Because I’m doing what I love to do and that’s the only way to keep it is real.
TRHH: “To The Sky” is a song about your son. Why was it important for you to share that part of your life on this song?
Awon: Because I never did. I just thought about it and I said, “Man, I’m doing this, I’m doing that. People always ask me for things, they need this, they need that, and they’ll never know what my life is like.” Because my life is private for the most part. You see, but you don’t know what I’m going through, what my son is going through, what my family is going through. And I thought that me sharing some tidbits, some advice, some fatherly wisdom for a younger man, or my younger self going through this, if I had somebody that made a record like that for me when I’m in my early 20s trying to handle that situation and trying to understand it, it could have helped.
It was my way of giving back to the community of parents who are going through this. Community of uncles, aunts, brothers, aunties, every family is pretty much touched. So, I said maybe me sharing my perspective and giving some words of encouragement on how you can get through would be helpful. The song is about being patient, but it’s also about finding your own journey with your child. That journey might not be what you expect, but once you go on that trip, you’ll find a way and you’ll enjoy that whole ride. I just tell people stick with it, stay consistent, and it gets better.
TRHH: What’s Solidified’s place in the catalog of Awon?
Awon: You know, it’s early. I don’t know yet. I really enjoyed making the album. I really enjoyed the album. It was refreshing for me. I hope people feel the same. I was so confident about this record and the only thing that I ever told Joe and had him mention to Isaiah was it’s an odd time to be putting out music because the world is upside down and we can’t compete with uncertainty. You know what I’m saying? So, that’s the only thing that’s like an obstacle or any adversity. But I was like super confident in everything that we did. And that’s just the way I’m at now, man. You don’t get this gray and get to be my age to be worried about what people think. It is what it is.
I think it’s dope as hell. And I hope everybody else that listened to it enjoyed it. There’s more to come, man. I’m not gonna stop working and I understand that it’s not a lot of youngins doing this. I’m hoping that maybe I inspire some young people to take the mantle and carry the torch and to do what we do, because the observation is that they’re not doing what we do, and that’s scary for me. I don’t want to get old and see this thing of ours go to the wayside. So, all of the young cats that’s out there that might check this interview out, please maybe do some research, do some homework, and maybe participate in this culture. Because just like jazz, just like soul, this is Black American music made right here by us. And we gotta preserve that legacy and preserve our history.
Purchase: Awon & The Other Guys – Solidified