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The Dungeon Dragon @BusaBusss spoke with Shaheem Reid for this special interview over at XXL. In it, the Conglomerate Capo and newest YMCMB recruit explains how the #1 record with Breezy and Tunechi materialized. He also talks a little bit about his new venture as a flagship artist for Google Music.
As popular as “Look At Me Now” is, I don’t think anyone has asked you how you got on the song to begin with?
Busta: The Chris Brown record, it was weird because it was right place at the right time situation. We were all in the studio in New York. I had my older son in the studio with me. My oldest son is like 6’7”, plays ball. This is the three year old from the “Woo-Ha” video. He’s 18 now. He’s on his college shit. You know Chris Brown played ball that weekend, DJ Clue, Fabulous and a couple of them brothers played ball in Chelsea Piers. So Chris Brown was in the studio, my son was in the studio with me and they were talking about playing ball. We worked it out so they could play ball with Clue and Chris Brown and Fabulous and them. While that was happening, we were mixing “The Mechanic (Remix)” for Reek The Villain. Nelly is on the remix and he had a session in the studio next door. He came into our session to approve how he sounded on the mix. In terms of how his vocals were leveled. When he came in the room, he came into the room with Chris Brown.
We all chopped it up and Nelly and Chris Brown went into Nelly’s session. We was like fuck it, Nelly came into our session, we gonna go into Nelly’s session to show love. Chris Brown was playing the “Look At Me Now” joint for Nelly. At that time, it only had Chris Brown’s voice on it. I don’t know if Chris Brown had in mind who he wanted to use or not. I came over to him like, “This shit is stupid. You doing that speed rap shit, let me show you how to keep the dice rolling while you doing that thing homie.” The niggas stopped me and said, “Yo Bus, stop me in the middle of my shit on the speed rap. And say the same thing and go into your shit and black out.” With that little direction, I blacked out, sent in to him and he loved it. I didn’t hear the song again until the night before it got to Flex and it had Tunechi on it. At that point, I knew niggas was in trouble. It was a definitely a great situation that came about. I big up Wayne and Chris Brown for letting us come together and making some historical shit come about.
XXL: I was just talking to NORE and he told me of how you inspired him to make some of his new music. Lil Cease has said the same thing. Everyone knows how you were inspirational to Raekwon in making Cuban Linx Part II. Who inspires you?
Busta: Brothers like you do that. You calling me to tell me you want to do an article like that is an inspiration. Our brother Sway, gives me those conversations. Q-Tip gives me those conversations. Diddy gives me those conversations. I don’t know if you know, but it’s quite obvious, Khaled’s inspiration is unprecedented.
XXL: Khaled, I call him the Hip-Hop Vince Lombardi. He’ll have you feeling like you can run through five brick walls.
Busta: He needs to be a coach. Khaled’s talk game makes you feel like you’re the greatest ever. Spliff star and my immediate family, they don’t let me make wrong moves Those are niggas I worked many years and surrounded myself with that aren’t the cliché “yes men” niggas. That say shit that they feel they need to say to secure themselves amongst the circle. I have people that genuinely care. They’re like, “I know you have to turn that verse in tomorrow, why don’t you go to bed, wake up and listen to it with fresh ears?”
XXL: You told me your new partnership with Google Music as a “chess move that leads by example and sets the template for the new 21st century artists.”
Busta: It’s displaying a new way of releasing music. It’s gonna be a grand, festive moment for hip-hop overall. It’s show people how greatly we can look forward to the growth of doing this shit the way it’s supposed to be. I couldn’t be more grateful for a better time in my career and evolution process at this point.
As popular as “Look At Me Now” is, I don’t think anyone has asked you how you got on the song to begin with?
Busta: The Chris Brown record, it was weird because it was right place at the right time situation. We were all in the studio in New York. I had my older son in the studio with me. My oldest son is like 6’7”, plays ball. This is the three year old from the “Woo-Ha” video. He’s 18 now. He’s on his college shit. You know Chris Brown played ball that weekend, DJ Clue, Fabulous and a couple of them brothers played ball in Chelsea Piers. So Chris Brown was in the studio, my son was in the studio with me and they were talking about playing ball. We worked it out so they could play ball with Clue and Chris Brown and Fabulous and them. While that was happening, we were mixing “The Mechanic (Remix)” for Reek The Villain. Nelly is on the remix and he had a session in the studio next door. He came into our session to approve how he sounded on the mix. In terms of how his vocals were leveled. When he came in the room, he came into the room with Chris Brown.
We all chopped it up and Nelly and Chris Brown went into Nelly’s session. We was like fuck it, Nelly came into our session, we gonna go into Nelly’s session to show love. Chris Brown was playing the “Look At Me Now” joint for Nelly. At that time, it only had Chris Brown’s voice on it. I don’t know if Chris Brown had in mind who he wanted to use or not. I came over to him like, “This shit is stupid. You doing that speed rap shit, let me show you how to keep the dice rolling while you doing that thing homie.” The niggas stopped me and said, “Yo Bus, stop me in the middle of my shit on the speed rap. And say the same thing and go into your shit and black out.” With that little direction, I blacked out, sent in to him and he loved it. I didn’t hear the song again until the night before it got to Flex and it had Tunechi on it. At that point, I knew niggas was in trouble. It was a definitely a great situation that came about. I big up Wayne and Chris Brown for letting us come together and making some historical shit come about.
XXL: I was just talking to NORE and he told me of how you inspired him to make some of his new music. Lil Cease has said the same thing. Everyone knows how you were inspirational to Raekwon in making Cuban Linx Part II. Who inspires you?
Busta: Brothers like you do that. You calling me to tell me you want to do an article like that is an inspiration. Our brother Sway, gives me those conversations. Q-Tip gives me those conversations. Diddy gives me those conversations. I don’t know if you know, but it’s quite obvious, Khaled’s inspiration is unprecedented.
XXL: Khaled, I call him the Hip-Hop Vince Lombardi. He’ll have you feeling like you can run through five brick walls.
Busta: He needs to be a coach. Khaled’s talk game makes you feel like you’re the greatest ever. Spliff star and my immediate family, they don’t let me make wrong moves Those are niggas I worked many years and surrounded myself with that aren’t the cliché “yes men” niggas. That say shit that they feel they need to say to secure themselves amongst the circle. I have people that genuinely care. They’re like, “I know you have to turn that verse in tomorrow, why don’t you go to bed, wake up and listen to it with fresh ears?”
XXL: You told me your new partnership with Google Music as a “chess move that leads by example and sets the template for the new 21st century artists.”
Busta: It’s displaying a new way of releasing music. It’s gonna be a grand, festive moment for hip-hop overall. It’s show people how greatly we can look forward to the growth of doing this shit the way it’s supposed to be. I couldn’t be more grateful for a better time in my career and evolution process at this point.
