4th Shore Hip Hop

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[Interview] YL Drops New Video for “Love Me”, Talks Upcoming Project & More

[Interview] YL Drops New Video for “Love Me”, Talks Upcoming Project & More

[Interview] YL Drops New Video for “Love Me”, Talks Upcoming Project & More

I was introduced to YL’s music a few weeks back and I was excited to get to talk to him about his upcoming music and see his dope new video for Love Me. It’s clear the Chicago MC has a vision and the high quality visuals he’s been dropping show he’s putting in the necessary work. Love Me is another collab with producer Takao Beatz and the duo comes through with a passionate song that highlights YL’s gruff vocals and introspective lyrics. I got the chance to ask YL a little more about his relationship with Takao Beatz, what to expect from his upcoming project, Kiss More, Care Less, and a variety of other things. Check out the whole interview below and be on the lookout for more from YL coming soon.

How has living in Chicago impacted your music?

Truth be told, Chicago hasn’t really impacted my music sonically because I try my hardest not to make music that would make you say “oh he’s from Chicago” however Chicago has most certainly impacted my love for all different genres of music. I recently moved to the East Side (South Side) and it truly has influenced my love for all things African American. The history is rich and it’s inspiring to know I have the opportunity to use that history to my advantage in crafting music.
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Word is you have a project dropping soon. Can you tell us a little bit about about that and what to expect? 

Oh yeah I have my 2nd project dropping called Kiss More, Care Less or #KMCL and its really an EP centered around my song writing ability. It’s much more light hearted than my previous project which was called American Religion : LAMES; which was very heavy on my conscience to make due to the fact I wasn’t really my own artist at that point. KMCL has me rapping about having fun, previous rendezvous with women and worrying less about politics and worrying about things I can’t control anyways. After ARL (my first tape) I lost my actual religion and faith in God while tryna help others around me find theirs. On this tape i just focused on growth and I’m singing and tryna find my pockets despite my raspy voice.
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You’ve linked up with Takao Beatz a handful of times now, what’s it been like working with him? How did you first meet?

Takao actually is producing this entire EP and we locked in earlier this year to get this project started. He’s huge man, really great guy and he’s helping me cultivate the YL sound for this project and upcoming project after this release. Believe it or not we met via twitter like 3-4 years ago and we been crafting ever since. He produced on my first project but he’s the head man in charge this time around. It should be fun to watch it grow in the near future. 

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What do you want people to take away from your music? What’s the message you hope people hear? 

The number 1 thing folks should take away from my music is be yourself. Be comfortable in your own skin and never stop believing in your abilities to create. No matter what you do in life, never stop learning and really view things from the inside out; try to find a deeper meaning to the things you see and hear. Everything has several different meanings, it’s like the glass half full statement. It all depends on how you view it. 
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If you could collaborate with one artist in the world, who would it be and why? 

Oh man that’s a tough one, I would have to say Missy Elliot. Her first album is the soundtrack to a lot of artist careers. Especially in today’s hip hop, she’s a pioneer and her sound is unique and creative. It sticks in your head. 
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Who are some of your influences, both musically and personally? 

Honestly the only influence I have is knowing this music shit is my mother’s 401k plan. I have a son now and a family as well so it’s a must I stay level headed and prosper for them. My musical influence will always be Jay Z, it’s so many things I could say about Jay but what else is it to say. He raised an entire generation of rappers. Hell I quote his lyrics in my everyday life and use them as examples of how handle certain situations. 
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What’s your favorite song you’ve ever recorded? Why is it your favorite?

Favorite song I ever recorded was this song called entree on ARL. It’s produced by my homie and full time producer outside of Takao by the name of AllDay and the reason it’s my favorite is because I wrote the song and recorded it in 24 hrs. Nothing major but considering I wrote the song around the Shit that was actually going on in my life at the time and the flow was just crazy. That song really made me say oh shit, I can really be a rapper and make a career out of it. Y’all should check it. 
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Big thanks to YL for taking the time to do this interview! I hope you enjoyed reading it and got to know YL a little bit more. Be on the lookout for Kiss More, Care Less and give him a follow on Twitter.

 

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