DX: I respect how you make it a point to reach out to the younger cats. Instead of being on the “these young cats are wack” tip, you actually acknowledge the new artists that are dope.
BB: Because it wasn’t a lot of that for me, it was only the few people around me. I wish that it would’ve been like a Big Daddy Kane or a Rakim to just reach out to me. It’s not that I’m comparing myself to a Big Daddy Kane or Rakim in any way. I was so happy when ‘Face did it and when Too Short did it. I think that’s important, to get those calls out of the blue and get those few words of inspiration at then talk to people that have experienced things that you haven’t, to give you clear and concise advice about some shit. I’ve been talking to Yung Joc a lot lately; just trying to be there for people on a personal level. Not every problem that a rapper has is a rap problem. We’re married men, we’re parents, we go through all kinds of shit. Most of the time, the advice I give to rappers is more about real life situations than about rap.

DX: From your early stuff with UGK up until now, there seems to be a huge confidence shift. What would you attribute that to?
BB: Just the fact that people can know what they can count on with a UGK record, or a Pimp C record or a Bun B record. They know what to expect, and that’s comforting. There’s a lot of uncertainty in this world today, and I think it’s comforting for people to have one thing they can count on [that is] what we do and what we’ve always done. They can count on us making that same music, and being real with them about the world and about ourselves. I think that’s the key to longevity…to take the wall that most artists put up between themselves and the consumer, and tear it down.