Birdman makes hustling backwards look good. The man then-known as Baby started as a mogul, introducing Juvenile, Lil Wayne and The Hot Boys with his blockbuster label Cash Money a decade ago. Then he put his gangsta image on front page, donning bandanas and tattoos nearly a decade after Suge Knight attempted the same, before a destructive blaze of glory. Today though, Birdman is focused on rapping. He appears on slews of remixes, mixtapes and releases exclusives to the streets at a pace close to his adopted son Lil Wayne.

At 38 years-old though, it’s worked. It’s highly plausible that Birdman, off of the heels of his six-month single “Pop Bottles,” is more embedded in young ears than LL Cool J, let alone most rappers in their upper twenties. Wherever controversy has found Birdman, whether in photographs, questions about street gangs or just last month in a Tennessee arrest, he’s never cowered from a question or sidestepped an answer. The president and CEO of Cash Money Records might just be what the next president of the United States refuses to be: accountable for his actions.

In an exclusive interview with HipHopDX, Birdman is true to form. His new ad-lib, “bruh” sounds like a Dog The Bounty Hunter impersonator and his conviction to his words are ripe. With his third solo album, 5 * Stunna dropping this week, many rap fans see the release as a fullback, making a clear path for Wayne’s inauguration next year. But don’t entirely confuse Birdman’s hubris for lack of heart. The multitalented mogul tells HipHopDX about his family, his formula and his views on fatherhood.

HipHopDX: You’ve proven yourself as a rapper, a philanthropist and a mogul. In your eyes, how did you earn the stars to become a 5 * Stunna?
Birdman: Shit. I think I’ve put it all the way down, homie. I’ve put my life on the line with it. I left it all on the floor, homie – from the music to the streets. I [passed] the test with that. I done took it in blood too, ya heard me?

DX: You’ve been rapping for so long. There are so many people in their mid-twenties let alone their upper-thirties who struggle to connect with the youth. You’ve got teenagers as a major part of your movement. What has allowed you to connect so well with the kids?
B: I think it’s a God-gifted swagger. Then again, I’m into the things that they want, bruh. Flashy cars, the jewelry, etc. etc. I think everybody wants to be with a winning team. I think people realize, and I think the youth – as far as the kids and the babies that love us like that, it’s kinda strange; I be seeing one and two-year-old kids hip to us like that. I guess it’s a God-gifted thing, bruh, ‘cause everybody don’t have that. We just do what we do; we don’t try to aim at the kids. We aim at nobody. We just try to feed our music. That’s the only thing I can say to that: God-gifted.

DX: We all remember that Source Awards where it was said how unfavorable it was for label CEOs to be appearing in videos and rapping alongside their artists. That was 1995. Twelve years later, whether you, Jay-Z, 50 Cent or anybody else, what do you think changed in rap music where that became in vogue?
B: Really, being a center-fold of it, ya heard me? With us, with all the names you [mentioned], everybody has their time. With me, I think it was that I watched them dudes; I studied them dudes, from Master P to Suge Knight to James Smith to Diddy to Eazy. I studied my craft, and still today, I’m a student of the game. It comes a time when I think we have to let somebody come through, bruh. There were eras when it was all about me, all about [Eazy] E, all about [Master] P. We have to know when to change and when to switch. It’s fortunate that I have my son [Lil Wayne], so I knew when to just let him go, and just get out the way and let him do him, and let him bring me back.

DX: On the album, you’ve got the song “100 Million.” As Jay-Z and 50 Cent get into Forbes and Fortune, do you want that kind of attention for Birdman?
B: That’s why we do it, homie! I do it for those things. I do it to be the best [and] get the most money. If havin’ the most money comes with that…I don’t look at none of that; I don’t care about none of that. I just care about being able to provide for my family and my friends. If that [publicity] comes with it, then it just comes with it. We don’t aim at that.

DX: I was reading Lil Wayne’s interview in XXL this morning, where he’s gotten three covers this year. In that interview, he said that he was not really concerned with sales. That’s refreshing to hear. But on your side, you’re the businessman behind Wayne. As the most popular rapper in Hip Hop, how can you ensure that the popularity translates into sales?
B: That’s our whole goal and our whole challenge with him, bruh, that we make the popularity go with the sales. We always did platinum. That’s been our thing; we’ve sold over 40-50 million records in our 10 year span. But we know that Wayne is the hog of the dogs, so we’re looking to do whatever we’ve got to do to make sure that it evens off. That takes time, we understand that too. But we’re just gonna leave it all on the floor, like I said. We never know what to expect, but we’re expecting and wishin’ for the best. I think what he meant was, he ain’t trippin’ off [sales]. Mothafuckas be fighting for it, and we know we’re gonna get our numbers; we ain’t got to trip and fight for that. Continued on page 2 »