With his Wonderland of Misery 2 mixtape released over the summer, Chris Rivers, the son of late rapper Big Pun, spoke with HipHopSince1987about coming into his own as an artist and being mentored by The Lox and Styles P specifically.
Breaking down the pressure of setting himself apart as an artist, Rivers said he’s gotten “more comfortable in general in doing that.”
“There used to be a lot of added pressure in the beginning, when I was figuring a lot of shit out, like in the sense of who I wanted to be,” he said. “I’m 20, so, I was still figuring out who I wanted to be, not only as an artist but as a person. As I got more comfortable in general in doing that, that pressure kind of leaves and I’m more comfortable with being myself and confident in my craft. Now I know I just deliver to the best of my capacity and I don’t really think about other shit.”
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Speaking from the D Block Studios in Yonkers, Rivers also detailed the lessons he continues to learn from The Lox both in and out of the studio.
“It’s really insane,” he said. “It’s a privilege really. To learn from veterans like that, it’s hardcore knowledge that you don’t just get everyday. Styles really helped me to develop my craft a lot since he’s been helping me and it’s really been an awesome privilege just to be here and work with them and learn a lot…One of the biggest [lessons] that changed me the most instantly, they told me a lot, but at least the one that changed me the most with my craft. Styles and them were telling me, I would spit rapidly. I was almost like a one-trick pony in a sense. I was less likely to break out of that habit of rapping like that and they taught me how to kill people with their own gun in a sense. I could spit a certain way and be nasty with it. Say my weapon is a sword. He’s spitting with a gun, I gotta pick up that gun, use his style, and kill him with that. I think that’s very important, to show versatility as an artist. They been really teaching me that ‘cause if you wanna make music for yourself then make music for yourself. If you’re trying to be successful then you gotta make things that people wanna hear. You gotta figure out how to do that and be awesome at it. They definitely been helping me with that.”
Addressing future possibilities for collaborations, the rapper listed several artists he’d like to work with.
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“As far as producers go, of course I would like to work with the greats,” he said. “Dre, people like that. But, anyone really talented. I’ve been working with a lot of people with no names and some people with more names. Sometimes it’s a diamond in a rough. As far as artists go, I had the privilege to perform at Peterpalooza and open up for people like ScHoolboy [Q], Action Bronson, Danny Brown, Ab-Soul. I love that type of music as well. So definitely them. I really wanna work with everyone. Styles is teaching me like I said, with killing people with their own gun, not saying I’m trying to body every rapper. But in a sense that’s the point, I really wanna get on a track with everyone and show the versatility and do that. I really just wanna work with everybody.”
When asked about Remy Ma and the rapper’s recent release from prison, Rivers said that he’s not yet spoken to her but recalled spending time with the emcee prior to his father’s death.
“My pop died when I was six,” he said. “I saw her a lot when I was a kid and a little bit growing up too but after a while I hadn’t seen her in a very long time. I’m very happy she’s out. I seen Pap recently, I’m sure he’s ecstatic about it too. Bottom line.”
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