The rĆ©sumĆ© of DJ Muggs is something most producers only dream of achieving. As a member of Cypress Hill, heās helped create a number of Hip Hop classics. Outside of the group, heās worked with a myriad of legends, including GZA, Bun B, Mobb Deep and Goodie Mob.
After putting out two collaborative projects with Meyhem Lauren, Muggs has returned to his Soul Assassins brand for a new album titled Dia Del Asesinato. The LP is yet another display of his elite skills behind the boards and boasts an impressive lineup of guests.
Earlier this week, HipHopDX got the chance to catch up with Muggs and delve into his latest work. In addition to detailing his collaborations with the likes of DOOM, Kool G Rap and Raekwon, the veteran producer also shared some insight on Cypress Hillās upcoming album Elephants On Acid and revealed some details about his Kaos LP with Roc MarcianoĀ during the in-depth conversation.
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HipHopDX: When did you begin the creative process on this new album? And when you start a new Soul Assassins project, do you have any specific plan in mind for artists that you want on there? Or is it just something that develops naturally?
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DJ Muggs: Man, I did this in like February. I went to New York for a couple weeks and just rented a studio. And then I just invited people to the studio to come work and this is who showed up.
I was just gonna make songs. I was just gonna go and then I was like, āIām just gonna make some projects out of this.ā Then, I got another record worth of stuff. I did aboutāI wanna say about 25 songs in the time we were there.
So yeah, this is just the first one that I decided to put out. When I was done, I just sat back and basically tried to put two songs from everybody on there. So, I got two different Raekwon songs; two different Mach-Hommy songs; and two different G Rap songs; and two different DOOM songs; and two with Meyhem Lauren.
There were a couple new artists I worked with, which was Eto. Iām working on a project with him. The shitās called Hellās Roof. And then there was this kid, Hus Kingpin, Iāve been doing some songs with. So, I thought these will be the new artists Iāll put on there. I put just one song of each from them. So, thatās basically how that shit went down.
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DX: With Kool G Rap on there, thatās someone you worked with back on the second Soul Assassins album. I was wondering what was it like teaming up with him again all these years later?
Muggs: Oh, itās the shit. See, somebody like G Rap ā¦ To me, heās the only dude thatās still around from the 80s that his pen is fucking sharp as knives, still. His flow is still ill. His flow didnāt go off. His pen didnāt get weak. He sounds current, you know what I mean?
He sounds current with the lyrics. Like, he could be just brand new right now. If he was like 18, you know what I mean? Just sounding like him with his pen. So, there aināt nobody else doing that. Like, I aināt heard it.
All the cats from then is ā¦ they are onto some of the other stuff. So seeing that, man, itās inspiring me. Like, yo, this is the fucking 80s, 90s. Itās fucking 30 years to now. Heās still killing it. Was that even possible like 20 years ago? Did you ever think that anybody was gonna be dope in 30 years?
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DX: Right. Itās kind of crazy. Another one you mentioned was Raekwon. I really like those two tracks that you did with him. It made me think of the Grandmasters project you did with GZA. It seems like outside of RZA and Wu-Elements producers, you really have a beat on what brings the best out of the Wu-Tang. Can you tell me a little bit about the way you are able to connect with them and that sound?
Muggs: Well, I mean I originally connected with RZA back in the day and built a friendship with GZA. Tareef [Michael], who manages Wu-Tang, is a really good friend of mine. Rae, you know weāve been in the lab a lot together. I know me and Raeās probably done probably about five songs by now, five or six songs from all the different projects.
And then I just play them shit. Iāll play them these ones when it comes through and itās what they gravitate towards. Rae just picks ā¦ They pick good beats. They know what to pick for themselves as well. So, I mean it aināt too much really thinking about it. I donāt go, āI gotta go make a beat for this.ā I just make my shit and when they come through, I just play it for āem.
That beatās gonna sound different no matter whoās on it. They put that certain thing to it. Otherwise, I got a beat and B-Real could kick it ā itās a whole ānother song, right?
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DX: Definitely. These days, a lot of producers are moving away from sampling, just with clearance issues and the rise of trap music. What is your process like on that end? Do you do feel like youāre still able to sample as much as you ever were? Or have you had to change up your method?
Muggs: I still sample. What we do now though is we make our own samples a lot. So, weāll go in for like a week and make about 60, 70 samples. And then Iāll just start sampling from my own samples.
I work with a few musicians. Weāll go in and just build samples. So, I do that a lot ācause I still think thereās still something about the sampling sound and just that particular style of music. And being able to get that sound without having to go deal with all that fucking sample clearance shit, you know?
DX: On this album, youāve got some more records with Meyhem Lauren. Yāall just put out an album and an EP together. What was it about Meyhem that clicked so well with you?
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Muggs: When I met Meyhem. it was just like meeting some fool Iāve known for a long time. You know, Meyās from Queens. He just reminds me of kids I grew up with. Heās younger than me, but I was just like, āI grew up with you. I already know you.ā And heās a good muthafucka. Heās got a hard work ethic too.
When I first met Mey, the reason weāre working now is ācause I left him two beats. I was in the studio, I left around midnight. By the time I woke up at like seven in the morning, I had two finished songs in my inbox. And I was like, that just what it takes. āCause when I work, I go hard. I work hard. Stay focused. Get my shit done.
Some muthafuckas wanna lollygag and hold on to your beat for two weeks and sit there and fucking ā¦ I aināt got time for that. So, when I seen that with Mey, I was like thatās the kind of muthafuckas I wanna work with right there. And we clicked. Whenever we around, we just jump in the lab. Get it in for four or five hours, get something done.
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This shit is fun. We just paint pictures. We like writing on walls, but we just painting with sounds. You know, this music shit aināt work. This shit is like meditation and just hanging out. So, we just donāt hang out on the corner no more. We just go in the lab, have everybody come to the lab and have our parties.
DX: Speaking of work ethic, Mach-Hommy is another guest on this LP that fits the bill. Howād he get on your radar, and what was it that you liked so much about him to get those collaborations going?
Muggs: I connected with Mach through Meyhem. I like Machās flow a lot. I like his reference points. You can tell heās educated. He aināt common. You aināt heard this shit before. Heās one-on-one. Heās got his own styleĀ and his own flavor. He stays really low and mysterious about his business.
Itās unique. I always look for uniqueness, even in music. You donāt gotta pick the best, hottest beat. You just pick some quirky ass beat, and you put some ill shit on it and thatās a hit song. So, Machās just got something unique thatās just fun for me to work with.
DX: Talking about that quirkiness on records, I think the epitome of that would be DOOM. It was cool to see yāall connect for a couple of records on here. How did you end up building with DOOM and making these two tracks?
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Muggs: I got connected with DOOM from my homeboy Dante Ross, whoās like a 30-year friend of mine. And he used to work with DOOM. He signed KMD, actually.
I had met DOOM and them before down in his SD 1200 Studios in New York. We was actually in the āSteppinā To The AMā video together, 3rd Bassā video. We in the back of the car if you watch that video.
I had to find DOOM, so Dante connected me with him. Then I flew out to Spain, and we connected in Barcelona. We went into the lab for a few days, banged this shit out.
DX: You were saying that you created a lot of music for this album. Do you have a second part of Dia Del Asesinato coming soon or any other releases planned from those sessions?
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Muggs: I just work. I donāt know what Iām gonna do. I got a lot of projects coming. I just work. I got about 100 songs Iām sitting on right now. I just get in the lab all the time. We donāt stop.
We just go. Keep that muscle fucking exercised. Itās the creative flow. I like to stay creative. We like to hit the gym. We like to read books. We like to spend time with family. So, we keep everything on full throttle at all times.
And Iāll figure out what Iām gonna do. Once I get some artwork and shit and I get a concept in my head, then Iām like, āOh, Iāll put these songs with this.ā But you work with no results. You just work freely and go. It just keeps shit open. Thatās pretty much my creative process at this moment with everything Iām doing.
If somebody wanna do an album, Iām like, āNah, man. Letās just go make music and weāll see what happens.ā Some albums donāt get finished. Some get done quicker and you just let everything kind of take on a life force of its own. See what kind of energies you connect when you connect with people.
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The next project I got coming out after this ā early October ā is the album with Roc Marciano. Itās called Kaos. We just sent it in to master.
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DX: Oh wow. I was just gonna ask you about it and get a status update, but there it is!
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Muggs: Yep. Thatās the best record out right now! It aināt out yet, but itās the best album thatās out right now.
DX: Looking forward to that. Can you talk about working with Roc and what it was like to get in there with him? Heās been killing it the last couple years, so I imagine it was probably exciting to get in the studio with him.
Muggs: Roc Marcianoās a national treasure. Line for line, thereās nobody better than Roc Marciano. Word for word, line for line, heās the illest. So, being able to be around that, itās just sword sharpening sword.
Roc brings out the best in me. I push Roc. And we try to just take everything weāre doing and just make it bigger and better. Some next level shit we got coming up.
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Itās Roc Marciano on 10 songs. No guests. There aināt a lot of muthafuckas that can hold down an album by themselves anymore. Like some records got like 10 fucking guests on it. When you can come in like a Roc can and just do the whole fucking album without one guest, thatās some shit to be said about some shit.
DX: Yeah, itās rare these days. I do have to ask a little bit about Cypress Hill. Yāall have Elephants on Acid coming pretty soon. What can we expect from the record? Is there anything different from your process for solo records as opposed to when youāre in there with B-Real and Sen Dog?
Muggs: That recordās fun. The energy we have when we get into the studio together, it brings me back to the block. Itās like Iām standing back on Cypress Avenue in 1988.
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We just harness that energy and bring it to the lab with us. Being part of a group, I could really get into that shit and get super deep into the character and the aesthetics of that shit. I could come with a whole different sound.
They got a sound like nobody has. So, when I approached Cypress this time, itās about just creating our own world. Not worrying about whatās going on in pop music or pop rap or trap or any kind of music, period. Weāre just gonna create our own world, and this is Cypress Hill. Thatās what makes us unique.
We have a musical style. Itās just bringing that energy everybody loves and harnessing that energy and making you feel like that when the shit starts coming through the speakers. Make you feel like only Cypress Hill can make you feel.
DX: Iām excited to hear what yāall have cooked up. I really appreciate you taking the time to speak with us and congrats on the new album release.
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Muggs: I appreciate it too, brother. Thanks for your time and energy. Iāll see you around some time.
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