#142
Video animation by: Big Flowers
Intro/Outro beat by: BLOODBLIXING
Intro (0:00).
The Plug (0:21).
The Interview (3:14).
"I'ma keep it real with you, it's the things you can't undo/The past, the black Rubik's cube"
"Payback always inexact but I be squinting over measuring spoons"
For most artists, lyrics like this would universally be regarded as their all-time best moments.
But for artists like billy woods though… lyrics like this are a dime a dozen… they're literally just Verse 2 off of a song called "Hangman".
The praise being thrown the way of NY-based rapper, label head of Backwoodz Studioz, and 1/2 of Armand Hammer… are plentiful, and growing in their fervor.
After a string of releases that involved high-profile names such as Moor Mother and The Alchemist in late 2020 / early 2021, billy woods rode this surging wave of acclaim surrounding his music, and delivered two legacy-defining works back to back in 2022.
This put the finishing touches on what is, in my humble opinion, the greatest 5-year run in hip-hop history.
From 2018 onward, we got Paraffin, Hiding Places, Terror Management, Shrines, BRASS, Haram, Aethiopes, WHT LBL, and finally, Church.
And if that wasn’t enough, his Backwoodz Studioz camp has added to the flurry of incredible forward-thinking art during this time period, through the emergence of E L U C I D, ShrapKnel, AKAI SOLO, SKECH185, and more.
Yet here we are, in May of 2023… and billy woods has done it again.
Teaming up with Kenny Segal for a second time, woods has released his latest masterpiece, Maps... and he’s here today on the show, to talk about his experience creating this record, his writing style and the frequent themes found in his work, Armand Hammer, the legacy of Backwoodz, and so much more!
If you’re familiar with me and this show so far, you know how I feel about woods. You know I had to make the most of my opportunity speaking with the GOAT.
You won't wanna miss this...
Staying grounded amidst growing acclaim (4:22).
The concept of ‘survivor’s guilt’ as it relates to woods’ career and life in general (9:11).
The legacy of Backwoodz Studioz (15:48).
Working with E L U C I D as Armand Hammer (19:20).
New Armand Hammer album later in 2023 (24:19).
woods’ writing process and a breakdown of “No Hard Feelings” (24:45).
The key ideas underpinning the creation of Aethiopes (32:09).
Love and relationships in woods’ music (46:43).
woods’ mind state creating Maps (52:12).
How Maps differs from Hiding Places (57:53).
Working with Kenny Segal (1:00:18).
Breakdown of the ending to Maps, and how fatherhood has impacted woods’ music (1:18:12).
Upcoming work to expect from woods and Backwoodz Studioz (1:28:37).
Support Backwoodz Studioz here: backwoodzstudioz.com/
Buy Maps here: backwoodzstudioz.com/collecti...
Follow billy woods on Twitter here: / backwoodzhiphop
Follow billy woods on Instagram here: backwoodzst...
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Пікірлер: 149
Best billy woods interview I’ve listened to. Glad this popped up on my recommended.
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
I’m so happy to hear this made it your way! I’ve had many other greats on the show such as R.A.P. Ferreira, E L U C I D, Wiki, MORPH, and many more! Highly suggest you stick around.
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
@@thetimelesshistoryofhip-ho1013 Dope!!
I CAN'T STOP LISTENING TO MAPS. HELP!!!
@oliverbranch777
Жыл бұрын
Me toooooo 😂 he put magic in it
@Jimmy1982Playlists
Жыл бұрын
Fr, fr! INCREDIBLE piece of work... blessings to billy woods & Kenny Segal! They showed up & showed out.
@oneeyedlair
Жыл бұрын
@Hasan Piker that brings me a lot of comfort. Thanks brother
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
sorry, can’t help you there!!
@FantomBrillo
Жыл бұрын
It’s stuck on repeat over here too don’t trip
Your killing it Rohan. Huge interview, so excited to hear this.
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
Thank you so much, let me know what you think!!
@brokenfingers98
Жыл бұрын
@@rapmusicplugpod I'm sure it's something you learned through having done so many interviews with such talented people, but still amazes me how effortlessly comfortable you sound and how even when you pose serious questions nothing ever seems forced or arduous but always has that natural tempo of old friends catching up. Woods is also my all-timer and being the enigma he is it was so great to hear him talk on all that he did.
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
@@brokenfingers98 Thank you so much, that's really high praise! I definitely aim to make the conversation as grounded and comfortable as possible. I'm glad you enjoyed, support like this means a lot fr.
such a good talk, really enjoying this. billy woods' mind is fascinating. cheers from Morocco
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
Couldn’t agree more! Thank you so much for tuning in, I’m glad you enjoyed.
@Oualid-om3mo
Жыл бұрын
Taana kniti lamri azbi jhhhhhhh
Man been listening to Billy for 11 years now! From Camouflage to The Chalice, I just can’t believe how he keeps putting out legendary works of art. Just caught him in Boston and it was amazing. Glad to see him getting the recognition he deserves!!
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
Absolutely, this current run is legit untouchable. Happy to see the work get this level of acclaim.
BILLY WOODS is undoubtedly my most inspirational alternative hip-hop artist to date!
Best Woods interview (as others have said)! Great questions and great job letting Woods fully answer. So many questions/topics I'd want to ask about.
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
Means a lot that you say that!! It took a TON of refining and self-editing to refrain from asking the entire list of 87475 questions I had on my mind lol
This is truly a good podcast
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
Much love fam! I really put my all into this... I'm glad it's resonating with you.
This came in at the right time ngl
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
Yup! Was thrilled to have the opportunity to do this right on the heels of the Maps release. It's made the album sound that much better, given the context provided in this conversation.
NYC tapwater has been on repeat. I'm a Brooklyn native now living in the DMV and Woods lyricism really hit home on that one. "I miss this place till I'm back."🗽 I have alot of discomfort and vulnerability I work through daily and his words can strike a chord.
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
His ability to synthesize life's challenges, while injecting humour and humanity into the equation as well... is truly unparalleled. He can unearth the most profound observations out of the most mundane of things.
Massive deal and a fantastic interview. Thank you for the work you do for the culture, keeping my senses peeled for new episodes.
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
Wow thank you so much! Happy you enjoyed this. There's definitely more great interviews like this coming out soon!
New listener. Guess the algorithm got it right. Great job mate. Love this long form conversation with Woods. Subscribed!
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
Was honoured that he gave me such a large amount of time. Appreciate the sub! There's tons of other content on the channel covering other great artists (reviews and interviews), which I'm sure you'll enjoy.
Billy Woods has such a cerebral mind. Definitely the most intellectual rapper I've ever heard.
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
100%
Album of the year
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
it’s in the conversation 100%… right up there for me
Love this conversation!!! Become a fan of billy woods 3 years ago. Music is therapy
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
It certainly is! Thanks for listening
Great interview, man, I'm loving it. Love from Brazil!
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
Appreciate the support!!!
This is an incredible interview. It’s great to have an interviewer who truly appreciates and understands Billy Woods. So much insights from both sides and this was absolutely beautiful.
@rapmusicplugpod
6 ай бұрын
Thank you so much for the kind feedback!! Definitely trying to honour the music as much as I can, glad this resonated with you.
The perfect introduction first 2:30 minutes
This was a great convo man good job here, thanks for this and congrats!
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
Thank you so much!! This was a great moment for the show indeed… and I plan to have many more to come in the near-future.
Can't believe I'd slept on this legend, recommended to me in a supermarket by Huey Morgan...
@rapmusicplugpod
Ай бұрын
Glad you're not sleeping now!
Aaaaaahhhhh. I was waiting on you to do an interview with him
Ngl bro I’m a deep diver for any type of conversations/interviews with billy woods and I must say this is THE BEST INTERVIEW ON YT! you did a great job of pacing your questions and allowing billy woods to go back to some elements of your questions. Liked how you weren’t a drone neither just being very agreeable but you made connections to your own life as well that gave great depth to how many of us also feel about billy woods verses. Almost every question you asked, billy would say, “that is an interesting question…”. Keep it up!!!
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
This is like the highest compliment I can ever receive. woods is so thoughtful, so I wanted to give him the requisite space to cook! Thank you so much for giving this your time! Many more great interviews with people like E L U C I D and R.A.P. Ferreira that I'm sure you'll like as well.
SPONGEBOB, THE WHOLE INTERVIEW UNDERWATER
@rapmusicplugpod
Ай бұрын
LFGGGG haha
Remarkable interview man. Just found your channel and this is top tier. woods for me is top 5 of the last decade and in my top 6 of al time. Maps is his best work too date, I can not sotp playing it over and over again. We could be talking about one of the best albums for a very long time.
@oliverbranch777
Жыл бұрын
Damn I thought I was the only one who thought that. Tears in my eyes right now bc of How much good music means so much to me. Love love love maps
@Jimmy1982Playlists
Жыл бұрын
@@oliverbranch777 Judging by the reaction it's getting, I think a lot of people rate it either one of his best, or his greatest album yet... it's it's hard to pick just one, depending on my mood, but it's as good a pick as any. He & Segal are one of the great MC/producer duos of all time, imo!
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
that’s beautiful man, I love it when people love music.. it’s the best thing in the world
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
I’m glad this resonated with you!! Maps is insanely good. Definitely lots of great content on the channel, including an interview with the god Willie Green, which drops next week!
Such an amazing interview man you're properly talented at this. So much detail about woods and his process here thank you
one day i will be interviewed by you.
Going to tap this into later. Congo for getting billy on. Great work twin keep going
comment for the algorithm before diving into this interview. i'm hopeful that more hip-hop listeners will discover the catalogues of woods, ELUCID, and their contemporaries. also looking forward to checking out some other episodes of this show to hopefully find some artists i may be sleeping on. cheers. edit: listened to the whole interview now and i'm floored. what a great conversation; truly gives me greater appreciation for woods and what he stands for. I'm so impressed at the questions you had in addition to the depth of knowledge about his work. i've seen a few other interviews with woods/ELUCID/other collaborators, and I usually felt a bit underwhelmed at where the conversations went. the thing i appreciate most about these artists is how they tackle complex ideas with such grace and come out the other side with (what i would consider) bangers that can be listened to dozens of times before you really uncover everything they have to say. hearing woods talk about how he's come to make this album and some previous work was really humanizing in a way that is somehow less personal, but more relatable in how i've gone through struggles and come out the other side with new perspectives. it also blows me away how humble he is when i see him as a "generational talent" like how he sees some of his co-workers and friends. anyway, glad YT hooked it up with this recommendation and can't wait to look through your other videos.
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
WOW, this is such an incredible feedback. Means so much to me that it resonated with you like this. woods is 100% a generational talent, so I did my best to steer the conversation in interesting ways that allowed him to speak freely on how he looks at the world, and his music. If you liked this, you'll definitely love a lot of the other interviews I have on the show, since I have many Backwoodz artists on here, as well as some other heavy-hitters. Oh and Willie Green is up next!!
love this, dude. you asked the best questions!
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
Thanks dawg!!! This was a fun one. I certainly learnt a lot about his music, as well as other stuff related to some of the history he was delving into that I wasn't fully aware of.
thank you for this.
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
anytime, thanks for listening!!
this is much needed my man, youre doing good work
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
Thank you so much!! The world needs more woods interviews, 100% agree. More great interviews like this on the channel / to come soon! Willie Green is up next...
Wonderful job, thank you.
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
Appreciate the support!!
This was a really great interview! Love woods and Maps is one of his best yet. Great to hear some insight on the creative process. Haven't heard of your channel before but I'm subscribed now!
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
That's dope, appreciate the support! You'll find a lot of great artists here interviewed on the channel that I'm sure you love... We also got Willie Green up next! Yeah Maps is one of his absolute best. I think I bumped it 50-60 times over the past few weeks haha.
Love this interview and love the fact that I have at least another 141 episodes to go through :) - Subbed
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
If you liked this, you will surely love many of the other episodes I have on here!! Appreciate the support!
Billy woods please play a all ages show in St.Louis I want to see you so bad
He's been one of if not my favorite rapper for the past ten or so years. I really paid attention to him on "Megagraphitti" especially "Imani". Then came "History Will Absolve Me " and I haven't looked back. I kind of do look back because I still listen to it.
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
His run over this past decade is insanity
This Interview was spot on. Such a nice conversation to hear! Love from Mexico
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
Appreciate the love, and thanks for tuning in!!
An unphyrric victory this lad
Congratulations, brother! You got the essential woods interview of the _Maps_ rollout...
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
Was a real honour to have him on at this specific time! Thanks for tuning in.
I just want to say thank you Billy for being present you are doing music for yourself and for us as fans. No disrespect but thank you for making it easier for people that don’t have as much knowledge as you in maps it’s so easy to overstand but at the same time plenty of layers for me to peel back. Love you man and you inspire me to up my skills with your work being a very high bar that I started to set for my self sense I herd tabula rasa which was my intro to you.
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
Love this
Wow. Great interview. Woods is a genius, and you're a terrific interviewer.
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
Thank you so much!!!! Had to do it justice... more people need to know about woods, and why he's such a generational figure in music.
Dope.
Cheers from Ethiopia! You have a new sub. Great questions and really interesting responses from woods
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
Yo thank you so much for tuning in all the way from Ethiopia... Much appreciated!!
Epic Interview
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
Appreciate it fam!!
Great interview, great album! Love how objective billy is. Seems like a really intelligent dude.
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
Oh yea, his intelligence is clear as day... it's not just a façade put on for the music
❤
You earned yourself a follow, dude. This was sick.
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
Means a lot, thanks for tuning in!
@paullegloan1502
Жыл бұрын
@@rapmusicplugpod Very articulate and thoughtful questions. Great job, man, for real.
What a lovely intro
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
Right?? BLOODBLIXING made the beat for that intro… it’s an instant classic in my biased opinion 💯
Man you really did an excellent job here.
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
Thank you so much. I really appreciate you giving this a listen!
Maps blows my mind. This interview is great.
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
Glad you enjoyed!!
Inspiring and captivating conversation right here
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
Thank you bro!!!!
Damn I wanted to hear about his time working with Aes.
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
Wish I could've double-clicked on many of the things that were brought up, but time is finite unfortunately :/ Appreciate you giving this episode your time!
Fire
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
Thanks for listening!!
@asurprisetobesurebutawelco6617
Жыл бұрын
@@rapmusicplugpod thank u for doing the interview
This is a cool interview
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
Glad you enjoyed, and thanks for tuning in!
I may be tripping, but I keep hearing “GANGSTA” at a subtle volume throughout the interview. Nonetheless great interview! 50:53 to be exact
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
Glad you enjoyed!! But lol, yeah the gangsta tag is from the intro, but potentially a strand of the audio is still being captured in how the video was edited. I'll take a look and make note for next time, thanks for letting me know.
New album is is amazing
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
It's threatening as one of his best ever... Which is crazy, because I've said this about every single project he's released since 2018 LOL
Thank you so much for this, I was scowering KZread the day before looking for woods interviews and then this dropped keep it up 🫡
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
Thank you for tuning in!!
you should get these interviews on a spotify podcast
@rapmusicplugpod
6 ай бұрын
Lol bro, the entire show is on Spotify and Apple Podcasts! Just search "The Rap Music Plug Podcast", and you'll find it, or go to the links section on my channel page on KZread
@RXKDon
6 ай бұрын
@@rapmusicplugpod Oh my bad, shouldve checked before i left a comment, anyways great stuff that youre putting out
@rapmusicplugpod
6 ай бұрын
All good, appreciate the support!!@@RXKDon
good one dude. notice that on 35:57, "INDIA" is cut out, didn't understand the reason, woods mentions ganges aka ganga along with several other Indian reference throughout the interview. so, it escapes me, why it was cut out. appreciate the interview though.
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
Lol yeah it's just ZOOM being ZOOM, it just glitched. I left that part in because I hoped people would make out that he was saying India, so I'm glad it worked. Happy you enjoyed the interview!
i need the name of that intro beat
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
It's a custom beat made specifically for this show, by a producer named BLOODLBIXING! He's been on the show twice before, he's great.
What’s the song at the beginning though 😮💨👌🏽
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
It's an RMPP original, produced by BLOODBLIXING! He custom made this, based on my vision... and absolutely killed it!! He's a terrific producer and rapper. I deep-dived on his album (that features woods FYI) in an earlier episode actually!
I want to see him live so fucking bad
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
He's SO good live. Was blessed to see him twice over the past year - it was incredible.
Cheers for the interview, love Billy Woods. Gotta say though - the guy knows his way around language without you putting words in his mouth. The amount of questions featuring 'you must feel...', or very loaded questions, etc. really slowed things down.
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
Firstly, thanks for listening! Secondly though, is this a criticism of the questions I asked? Haha please let me know, because I'm just not sure if I fully understand your comments. I'm always open to feedback!
@douglasmoran1104
Жыл бұрын
@@rapmusicplugpod Lots of great questions, particularly as your discussion went on. Early in the interview there were a good few loaded questions, and you were putting words in your interviewees mouth. That's the criticism.
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
@@douglasmoran1104 Ok, I see. I'll have to look back and see if I agree, but I'll keep that in mind for future conversations.
Did he come to the soundcheck tho???
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
LOOL
He sort of sounds like that one fat character Jordan Peele used to play in key and Peele.
How did you get Billy Woods bruh?
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
Lol what? Are you asking why I chose to invite billy woods on the show?? Haha I don't understand the question here...
@eastsidebloody
Жыл бұрын
@@rapmusicplugpod Haha. I meant to say how?
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
@@eastsidebloody Ohhh ok.. Well I've had almost the entire Backwoodz crew on the show, including E L U C I D, so it was only a matter of time I guess haha. On this note, I got Willie Green coming on the show next week!
Billy seems like such a great and honest person. He deserves so much better than the horrible stuff he raps about :(
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
Haha yeah, he's a real genuine dude for sure. Exactly how you'd expect him to be from the music.
I didn’t think I would like Maps more then Hiding Places. Yet it’s infinitely better and I find myself listening to it often also it’s accessible unlike a lot of music that billy woods puts out, not to say those are bad. It just seems like it takes time to enjoy it in my opinion. This one seems to be a different beast.
@rapmusicplugpod
Жыл бұрын
Agreed, it seems to be his most palatable and digestible album yet... without it sounding watered down in the slightest. Lots of credit for that goes to Kenny Segal on the beats imo.