The Neptunes (Pharrell and Chad Hugo) are a major part of the Clipse (Pusha T and No Malice) story: The production duo has been at the helm of all four Clipse albums, including their latest, 2009’s Til The Casket Drops. Now, Clipse is readying their first album in 15 years, and the whole thing is produced by Pharrell.
In a new Vulture interview, Pusha T said, “Pharrell producing everything is also an ode to the type of music and the type of albums we want to make. We still want to make full bodies of work. These are movies, man. These aren’t just songs. This isn’t just a collection of joints we went in and banged out.”
He also noted that he and No Malice didn’t work with Pharrell’s Neptunes partner Chad Hugo on the project.
Elsewhere, Pusha said about the album, “I think the album shows the supreme maturation of a rap duo. I think this is where you get the difference between taste and filler. This music is curated. This is a high taste-level piece of work. You can only have that level of taste when you have the fundamentals down to a science. I think it’s been definitely missing. Then there’s the competitive aspect.”
No Malice added, “This is smart basketball. It’s fundamentals. And not only that, it’s authenticity. It’s what rap should look like if you’re real about your craft, real about your experience, real about your storytelling. It’s bringing the fans along to see the growth, not trying to fit in or fabricate. It just seems like in other genres of music, they have the luxury of growing. For some reason, we act like we’re not supposed to evolve. This is what the true evolution of the Clipse looks like. It’s just good to be able to show that and still have high-level raps.”
Check out the full interview here.