“This dude asked me ‘What’s the answer to this Hip-Hop cancer?/ I’m so hungry for this real shit it feels like I’m fastin…’”

Today Black Milk releases his third solo effort, TRONIC — an album so dense with material it feels like it could push beyond your ears and into the other senses. It would smell like that funk. Be both sweet and savory on the pallet. Have that cool burn of acid to the touch. Visually dissolve Soul atoms into protons, neutrons and — especially — electrons.

Each track is different than the next and slides on single synth-based samples into multiple beats, giving further evidence of Black’s ability as a producer. He deviates from the listeners expectations, but never leaves them mentally marooned. His rhymes are tighter and his growth as a lyricist is clear. TRONIC is a cohesive collection that has the potential to stick in iPods, stereos and memories longer than most any other album this year. With the city of Detroit backing him and cosigns from as high on the totem pole as Dr. Dre; Black Milk could fill a prescription with TRONIC — an anecdote to a Hip-Hop cancer.

But with a widening divide between radio and subterranean music, the question remains when or if artists like Black can bridge the gap and remain true to a progressive sound. TSS Crew member LC Weber spoke with Black about TRONIC, the progression of his style and whether the industry is ready to catch up.

TSS: We talked to Elzhi a couple months ago and asked him whether people ever tell him he raps too much or that he’s too weird for them…

Black Milk: (laughs) Yeah.

TSS: Do you ever feel like you’re put in a similar box as a producer? Like do people just want you to be or think you are just a soul-sample producer?

Black Milk: Not really. I’ve heard or seen a couple people critique the music, especially when we leaked a couple tracks for the new album – “Give The Drummer Sum” and “The Matrix” – the response was a good response. I’ve still seen one guy was like, “Man, I’m really gonna miss the Soul samples,” so people still expect me to stay there. But I think after awhile people are going to grow musically just like me. Their ears and minds are going to be open to new sounds, and new styles, and new ideas to approaching music.

You definitely don’t want to stay in one box as an artist. Some criticisms is going to come and people are going to want you to stay in that same lane. But I try and please the majority of the people – as many people as I can – and that’s why I still have a couple Soul tracks on the new album and try and steer away from anything that’s too far left.

TSS: So you don’t alienate your fans…

Black Milk: Yeah.

TSS: When you were putting this album together what kind of records were you digging for or what were you interested in?

Black Milk: Well a lot of the albums I was listening to for this new project, I was already kind of into those artists and chopping up those records, but a lot of those beats had never made other records. But I was listening to stuff like Stereolab and Gary Newman and stuff like Tomita and just like a lot of really weird records and a lot of weird artists people might not be familiar with, but I was just getting in that vibe. And Hip-Hop wise, I was listening to Slum Village’s Trinity, and J Dilla’s Welcome 2 Detroit album – stuff like that that had a different variety of music on it. It wasn’t just in one lane.

The Trinity album was like the main one. I was like, ‘You know what? That’s when Slum went kind of far left,’ and I don’t think people was ready for it. It was all over the place and people were kind of used to them being soulful with a certain kind of Dilla beat. I think now people are ready for that futuristic type of sound, but it just shows you back then how far ahead Slum really was, with people just now getting up on [that sound.]

I think with TRONIC, it’s Electronic, but it’s still soulful because I’m bringing in a lot of instrumentation and different things like that – live musicians to fill out the track, my recording techniques was different for recording drums, and how I recorded the track in general to give it a different feel.

TSS: Do you think people aren’t ready for it? You were talking about Trinity, but do you think people aren’t ready for TRONIC?

Black Milk: Nah, they’re ready now. There have been albums that came out since Trinity that have been on some futuristic, left field shit. I think people were kind of hungry for something new, so I think they’ll definitely be able to take my album and listen to it without thinking it’s too left field. I mean I still keep the hard drum sound and them dirty breaks… (laughs)

TSS: Do you have some stuff stored somewhere on your MPC that is a little too left for people?

Black Milk: Uh, yeah, there was a couple I was like ‘That’s a little too weird.’ (laughs) I was like ‘That’s a little too weird and I’ma just have to leave it alone.’

I feel like the ideas I have and the shit I want to do I’m going to eventually do, but I can’t just jump right into it. You’ve got to ease into it gradually. Like Andre 3000 – that’s the perfect example I give all the time. Andre 3000 didn’t just jump into being different and being weird and dressing crazy – each album he changed a little more. So that’s what I’m doing – not that I’m saying I’m going to be crazy in a couple years, but I can’t just jump right out of a soul track right into some futuristic shit. It don’t make sense. Yeah, I’ll lose fans doing that. (laughs)

TSS: (laughs) You’ve got to hold our hand a little bit.

Black Milk: Right.

TSS: There’s this line on “Reppin For You” where you are talking to somebody who asks “What’s the answer to this Hip-Hop cancer?” Will you explain a little more about what that question means to you and for the future?

Black Milk: Yeah, I was basically saying that because I have this conversation sometimes with people where they’ll be like ‘Man is the music every going to change and go back to the way it was when you could hear a Hip-Hop track on the radio – hear a Mobb Deep or hear a Wu-Tang song on the radio?’

You know, who knows? But I feel like everything comes full circle. Eventually we’ll come back around to where good music and great music is on the same playing field as the mainstream commercial stuff you hear today – a lot of those garbage records. So yeah, I think things will eventually be on an even playing field again – especially when you now see a lot of mainstream records not selling and they’re damn near selling as many as an underground artist. It’s changing, man. And hopefully it’ll change for the best, especially for an artist like me who wants to stay fresh and do new types of stuff.

TSS: Where does Detroit fit into that mold for you?

Black Milk: I still feel like Detroit is underrated and like we’re underdogs. Even though people know Motown history and they know the type of music we bring, we need more exposure. Artists need more exposure and aren’t given that crossover appeal and that mainstream appeal in the music industry. They just need that light, you know? But I don’t know if the music industry is ready for it yet.

TSS: Like Danny Brown?

Black Milk: Yeah! Like Danny Brown. That’s the perfect example. He’s a guy that’s on some street shit, but he’s got a crazy delivery and his voice is different – so it’s something new and something fresh, and it’s something that could still appeal to a lot of people and could play on commercial radio. So you know, hopefully we’ll get that shine and he’ll be one of the artists that will be in the forefront of that when that time comes.

TSS: You know, a few of us were talking about this last night. And maybe it’s just because I’m from Michigan and I obviously have a bias so I don’t see it as the rest of the world sees it. But to me, considering the sheer volume of music and talent that comes out of Detroit, it’s impossible to understand how so many artists outside of Michigan are inspired by the music, yet there are so few cosigns given to Detroit artists.

Black Milk: Yeah. (laughs) I always have that conversation with people – especially with certain people I work with. When we know or see an artist that we might even be cool with, an artist that we know has heard our music, and then they come out with a certain sound or a certain style that’s on something we’ve already done and make it pop a little, and then we don’t get credit for it. And you know, Slum Village is the main— like that’s a prime example. Especially with Dilla. People just bit his shit. Flat out.

You know, certain artists show love, but a lot of artists didn’t. And it’s just— I don’t know, man. It’s just a curse. Just not getting recognition. And I think that’s one thing, Detroit doesn’t have like a big artist outside of Eminem that will cosign a Detroit artist who can really make it in the music industry and have some records and have some hit songs out here.

You know, it’s different from what I’m out here looking for because I could really care less if someone cosigns me or not. But I think it’ll really help the movement if artists who people really love came forward and were like ‘Yo, these are these are the new dudes. This is the new sound.” That would definitely help. But who knows if that day comes.

TSS: Yeah, you’re in a small group of people who are actually getting recognition. It’s a good place to be…

Black Milk: Yeah. It could be better. It could be more exposure. But I’m just riding away and I ain’t complaining. I’m happy.

Black Milk’s TRONIC hits stores today and is available @ Fat Beats.

Listen To — “Give The Drummer Some” and “The Matrix” Featuring DJ Premier, Sean Price & Pharoahe Monch

Previously Posted — Black Milk “Give The Drummer Sum” Video Preview | Black Milk – ELEC Mixtape | Black Milk – Music From The Color Purple (Beat Tape)