In the whole ecosystem of black art, it's like, “Oh, cats are collaborating and this is what I want to see.”. Rapper Westside Gunn is a creative entrepreneur, best known as the founder of Griselda Records, the music label he launched in 2014. Four years ago, Griselda was still considered just underground boom-bap and nobody was really listening. If you do that, I want to do the cover.” So of course, who would say no to that? It's huge, from my corner. © 2021 Condé Nast. You linked with Tyler, The Creator on this record, both as a producer and as a featured artist. Abloh’s cover art, a photoshopped reworking of Carvvaggio’s 1607 oil on wood painting, “David with the Head of Goliath,” adds the burden of Westside’s three chains around the conqueror’s neck. Dropping new album February. We ended up leaving that night. That’s what they do: they’re good at rap. It's just like, Nah, I'mma thug it out. And maybe Virgil sees a little of him in me as well. The whole rollout was supposed to be there. From selling $300,000 USD artwork at Sotheby’s to Serving the People, the artist breaks down his tumultuous career. A lot of these people that you see, well they not like that in real life. That seems to capture the spirit of the album pretty well. New York city is still six or seven hours away. You give a crackhead free crack, that’s the best crack they ever had. Sh*t, me. Customers in record stores could remove the records from the cover and many stores would even allow them to play the records to help them make a buying decision. When record albums were first offered in the late 1940s, they were sold without any external wrapping on the cover. We appreciate your support in allowing HYPEBEAST ads, where we can share contents from the latest fashion, to those culturally relevant. Bird’s” chorus, before the Shady Records and Roc Nation deals, and before his Griselda crew was captured at Kanye West’s Wyoming ranch, Westside was pulling inspiration from Abloh’s initial foray into fashion, PYREX VISION. We dealt with the shootings. ... Record Label: Griselda Records: Genre: Rap & Hip-Hop: UPC: Does not apply: My homie Victor, who was the first kid that had Technic turntables, he used to cut my hair. But it's distinctly the expensive brands in the store that we were trying to get at. I don’t even wanna be considered a rapper. Outside of Pray for Paris, there’s been some rumors about you teaming up with Madlib for a collaboration. When I was listening to [The Price of Tea In China] I was like, “Dude is incredible. I had a song called “Mr. I’m heavy into fashion. When I look at [Gunn’s] catalog, like I don't look at Pray for Paris as a solo [project]. When I see his credit on the album, before I even get to that song, it lets me know there’s something happening. As you can see, he killed the project on both levels, on rhyming and production. The Abloh-designed cover of Pray for Paris. XXL looks back on the most shocking hip-hop album covers of the decade. I always was a fan of Gibbs and I’ve been doing sh*t with Roc Marci for the last five years straight. The Machine has one of this year’s most anticipated new albums on the way, marking his debut with Eminem‘s Shady Records. I put together that he was into Pyrex later, but I knew he was paying attention because I could hear how it was delivered in the raps. Griselda Ghost (with Conway The Machine and Big Ghost LTD) (2015) Don't Get Scared Now (with Conway The Machine and Benny The Butcher ) (2016) Hitler on Steroids (with DJ Green Lantern ) (2017) So now it’s about giving the world some of the illest hip-hop of all time. Griselda Records. Virgil created the cover art for this project, too. I always was ahead of the game when it came to fashion. You have your own day in your home city now, too. The original plan was to go to Cabo and the next thing you know, he's like, “No, how about we just go to Wyoming at first and then we just go to Cabo in a couple of weeks,” because at that time, we’re still all taking corona lightly. When this is over, I’m going across the world. HYPEBEAST: First off, how are you feeling? He was so inspired by the trip that he booked some extra time in the City of Lights to record a new project, motivated even more once Abloh confirmed that he’d like to create the cover art. I think no one has to guess as to why. Remember when people start trying to put rhinestones on jean suits? Now look at Benny today. He remind me of like a Detroit Benny.” It was so vivid. (Laughs). Or Jay or LeBron. My first album cover was an art piece, this cover’s an art piece. We of course had to elevate out of that limited selection. We're black kids. People always wanted to push forward the popular sound, what’s in the clubs and what’s on the radio. I think what we both have in common is that we have a vision that supersedes what people might think of us at any given point. I went out there with all my jewelry on with my big security guard from Buffalo. So Victor Villalobos—who deserves a shout out in this—he was like, Yo, check out Westside Gunn. There’s wrestling on the first [album] and there’s wrestling in this one. Or if you go back to Tyler, the Creator's Grammy speech about how he felt slighted by getting the rap nomination and not being nominated for Album of the Year. After the Pray for Paris chapter I need to give the world part eight of the Hitler Wears Hermès series and then I’ll give you the project with ‘lib. It’s like I’m not even a rapper, I’m an artist. He don’t care who in the room. I was in the streets, I lived by it. Classic “Paper White” and “Black” colorways of the ‘Alien’-inspired hybrid have arrived. “I always been a supply and demand guy. I bring so much more to the game,” he told HYPEBEAST. So Griselda Records comes from Fashion Rebels. In 2020 we all realize how we all stand on our own ground. I bring so much more to the game. Before you even name-dropped in any bars. I needed this project because this sh*t just got me more focused and looking forward. Certain things I'm doing now, they haven’t been done yet. Maybe in the '90s while everyone was proving their skill—you could see that on the Premier/RZA battle. Besides Pray For Paris, this is the only Griselda album I've listened to. I’m not the first, but I wanted to make something that bridged the gap. So when Virgil dropped Pyrex, I had to be the guy with it. I always keep my ears and eyes open to the streets, to who's doing what, because I always designed. Once this is over, I'm running full speed, bro. I already did that part. Griselda Records came as a spinoff from my fashion line. Griselda Records had itself one hell of a run in 2019. At 37 years old, it was his first time leaving the United States. This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity. You gotta think like a street corner hustler back in the day. I’m not saying I’m the king of the city or any of that sh*t, but I have the most influence and me having my own day makes me want to give back. Then when it comes time to start painting these pictures, you go to your family and you go to the best. Many of the most eye-catching album covers this year featured animals. He called it Pyrex Vision. There was no fashion school for us. But at least Detroit has Somerset Mall where they can go to Louis Vuitton or Gucci. But I love art, fashion, design, executive producing, putting songs together with the skits — all of that sh*t I love more than actually rapping. While I thought WSG had to improve as a lyricist, Conway is a very … Before that one drops, however, the Griselda member said he’s releasing another album soon. VA: For me, it's a good time to reflect. There’s no mysterious book of rhymes of Westside Gunn or a file of 10 unreleased Westside Gunn songs. This also had top-notch production, and one of the most iconic Album Covers … There's always been hood brands. You know how Mobb Deep was always Havoc and Prodigy? My first album cover was an art piece, this cover’s an art piece. I did the music good enough to get me in Paris. But at the same time, man, this is my motivation right now. I think it's the highest tier of art. Mkqueens Dead (feat. Don’t rush. The legend. T” and I referenced Off-White a few times. Everything’s just a chapter right now. In this game there’s a lot of make believe bullsh*t, man. Of course I want to do a concert but who knows with what’s going on in the world right now. Or Ye and everything that he's been through. You’ve always made sure that your Griselda merch and vinyl releases have incredibly limited runs. “It’s not like I’m just supporting him now because of Off-White™ or Louis Vuitton, like all of a sudden I got a record deal and I can afford it. GQ may earn a portion of sales from products that are purchased through our site as part of our Affiliate Partnerships with retailers. And is that your daughter that does the drops? And I was like, “Why do that? It was a dope experience. Inspired by what he was experiencing, he recorded a chunk of Pray for Paris while he was in town. This is gonna gain more fans for Westside Gunn on a fashion tip. Virgil, your work with Louis Vuitton and Off-White is often associated with younger, more genre-bending artists like Playboi Carti or Lil Uzi Vert. He was already a legend before he got with us and now he’s a part of the Griselda sound. Just the way I killed [Paris] Fashion Week. There’s people dying from this sh*t and it did its little tornado tear-down but I’m building back up. Then it just started snowing crazy. If you look at all of them, you can understand the whole greater vision. With Tyler, he’s himself at all times. We also all slept in a cell. Tyler is somebody who I respect because he’s himself. Keisha Plum) 02. And that's what I love about it. I was designing jean suits and sh*t in high school. Because you know, Buffalo is, like, the second-largest, poorest city behind Detroit. For someone who doesn’t consider himself a rapper, Westside Gunn managed to curate one of the year’s best rap albums, creating a world where he’s at its very center, surrounded by some of the most talented veterans in the hip-hop world today. Everyone wanted to be more from the south, or like Chicago drill music when that became big. I was accepted to multiple fashion schools. Who’s directing? What are your plans for celebrating this year? This is just another level. Rapping is like the tenth thing on my list I do. It's not fake love and fake energy. Today we’re spoken of from every big name you could possibly think of. Everybody’s grown. Even years before the “Dr. VA: There’s the spoken words, just how they're arranged and the production. Features The Greatest Album Covers: 100 Pioneering Sleeve Designs. I’d tell myself to let everything happen organically and if it’s meant to be, it’s meant to be. At the end of the day, we here for the culture. Shit's about to change and I need to make a brand that is distinctly ours. I think I've been missing out because this guy reminds me of the golden era of coke rap (Clipse & D-Block). Abloh’s meteoric rise in the fashion world—he’s been the artistic director of Louis Vuitton’s men’s collection since 2018 and Off-White is one of the most popular brands in the world—speaks for itself. How have you managed to maintain that vision? Bird’s” chorus in an antagonizing echo. He was just like, “My next Yeezy season is based off of you.”. I always been a supply and demand guy. To see hip-hop being accepted so much in fashion now is great, but I’ve been fly my whole life. The Abloh-designed cover of Pray for Paris. That’s a lot for 2020, but you’ll definitely get all of them. He don’t give a f*ck. VA: Oddly enough our friend Drake put it the best, when he basically said that that chamber of hip hop—which is probably the link to the most pure hip hop era—has never been as fly as the version that Gunn and the Griselda crew bring. I love how Hype did that one, I love how Dame Dash did Paid In Full — that’s one of my top five movies because that story was so incredibly shot. You stood on that one and I was hearing your record and I was really trying to outdo that one, you know?” And that was where RZA was saying, or when Premier was like, “I work with these artists, you work with those artists. In 2016, Benny released his album titled My First Brick followed by the mixtape Butcher on Steroids with DJ Green Lantern in 2017. I might have nWo [New World Order Wrestling] come out. Even when I was doing clothing and I wasn’t rapping, I knew that I was doper than the majority of the game. Alchemist is Griselda, man. What I think makes this story important in 2020 is that we no longer have this element within black culture that’s about competition. For me, like I always say [when asked] why I work at Louis Vuitton and why I do Nike or why do Off-White or why do Moet champagne. GQ: How did you start working together on Pray for Paris? I was with Virgil the night after I first recorded and I was like, “I already knocked out three, tomorrow I’m gonna finish the rest.” Virgil told me, “This sh*t is crazy. We would go to Balmain. WestSide Gunn - Hitler Wears Hermes (2013) 01. He joined HYPEBEAST to talk about his recent recovery following his first time out of the country, maintaining his FLYGOD status and the creativity that sparked his collaboration with Virgil Abloh. The beats and the bars were just different. Served for breakfast, lunch and dinner in the famous Happy Meal box. Some people are just rappers. I’m losing my mind because I ain’t smoke in weeks. It’s the same thing you’re getting in 2020. I always say, it don’t matter what you buy, it’s gotta be in you. I asked Ye and Hov, “Did you guys realize what you're doing from a concept level? Across the country, Buffalo rapper Alvin Worthy—who records as Westside Gunn—re-ignited his passion for rapping after a spell in and out of prison, releasing the first entry in his Hitler Wears Hermes mixtape series. So it started like that. It is also certainly the only rap record that features both audio interludes from a Christie’s auction (the record-setting 2017 auction for Leonardo da Vinci’s “Salvador Mundi”) and “The Million Dollar Man.”. Conway Announces New Album Plans. From award-winning writing and photography to binge-ready videos to electric live events, GQ meets millions of modern men where they live, creating the moments that create conversations. And soon family. The other two--Chris Benoit and God Is The Greatest--capture what he describes as the distinct moods of the record, and to that point, he even commissioned a trio of album covers… Because I was like, “Yo, how come this Givenchy flannel is $1200? And instead, if you take this whole conversation and the stories involved, we've hit a new frontier. Where are you in the process of recovering from COVID-19? Somebody's credit card got swiped for that amount of money. Rapper from the Buffalo, (Born July 27, 1982). It was like we would go to Polo and understand the DNA of that brand. So it’s all about the interludes. Like Griselda as a whole, Conway has been working nonstop the last 12 months. What resulted was Pray for Paris, a project that manages to balance the boasts of aspirational opulence attained with some of the grimiest street rap in the industry today. It could be Drake's plane and West Side Gunn’s album covers. It's like if you’re looking at Basquiat paintings and you look at just one. When Virgil came with the Pyrex, I was like, “Yo, what’s the deal with this? But God-willing if everything clears up and I can do something, I wanna do it for the streets because that’s where I’m from. While Gunn and Abloh hovered around each other online—a designer and self-appointed “FlyGod” himself Gunn was up on Off-White and Pyrex early, and Abloh’s friend tipped him off to Griselda years ago—the connection didn’t become crystal clear until Gunn rapped “I need Virgil to sign “BRICK” on my brick,” on last year’s “Dr. Let’s say a Griselda major motion picture comes out. The aesthetic audacity aligns perfectly with Westside Gunn’s past hand-painted album covers, which alternate between vintage wrestling references, faceless FLYGOD fashion poses in Balenciagas and an unapologetic Hermès-rocking Hitler with his third eye stamped on his furrowed brow. WG: My inspiration is to get into the fashion world. What the fuck is?” It was just dope to me, the Champion shorts and everything. Even when it comes to the Virgil connection. There’s a moment on last year’s WWCD album where the vision Worthy has been plotting out over the past decade, even before he was Westside Gunn, comes to fruition. Him working with Boldy, now that’s extended family. Now it’s about giving the world some of the illest hip-hop of all time.”. This album fits in the same category as the work that I'm doing. The whole look was fly, with the art piece in the front. But you’ve got to ask him. What do you turn to? I’m trying to put a wrestling ring in the middle of the hood. I talked to Gunn and Abloh about their partnership, making “quote-unquote real rap” fly as hell, and what’s inspiring both artists in a tough time for Americans. He’s a good dude with good energy. The reason I say me is because I have the confidence. 2021 Hypebeast Limited. $49.99 + shipping. Those are the best in class of their operation. We could do some sh*t like Belly in 2022 or 2023. How do you feel about hip-hop’s cultural influence in the fashion world right now? People are behind me because they want me to win. 1 on the Billboard 200 behind its elegiac single “Intro” and its apropos album cover of DaBaby as … But everything is just a process and I’m trying to get strong again. What about Gunn demanded your attention? They gone do anything to come back and get that again. Usually conscious rap or “real hip hop” is not at the forefront of what's happening in culture. We might still be in the house during my day. I'm out in Milan, I'm going to Japan. No cap. Earlier this week, I connected with Gunn and Abloh via Zoom. It’s the man—all the tapes, all the albums—to me. I’m thankful for that. Me and My Eagle 04. My love for wrestling is next level. Over the next eight years, both profiles would rise substantially. I can go to a whole other city with no competition and make triple.” I applied my street methods to hip-hop and fashion. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement (updated as of 1/1/21) and Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement (updated as of 1/1/21) and Your California Privacy Rights. “Machine season continues! It could be Drake's plane and West Side Gunn’s album covers. Just pray for that country man. A lot of people be scared to be themselves. Because before I was on him, but I wasn’t on him. You had to pray for everybody in Paris the way I was doing it, man. I know what he can do and I want him to shine. I talk to all these guys almost every other day. Shoutout to Griselda for this amazing record, I do believe Westside Gunn went off on this record too, but Griselda got his features such as Tyler, the Creator, Freddie Gibbs, Joey Bada$$, Conway The Machine, and Benny the Butcher. People there, especially the paparazzi, they didn’t know who I was, but they knew who I was after Fashion Week. But when Drake put it that way, we all felt it. We dealt with the shootings. Griselda Records. We're learning fashion by studying fashion in the store. We know what we signed up for. (Abloh also required the energy of another ascendent style revivalist, the late Pop Smoke.) It could be the toughest dudes in the room and he might rap some off the wall sh*t and tell another dude that he’ll kiss him. HYPEBEAST® is a registered trademark of Hypebeast Hong Kong Ltd. Gain access to exclusive interviews with industry creatives, think pieces, trend forecasts, guides and more. Two compact containers for storing delicate woven goods. It’s the structure. In 2012, a young Chicago-based designer named Virgil Abloh put together his first apparel collection. I think it’s beautiful. If you know him, you respect it because that’s him. Everyone's celebrating each other and being like, “Yo, I want to work on your project.” Like me here, and Tyler’s beats on the new album. You know my story, coming up from Chicago with Ye and Don C. We felt very much the same thing. There always seems to be a fork in the road when major labels and additional management step in and alter an artist’s course. How’d that collaboration happen? The Griselda Records star has since tweeted a meme that suggests he thinks his album is superior to DaBaby’s efforts. So I was always fly. WG: I went to Sunday Service and [Kanye] was talking about his next project—how he wanted me to be involved, do some music and just help behind the scenes, all of that good shit. As you can tell, all my answers are focused on what a beautiful time [it is] for this culture that was once niche. But now since I was introduced to Paris, I came back to New York Fashion Week but then I got sick. “Told Virgil write ‘BRICK’ on my brick,” he yells, essentially speaking their eventual collaboration into existence. It was like, “Okay, everybody want to listen to this, but I’m about to make this popular.” It’s really like the dope game. Once I got to high school I was doing the same thing. Privacy Policy. Pray For Paris Sold Out Westside Gunn David & Goliath Cover Griselda CD New. The Griselda Records lore of the past half-decade plays out like a movie. On Slowly Understanding Madlib’s SOUND ANCESTORS, and Griselda’s Solid If Unremarkable Soundtrack By Staff , Ted Davis , Corey Guen and Blake Michelle 2 hours ago Share CNCO breaks down six essential tracks from their new covers album Deja Vu, which includes Latin anthems such as "Tan Enamorados," "Dejaría Todo" and "Entra En Mi Vida." He is the brother of fellow rapper Conway (6) with whom he forms the duo WestsideGunn, Conway (6) - Hall & Nash , and the cousin of fellow Buffalo native rapper Benny (45). Because I don't think of rap as a lower tier of art. Have you looked to any brands for inspiration on keeping supply vastly lower than the current demand for what you create? I’m telling my homie next to me, ”Man, you got to rock this Nebraska!”. And the adlibs— these are all like Basquiat-level paintings. When I was in eighth grade—13 years old—I was in a phone book looking for screen printers. The Griselda rapper and the Louis Vuitton designer in conversation about working together on Gunn's new album—and plenty more. Like I'm trying to think of how to make these next Louis collections crazy and how to make Off-White go to the next tier. Everything’s gonna happen organically. It’s a line straight out of Kanye’s big book of philosophy and even something Tyler, The Creator mirrored in his post-GRAMMYs speech. All Rights Reserved. Basically what Alchemist was to Mobb Deep is what he is to Griselda right now.