After More Than 20 Years Redman Feels He’s Still Underrated

It’s been 15 years since Method Man and Redman linked up for Blackout!, their first collaborative LP, and Red is still one of the most underrated MCs in the game. With more than two decades of raw, funky raps under his belt and a string of nearly unparalleled gems that began with his debut solo album, 1992’s Whut? Thee Album, you’d think that Red would be secure in his status among the biggest rappers on the planet. But he’s never quite been celebrated on the level of the Jay Z’s and the Snoop Dogg’s of the world.

Not that he’s bothered by that. These days, Redman is still one of the funniest, most creative MCs in hip-hop, and he’s at a point in his career where he can pretty much do anything. He’s long been talking about crafting sequels to some of his biggest projects—Muddy Waters 2, now both a mixtape and an album, are apparently on the way, as well as Blackout! 3 and a followup to the classic film How High, which is still rumored to be floating around—and he just returned from touring in Europe alongside Meth. He and his Wu-Tang running mate are set to headline the Smoker’s Club Tour this Fall, kicking off next month in Rhode Island that will take him around the U.S. another time. He’s got plenty of respect built up within the hip-hop community, but still can fly under the radar outside of it. In many ways, it’s the best possible place to be in.

With the Blackout! album turning 15 years old yesterday (Sept. 28), XXL spoke to Redman about the LP, its 2009 followup, his new projects in the works and much more. The Funk Doc is still in the building. —Dan Rys

XXL: What’s going on, man? You been in the studio?
Redman: Well, I’ve just been banging out in my home studio, my own shit. I’ve been working the past six years, seven years on my own shit.

You just got back from Europe, right? How was that?
Fabulous. Fabulous. I’ve never been over there during the summertime; we usually go when it’s cold, so it’s always grey and raining. But this time we got to experience it in the summer when it’s hot and I actually got to see some beaches. A little different vibe of overseas, so it was a great run this summer. It was a great tour.

What’s your favorite part about touring in general?
I don’t know; it’s gotta be the people. How they still enjoy that ’90s sound, really. Overseas they still appreciate it more, to this day. Every artist can actually say that, that the overseas community appreciates the culture of hip-hop more, really, rather than over here. So it’s fun to perform there.

Now that you’re back, what are you working on?
Muddy Waters 2 the mixtape and Muddy Waters 2 the album for next year, and then Blackout 3 and How High 2 possibly, maybe. Got a lot of things in the works, man.

You said on Twitter the other day that Muddy Waters 2 was gonna be all original music. Both the mixtape and the album?
Yeah, both of them. All original. Because usually when I drop a mixtape it’ll be some original and then some over other people’s beats, but this one is gonna be all original so I can distribute it and get the mixtape heard more. You know, with mixtapes, a lot of people hear it but I still wanted it to circulate more so that more people hear it.

That means no P-Funk samples?
Not on the mixtape. I’m trying to do that for the album, the Muddy Waters 2 album for next year. We know Uncle George directly, so he gives us music to sample, all we gotta do is tell him directly and we can use it.

What’s your relationship like with George Clinton?
Oh man, it’s wonderful. I went to his house in Florida and met the family, he always be out in Cali at my boy Joseph’s spot, we hang out in Cali. He’s just a cool guy, man. He’s still relevant to us in our rap community. He’s always performing still, I think he performed in Brooklyn recently at a festival. I heard he tore it down.

It’s the 15-year anniversary of the original Blackout! When you think back, how did that come together for you and Meth?
Wow. The first Blackout! just started out with us doing the first song, “How High”—I guess it was “How High”—and then it just took off from there. It just kinda made sense for everybody, and it worked out. And the best thing is when you got two guys who have no egos with each other and just know that they have their separate careers and when they come together to do something, to create a new career, why shoot it down? Why hate on it? Why not emphasize on it? That’s how we looked at it. And our mindframe from then was what kept us going for so long. Of course, we coulda did the music, and of course we coulda pleased everyone. But we had to be men about ourselves and say, you know what? We gotta do this with no animosity and no egos and go get this money. And that’s just what we did. That’s how most crews break up.

What sticks out to you about making that album, and how the finished product came out?
Hmm. What I loved about it? It was new. It wasn’t nothin’ new to me to work in the studio, ’cause ever since my first album I had 90 percent of building it, from skits to everything, so I was very equipped to build an album going in. But it was just something new, something new to do with a partner. And it was really easy. It was like, wow, I don’t have to spit three 16s in each song? I can do one, or one and a half? And editing it, cutting it with little skits here and there, it was great. Then we got LL to come in, Ja Rule to come in and do their verses. It was a big energy from the label to have us up in the studio and say, “Wow, Method Man and Redman is working on an album, wow, I wonder how it’s gonna sound.” And motherfuckers were callin’ us left and right wanting to be a part of it. We basically just kept it family with RZA and E on the beats, Rockwilder on the beats, we had Jamal on it, Young Zee from Newark, so we kept it family, and then Def Jam family. So it was fun.

Do you have a favorite song off that album?
Oh man, there’s so many. [Laughs] But basically every one, even the intro.

When you hear that intro you know what you’re in for.
Exactly, exactly. And then number two off it [sings the melody of “Blackout”], I mean every one of them. “Mi Casa,” I mean if I picked one it would be unfair. One of my favorites though is… [sings the bassline of “Maaad Crew”] That’s not “Cereal Killer,” even though that’s one of my favorites. “What’s up my nigga…” It’s “Maaad Crew.” [Laughs] Yeah.

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