Kidd Kidd Channels ‘The Matrix’ On His New Mixtape

After appearing on the cover of the 2015 XXL Freshman issue and releasing his project Rappers Worst Nightmare back in June, G-Unit rapper Kidd Kidd looks to continue his momentum in 2015 with the release of his latest mixtape, Fuk Da Fame.

Featuring 14 brand new cuts from the New Orleans rapper, Kidd Kidd is joined by the likes of 50 Cent, Kevin Gates, Lil Wayne, Shy Glizzy, Young Buck, Young Chris & Neef and more over production from FireBeats101, Phonix, Ky Miller, C.P Dubb and Francis Got Heat. Hosted by DJ Iceberg and DJ Legacy, Kidd Kidd’s latest project offers a dose of reality from his hometown of New Orleans.

Last week while in New York City, the G-Unit rapper stopped by the XXL offices to speak about his latest project, life after the XXL Freshman cover and much more. —Roger Krastz

XXL: This is your second mixtape of 2015. How is this one different to your Rappers Worst Nightmare project?
Kidd Kidd: The first tape was Rappers Worst Nightmare. It was mostly a bunch of freestyles that I did over a lot of old classic beats and, you know, my own personal favorite beats, too. But now it’s Fuk Da Fame. I’ve been working on this project for a while. You can say I changed that project about 20 to 30 times, you know what I’m saying? Because it’s a bunch of material that I had and I was just sitting on and I just told myself, "It’s time to really give the people me." Especially now, you know, after being on the XXL Freshman cover and just getting the exposure that I’ve been getting lately, it’s time to put some music and some content out there for the fans. Besides the G-Unit EP’s that people heard me on, I felt like it was time to give them me now and it was just the perfect time to drop this.

Did you face any challenges during the recording process of Fuk Da Fame?
Nah. For me, I love what I do, so it’s really no challenge for me. The only challenge that I worry about is making the people accept the music, because I know I’m different and I know that my music is different and my style of rapping and how I do it is just separate from anybody else that’s doing it. So that’s my challenge. My challenge is trying to make it work for the people, because I know one thing: once I catch your ear and I get in your ear, you’re going to love me. So since I have a lot of people checking me out it was the right time to drop this project.

You have a lot of big features on the project.
They all real niggas. If I’m doing a song with someone they have to be official, you know what I’m saying? Everybody that is on the project are just people that kept it real with me and supported me and these are people that I can call at any time of the day for anything. I got on there the Young Gunz—Chris and Neef—Kevin Gates, Shy Glizzy, 50, Buck, Lil Wayne and more, but the most important feature to me on this tape is my artist Tyson G Strip. You know, R.I.P. he was killed. And that song “Still Here” that he’s on, that was one of the first songs I ever recorded with 50 Cent. We did it in the back of a studio van. And to have Tyson on that song and to be able... Because that was one of the joints that I was actually going to hold for an album, but you know, God took Tyson too early, so I did that for his people. I did that for the city. I did that for the hood, to let that song out and keep Tyson's name alive. So that’s my favorite song and that’s the most important song for me on the tape.

You worked a lot with FireBeats101 on this mixtape. What is about his production that fits your style so well?
Yeah man, that’s my producer! You know how Drake has 40? That’s me and Fire. We sit down, we work on a lot of things. We sit and come up with a lot of ideas and stuff and he’s just a great producer all around the board. He’s not scared to venture off with a lot of ideas that I want to do and we just don’t stick to one theme. If you listen to the mixtape we got a song called “Left Field,” and we call it that because if you listen to the beat it’s so different to what I’m accustomed to doing. So with Fire on the boards, it’s a great person to have on your side.

What's the meaning behind the cover art of the project?
I got the red pill and I got the green pill on there like the Matrix, so either you want to be surrounded by this fake shit or you want a dose of reality, you know what I mean? It’s your choice. And Fuk Da Fame is just exactly that. No matter how famous I get, I am always going to be me, you feel me?

Will you be hitting the road to promote the mixtape?
Yeah, of course. I have a few dates that I’m doing with G-Unit coming up, but then right after that I’m going on tour for my project.

What else should we expect from you musically?
Expect the EP. We going to drop that and then from that—because I got at least six projects done, like really done—but I’m pretty sure that’s going to be switched up so many times because I work on new music every day. So just be on the look out for me.

How has life changed for you since appearing on the Freshman cover?
It woke a lot of people up. Even the people that never heard of Kidd Kidd, and even the people that felt like, “Man, what the fuck is he doing on the cover?” You know what I’m saying? And it still woke them up. It definitely gave me the attention that I needed, so I had to take advantage of that opportunity. Being on that cover, it just set me off. For me, that cover was a major move for me, so hopefully now I can get a cover by myself.

How was your experience at the Lil Weezyana Fest?
It was nice, man, to be a part of such a historic event for the city of New Orleans. [Wayne] brought out Master P, the whole Hoy Boys minus B.G. Shout out to him. It was a great experience. We did our old group song "Sqad Up," you know what I'm saying, and we got to do that so it was super nice.

What other projects have you worked on recently?
I also recently dropped a documentary on New Orleans on the anniversary of Katrina. It's been 10 years since Katrina. I just wanted to show the people that even after 10 years it's still affecting us. There are areas in the city that you walk by and it looks like Katrina hit yesterday.