Last year, Gucci Mane came through with one of the most prolific runs of his career. The man dropped three studio albums, including DropTopWop, Mr. Davis, and El Gato The Human Glacier, and proved that his work ethic was damn near unrivaled by his peers. Yet 2018 brought somewhat of a radio silence from the happily married legend; by this point last year, we received the aforementioned three albums, a televised wedding, and a bestselling autobiography. Today, Gucci slid through the Beats 1 studios to chop it up with Zane Lowe, explaining why he decided Evil Genius was a different beast altogether.
"It's crazy, like, imagine just being a hustler. Then you're like, okay, I'm going to be a rapper," says Gucci. "I mean, you know, make money. It's like my endgame. I did that all to get here. An evil genius." He also reveals a notable difference this time around, which will likely be reflected in the project when it drops tomorrow. "I think this time, this album was like the first time I kind of had more fun making the records. With the intentions of just going in the studio and just had fun and this is what came out. But before, I was kind of going and expressing myself, talking through the mic, like I had a lot of my chest. This album was like, let's find the best beat, make the best song and put it out."
He continues, explaining the significance of dropping a single album, rather than three. "This is my first album of the year. It's my only album of the year and I did it on purpose," says Gucci. "I was wanting to take my time and chill. I didn't want to be in studio with a deadline, like I got to make an album and it got to come out at this time."
"I mean, I can do four albums easy. So it's like I'm going to try a different strategy and try to get with my producers and make the best songs with them," he says, revealing deeper insight into his studio process. "I still would write and record a lot of music, but, it was like, when I put it out, I want to put out the best songs I did with Metro, and the best songs I did with Southside. I want it just to be classic. I want people to be like, damn, Gucci. This album right here, there's something special about it."
Look for Evil Genius to drop tomorrow. Gucci recently proclaimed himself to be the best rapper alive; do you agree with him?