"I'm not used to seeing Dave East like this," says Charlamagne Tha God, as the Paranoia scribe smiles beside him, "he's got the whole label team with him." With his fame and status growing by the day, East makes it clear that he's feeling the effects of such a profound change. "I'm talking about where it's at now, what's going on with me," says East. "Where I'm at, how I feel."
Evidently, it turns out Paranoia is somewhat of an autobiographical title, stemming from Dave's inherent distrust of people. With that in mind, Dave seems as if the rising fame and birth of his daughter have given him a fresh perspective on life. However, with fame and parenthood come an entirely new wave of paranoia. Plus, Dave reveals the dark side of being so many women's "Man Crush Monday" selection.
"I get to see the real weirdness in men," says East. "Like last night...homie was with his girl, and his girl was really the fan, well I thought she was cause she wanted the pic, but he was like 'nah let me get mines first.'" It's telling that even though Dave has been killing it of late, his demeanor carries a certain weight; it's as if he's being weighed down by the paranoia he so effectively harnessed as an artistic muse. Over the course of the interview, Dave barely cracks a smile, let alone laughs. But still, the man delivers some real talk over the course of the half-hour conversation.
For more from East, including words about Christina Milian, Paranoia, and Drake, be sure to catch the interview in full below. If you haven't already, go check out our own feature we did with East, including an in depth conversation on New York hip-hop, Nas, and more.