The Rap Music Plug Podcast

• #197 - Backxwash INTERVIEW

  In recent years, the Canadian hip-hop scene, particularly in Montreal, has been growing in size and quality. Backxwash, today’s guest, may be the scene’s most captivating act. Sporting an eclectic sound that pulls from metal, industrial noise, trap, horrorcore conscious hip-hop, and pop... Backxwash can, and really has done it all. Her latest record, Only Dust Remains, showcases the latest evolution of Backxwash’s artistry, featuring boldly melodic songwriting, climactic hooks, and a lucid meditation on death. In this episode, we walk through her artistic journey, key influences on her musical style, the importance of identity in her music, and the making of her magnum opus, Only Dust Remains. The Plug (0:46). The Interview (2:00). Her musical journey from Zambia to Montreal (3:36). The creative community in Montreal (7:26). Trans representation in hip-hop (12:46). Blending rap with heavier styles of music (18:42). Production inspirations for Backxwash’s genre-bending style (21:54). The extended break between Only Dust Remains and His Happiness (29:39). The musical vision for Only Dust Remains (32:56). The narrative arc of Only Dust Remains (35:34). The inspiration behind the melodic sound of Only Dust Remains (40:54). The core message behind Only Dust Remains (45:18). What Backxwash learnt by creating her new album (48:40). The philosophy behind this new chapter of Backxwash’s career (52:12). Upcoming projects / tour dates / merch from Backxwash (55:55). Future sound Backxwash would like to explore (57:26). Buy/stream Only Dust Remains here: https://backxwash.bandcamp.com/album/only-dust-remains  Follow Backxwash on Twitter here: https://x.com/backxwash  Follow Backxwash on Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/backxwash/?hl=en  Intro/Outro beat by: BLOODBLIXING -- Fiending for some more quality rap content? Visit the RMPP website: https://rmpp.squarespace.com/ Want to support and help us grow? Become a RMPP Patron, and gain access to exclusive content: https://www.patreon.com/therapmusicplugpodcast  Looking to connect? DM me @rapmusicplugpod on Twitter and Instagram, or shoot me an email at [email protected]

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• #196 - shemar INTERVIEW

  Nothing gets me more psyched than an artist maximizing their potential, fulfilling the promise of their talent. A notable thing about this dynamic is that, in the vast majority of times, these times when I get amped that an artist finally delivered the project they were capable of, typically comes years and years into an artist’s career. This is precisely what separates today’s guest, shemar, from the pack, as the Brooklyn rapper-producer, still in his early 20s with only a few full projects under his belt, delivered what I feel will go down as not only a defining record of 2025, but a seminal record within this current youth movement of boundary-pushing hip-hop in the New York underground scene. In today’s episode, we discuss shemar’s poetry background, E L U C I D's influence on his artistic development, and the lyrical and musical inspirations found within his excellent new album, emerge "n" see. The Plug (1:09). The Interview (3:05). The relationship between shemar and Child Actor (4:25). The importance of this current scene of underground hip-hop (7:53). shemar’s approach as a rapper (9:57). The influence of shemar’s poetry background on his rap style (14:40). E L U C I D’s influence on shemar’s artistic development (19:34). The personal subject matter of emerge “n” see (26:23). The mutually beneficial relationship between producing beats and creating raps (28:58). The development of shemar’s political understanding (31:57). The inspiration of shemar’s political messaging on emerge “n” see (37:30). The experimental sound direction of emerge “n” see (41:16). The challenge of rapping to the experimental beats on emerge “n” see (45:11). shemar’s consistent boundary-pushing appetite - RMPP patron q from Evan (50:44). The exploration of gender identity on emerge “n” see - RMPP patron q from Kosey (54:06). Upcoming projects / tour dates / merch from shemar (58:17). A shemar x Hester Valentine collab project coming soon? (1:00:34). Buy/stream emerge "n" see here: https://shemar1.bandcamp.com/album/emerge-n-see Follow shemar on Twitter here: https://x.com/shemar_aa  Follow shemar on Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/shemar.alexander/?hl=en  Intro/Outro beat by: BLOODBLIXING -- Fiending for some more quality rap content? Visit the RMPP website: https://rmpp.squarespace.com/ Want to support and help us grow? Become a RMPP Patron, and gain access to exclusive content: https://www.patreon.com/therapmusicplugpodcast  Looking to connect? DM me @rapmusicplugpod on Twitter and Instagram, or shoot me an email at [email protected]

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• #195 - Real Bad Man INTERVIEW

  Today’s guest Real Bad Man, is an artist who has caught my attention in recent years because he checks two important boxes for what I typically gravitate to in music. The first box is that I’m an album guy. And when it comes to the type of albums I prefer, I’m a cohesiveness whore. I love it when an album has a consistent musical identity, with thoughtful sequencing and transitions that make the experience flow seamlessly from top to bottom. It’s for these reasons that Real Bad Man has impressed me because his respect for the album format is clear, creating cohesive full-length musical experiences with the likes of Boldy James, ZelooperZ, Pink Siifu, Lukah, Willie the Kid, and more. But as you will soon find out if you listen on, there’s more to Real Bad Man’s creative arc than meets the eye. In today’s episode, the LA-based producer enigma delves into his unique multi-disciplinary journey from art director at Stüssy to prolific producer, his love for the album format, the trademark RBM sound, working with Boldy James, and more! The Plug (0:55). The Interview (2:45). The genesis of the multi-media Real Bad Man creative project (2:52). How Real Bad Man returned to music with Real Bad Boldy (14:04). The cross-pollination within fashion design and music (21:16). Real Bad Man’s love for the album format (27:15). The trademark Real Bad Man sound (30:12). Producing the musically-rich, Temple Needs Water., with Lukah (35:41). The ideal collaborator for Real Bad Man (42:56). The special chemistry between Boldy James and Real Bad Man (47:32). What differentiates Conversational Pieces from past Boldy x RBM collabs (55:15). Upcoming projects / merch (59:59). Support Real Bad Man here: https://realbadman.com/  Buy/stream Conversational Pieces here: https://realbadman.bandcamp.com/album/conversational-pieces  Follow Real Bad Man on Twitter here: https://x.com/realbadman208?lang=en  Follow Real Bad Man on Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/realbadman/?hl=en  Intro/Outro beat by: BLOODBLIXING -- Fiending for some more quality rap content? Visit the RMPP website: https://rmpp.squarespace.com/ Want to support and help us grow? Become a RMPP Patron, and gain access to exclusive content: https://www.patreon.com/therapmusicplugpodcast  Looking to connect? DM me @rapmusicplugpod on Twitter and Instagram, or shoot me an email at [email protected]

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• #194 - billy woods breaks down 'GOLLIWOG' - Album Alchemy

  When you have a catalog as deep and renowned as billy woods, finding a way to top your past work can be a difficult thing. But as has been the case with woods for many years now… the man did it again. It’s not like woods has reinvented himself on this latest album. His wry wit, sharp storytelling, and great ear for production are still present on this record. But now these elements are funnelled through an ambitious horror-themed experience shrouded in darkness, ripe with poignant political insight and introspection. All culminating in an album that has an argument for being the best of woods’ storied career. In today’s episode, woods provides colour to the inspiration for his new album, the horror influence, his take on being viewed as an abstract artist, pivotal moments of the album, and much more. woods is one of the most fascinating people to talk to on many subjects, such as music, politics, and sports. So listening to this episode is a no-brainer. Make sure you lock in and get a glimpse into the mind of a living legend. The Plug (1:10). The Interview (2:58). Being perceived by an increasingly large audience with different life experiences (3:18). How the idea and album title came to be (9:16). woods’ upbringing, and re-evaluating political perspectives of the past (11:21). Afro-pessimism and the humanity found in woods’ music (27:06). The unique methodology used to woods’ new album (34:34). What horror unlocks for woods as a writer (37:05). “Maquiladoras” and the meaning behind the concept of ‘amputation’ (49:08). The picture painted by “Dislocated” and why it was chosen as the final track (54:50). woods’ perspective on his music being labelled ‘abstract’ (1:00:45). The power of storytelling (1:08:26). Cultivating the horror surrealist atmosphere on the production / Marshawn Lynch vs. Shaun Alexander - RMPP patron q from Shaun Alexander (1:010:05). The importance of Willie Green to the creative process of the new album (1:19:10). woods’ trademark sports bars, Knicks playoff hopes, mobile QBs (1:21:45). woods’ upcoming book - RMPP patron q from Cian Walker and Joshua Davis (1:26:15). Upcoming Armand Hammer album, E L U C I D solo, and other Backwoodz work in 2025 (1:27:27). Support Backwoodz Studioz here: https://backwoodzstudioz.com/  Buy GOLLIWOG here: https://backwoodzstudioz.com/collections/billy-woods-golliwog  Follow billy woods on Twitter here: https://x.com/BackwoodzHipHop  Follow Backwoodz Studioz on Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/backwoodzstudioz/?hl=en  Intro/Outro beat by: BLOODBLIXING -- Fiending for some more quality rap content? Visit the RMPP website: https://rmpp.squarespace.com/ Want to support and help us grow? Become a RMPP Patron, and gain access to exclusive content: https://www.patreon.com/therapmusicplugpodcast  Looking to connect? DM me @rapmusicplugpod on Twitter and Instagram, or shoot me an email at [email protected]

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• #193 - Fly Anakin breaks down '(The) Forever Dream' - Album Alchemy

  Today’s guest, Fly Anakin, is no stranger to delivering albums that leave a distinct imprint on the listener. As seen on past records like Frank that envelop you in dusty old soul records and introspection, and FlySiifu’s that welcomed you into this record shop concept with two homies who enjoy trading bars over some sick jazz rap instrumentals. But on his latest album, (The) Forever Dream, Fly Anakin takes a noticeably different approach. Opting not to follow a distinct concept or theme, Frank traded pre-meditated forethought for a more free-wheeling approach, allowing for the album to reveal itself through fun studio sessions with the album’s executive producer, Detroit legend Quelle Chris. The results of this approach were terrific, as this new album sees Fly Anakin operate with so much freedom, embracing new sounds and collaborators, resulting in an incredibly loose and dynamic album that manages to push all the right buttons, balancing spontaneity with expertly crafted cohesion. In this episode, we dive into how Frank's relationship with Quelle was formed, the effortlessly natural collaborative process creating this new album, and much more! The Plug (0:45). The Interview (2:44). Frank’s feelings towards the release of (The) Forever Dream (4:58). Frank touring with his partner, bbymutha (7:09). The formation of Fly Anakin and Quelle Chris’ relationship (11:48). What makes Quelle special as an artist and collaborator (16:50). How Quelle and Fly Anakin are ‘opposites’ (22:27). Creative decision-making responsibilities between Fly Anakin and Quelle (24:13). The musical direction of (The) Forever Dream (26:30). Fly Anakin’s mindset when creating (The) Forever Dream (30:42). The heartfelt and open nature of (The) Forever Dream (35:00). Why Fly Anakin feels his latest album is his best (39:54). The key collaborations on (The) Forever Dream (43:18). The thinking behind Quelle executive producing (The) Forever Dream (45:22). Upcoming projects / tour dates / merch, including a project with Real Bad Man (49:23). Buy/stream (The) Forever Dream here: https://flyanakin.bandcamp.com/album/the-forever-dream  Follow Fly Anakin on Twitter here: https://x.com/flyanakin  Follow Fly Anakin on Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/flyanakin/?hl=en  Intro/Outro beat by: BLOODBLIXING -- Fiending for some more quality rap content? Visit the RMPP website: https://rmpp.squarespace.com/ Want to support and help us grow? Become a RMPP Patron, and gain access to exclusive content: https://www.patreon.com/therapmusicplugpodcast  Looking to connect? DM me @rapmusicplugpod on Twitter and Instagram, or shoot me an email at [email protected]

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