M.O.P.’s Lil’ Fame makes a BK banger from
the ground up. Salute!

Lil’ Fame’s got no shame in his game. As one half of legendary Brooklyn gangsta rap duo and G-Unit signees, M.O.P., Fame brings ceaseless lyrical fire. Although fans have come to know him over the last 15 years as an MC first and a producer second (often making beats under the name Fizzy Womack), when asked about where he’s coming from musically, it’s clear that for Fame, beatmaking isn’t just a side hustle. “I was always more into this than rapping,” he says without hesitation. “I rap because I can do it, but this is where my heart’s at.”

Perched over a beaten, blue MPC2000XL and a shining Technics CD turntable, the rapper/producer forges soul-fueled fury without breaking a sweat. Making space for Scratch in the back of the Brooklyn studio where he churns out four to six beats daily, Fame birthed a Brownsville banger while we took notes. Sliding in a copy of Black & Proud: Soul of the Black Panther Era and cueing up Darongo’s “Let My People Go” Fame smiles and says, “I love this shit.” Adding, “Everybody be crazy stressed like a muthafucka. This is an outlet. I don’t worry about nothing. Kiss my nuts.”

SAMPLE SALE I can make a beat out of any fucking thing, really. I found “Cold As Ice” on the street—it was pouring rain and there was a bunch of records. I just sped it up, put a bass on it and chopped it up a little bit. I had that beat for like a year or two before I actually rapped on it. Not to be on no cocky shit, but I can find something on whatever CD is in the player. I just go through it ’til I can hear the drums that go with it. Once I hear it in my head, I always get it.

TALKIN’ TO THE DRUMS I gotta get my drums tight. First I lay my kick and snare—they always gotta be right there on pad 2 and pad 6 [pointing at his MPC], the kick with a snare on top of it. Those gotta be perfect so I quantize the first boom–bap at 1/16. My snare gotta be right on. You know the other thing you gotta do? You gotta talk to this muthafucka—19! 19, bitch! You also gotta slam these muthafuckas. I’ll slam the shit out of the MPC.

interview Noah Rubin | photography Rayon Richards

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