S. Samuel
The Clipse's 2002 smash hit "Grindin'" almost never happened and could have been another hit for rap mogul Jay-Z, according to Pusha T.
The Virginia-bred emcee said he and brother Malice nearly lost the record to Young Hov.
“The way it was presented to me…I was actually home and Pharrell was in the studio and he called me and he was like, “Listen. Get up here right now. Get up here right now–I’ve got this record and if you’re not up here in 15 minutes I’m just giving it to JAY Z. I am. I’m giving it to him. If you’re not here in 15 minutes…I know you’re home. You’re home. You’re home. Your house is 10 minutes from here. That means you’ve got five minutes to get ready and get over here. If not, I’m giving it to Jay.” I couldn’t really deal with that. And I was there, needless to say, in 13 minutes (laughs).” (Life + Times)
Pusha also detailed how much of an impact “Grindin'” had on fueling their rap careers.
“Our first record out was “Grindin’.” This was at a time when Pharrell was hot, the Neptunes were hot. He was on every hook from Nelly to Mystikal, everybody. And we have a hook where he’s actually not on it. The intro…it basically set the tone for all of those maneuvers and moves. It was just like, “This is what we are, we’re different. This is the streets, this is Virginia, this is new, this is risk-taking.” Playas, we ain’t the same. You know.” (Life + Times)
The record is most known for being a smash hit in summer 2002.
Over a thunderous throwback knock from the Neptunes, “Grindin'” was one of the summer of 2002’s most prolific anthems and transported the Clipse to the realm of overnight rap success. Lord Willin’ is an oft-scary trip down the backstreets of Tobacco Road as Malice and Pusha T recount the trials and tribulations of the drug trafficker-turned-MC. (All Music)
Pusha is currently putting together his long-awaited G.O.O.D. Music studio album.
Pusha T has one hell of an album on his hands, but don’t take our word for it, just ask Kanye West. During a trip to London, Yeezy took a listen to the Virginia MC’s upcoming solo album and had a most interesting critique for Pusha. “When it’s over, he says, ‘Yo, you know that if you die and hear your music, you know you ended up in hell, right?’ ” Push told MTV News. “I don’t know how to take that. Is that a good thing to say or a bad thing to say?” (MTV)
Check out “Grindin'” below:
