On Tuesday, March 20th, Lil Twist will be releasing his much anticipated debut album, “Don’t Get It Twisted.” On his most recent visit in Cleveland as part of TYGA’s Careless World Tour, Lil Twist took some time to sit down and talk about his music with Examiner. You can watch the video and/or read it here.
Examiner (E):Your debut album is slated to be released later this month, right?
Lil Twist (LT):Yeah.
E:The 20th?
LT:Yes. “Don’t Get It Twisted”
E:Tell me a little bit about your album.
LT:“Don’t Get It Twisted” is a different side of Lil Twist. I grew up over the past years and with working on this album. And it’s just fun, it’s a different sound, it’s very versatile – different sides of genres that I like to touch in music from rock and pop and hip-hop… different stuff. But it’s dope music.
E:Very nice. Where do you feel you get your inspiration for your music? Where does it come from? What do you have that fuels your passion and your artistic vibe?
LT:Really, I just get going. I think I really just… I’ve been blessed to really be able to say that I really feel that I do this. So when I hear the beat—whatever I hear in the song, really—I can hear a song and a beat and I just go off of that.
E:And you’ve been doing this, it sounds like, from a very young age?
LT:Yeah… yeah. I started messing with music when I was 7 years old, but I got known and stuff started happening when I was 10.
E:Wow, that’s pretty impressive… to start that young. So seven years old was when you started?
LT:Yes.
E:What drew you to the world of music? What was it that brought you in, to express yourself in that manner?
LT:Really… I have older cousins. All my cousins are older than me, and they wanted to be artists and stuff. They was rapping, so I would always want to be like them. They would come pick me up and they had studios in their closets, and they would like my raps. So I knew I wanted to do it from there. And I just continued to do it.
E:And you were the one that ended up…
LT:And I was the one that ended up making it.
E:Lil Wayne first recognized you when you opened for him, right?
LT:Yes… yes.
E:How old were you when you were opening for him?
LT:Um… how old was I? I was 12 or 13 at the time, I believe… maybe 13.
E:Alright. And you’ve been working with him ever since then?
LT:Yes, I’ve been with him ever since then. Cortez Bryant, which is his manager, is also my manager. And from that day, he wanted to manage me and we’ve been together ever since.
E:That’s great. What guidance has he given to you? What do you feel Lil Wayne has opened for you?
LT:Wayne? Everything. He guides me how to do this music. That’s why I feel like I do this, because I’ve been in the studio with him since I was really young. Just learning stuff day by day and seeing how you go about things. And that’s just how I go about things. Ya know? And it works.
E:As you started working with Lil Wayne you went into studio, prior to that you were predominantly just a live performer, right?
LT:Yes… yes.
E:What do you feel is the give and take between being in the studio and being on-stage? Which do you prefer? And what’s the good or the bad in each?
LT:There’s no good… I mean, its all good in both. But you know the different setting… you know you have to go in the studio to be able to go and perform the record.
Studio is fun. Studio is more personal for me. Without everyone seeing what’s going on in my session and how I’m coming up with everything. And then stage… I just love giving off my energy and letting people see what I do.
E:So you feel that it’s as easy or easier for you in studio than on stage, or the opposite?
LT:It’s easier for me in studio, because I can walk in the studio and go right in the booth and rap without getting a strange feeling in my stomach from when I step in front of 30,000 with Lil Wayne, or something. It’s different.
E:So you still get that feeling when you step on stage?
LT:Definitely. Yeah.
E:This upcoming album… I know that you have a lot of collaborations on a lot of the songs. What do you take from working with other artists? Who are some of the other artists?
LT:I worked with Two Chains on this album. I work with The Dream. I’ve worked with Chris Brown, Lil Wayne (of course), Justin Beiber, and the list goes on… TYGA.
E:What does that bring to your music—to be working with other artists?
It’s fun. I mean… when I record these different records in the studio, I can hear that certain person on the record. So, I mean, as far as getting something from it… I don’t think I get something from it, but I be wanting those certain artists on my records.
E:So when you’re creating the song, you hear them… I need to get you in here…
LT:I hear Justin Beiber singing this… TYGA rapping this verse.
E:Do you have any new collaborations on the forefront?
LT:This Justin Beiber record we’re putting down, that’s one of my newest records. And, um… and a record I have with Wayne and Chris Brown titled “Flowers” is one of my newest records. And it’s crazy.
E:What do you see on the forefront? I know the album is coming out soon… what do you see coming next?
LT:Coming next is actually in the air right now… it’s in the air between me and my management team. There’s a few records that we’re thinking about but, um… both would feature Chris Brown and/or Lil Wayne… or Justin Beiber. So it’s gonna be a crazy collaboration record coming next.
E:Sounds like it. That’s great. What else do you want people to know about you?
LT:“Don’t Get It Twisted” is coming soon. It’s a great album and I can’t wait until you all hear it.
E:I’m looking forward to it.
LT:Thanks.
E:Thank you for your time.
LT:Thank you.
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