Earlier yesterday, Detroit wordsmith Royce Da 5'9 held a listening session at sneaker store Burn Rubber in Detroit for his long talked about, highly anticipated next studio album, Book Of Ryan. Although it's set for a May 4th release, lucky fans got a chance to hang out with Royce, check out some dope sneakers, and listen to the album. I spoke with @Rakabash on Twitter, who is from Detroit, and got the exciting chance to attend the session, and listen to the album first hand.
How many people would you say were in attendance?
"I'd say 50-60 people were in attendance."
Can you give an account of what it was like meeting Royce/how it was when he showed up?
"I was at Burn Rubber before it opened. Royce showed up an hour and a half late. He came through the back entrance because we were anticipating him coming through the front. All of a sudden, I hear thunderous applause, and Royce is standing in front of the sales counter holding a microphone. The sales counter became a makeshift podium to address the fans. When he arrived, he was very friendly and talkative. Kino (Royce's manager) was also there. Royce wore a big ass encrusted watch that was sparkling!"
Does the album, from what you heard, hold any general theme? Since many speculate with a title like Book Of Ryan, it will be autobiographical in a sense.
"It does have an autobiographical theme. Royce pays tribute to his father by both talking about him at his worst as a cocaine addict and praising him for committing himself to rehab to kick his addiction and address the domestic abuse he committed to Royce's mother. "Strong Friend" is the song that is most emotionally gripping. He talks about the person who you think is the most headstrong because they are the breadwinner should be checked on just as much as a person who is emotionally fragile. Royce's honesty, sometimes brutally, is reminiscent of Death Is Certain. His vulnerability on so many songs is fascinating as well. He admits to being a womanizer, an alcoholic, arrogant, etc. You understand the motivations behind his actions.
That's amazing, they say music can be therapeutic, and it sounds like Royce used this album as a crutch of sorts. So let's talk about the production; you said it was very musical, in a sense where instruments of all matter play a huge part in it, not just some synthesizers and 808s of course. Did he discuss who handled production on most/all of the album? Was it the usual in house producers like Mr. Porter, or did he reach further out for broader sounds?
"Streetrunner did 'Summer On Lock', Key Wane produced 'Woke'. He mentioned DJ Khalil, although I don't know which songs he produced. He mentioned Mr. Porter as an executive producer, he did produce a song for Book Of Ryan, possibly more than one."
That's great about Mr. Porter, he deserves his shine. Jay Elec didn't call him the greatest producer of all time for nothing. So you talked a little earlier about the Eminem feature, titled "Caterpillar". What should people expect from that one? The vicious one two punch of Bad Meets Evil going back and forth? Competitive bars? Any highlights?
"Royce has the first and second verse. Em spits a long ass verse but it sounds like the equivalent of Em having 2 verses combined. It sounds like it was recorded after Revival was released and reviews were in. The beat is straight boom bap, it's very "hip hop" to the core.
Very interesting, so in a sense, was Em attacking criticism as he was recently on the "Chloraseptic Remix", or did he have a different agenda to his verse?
"He was lyrically shitting on people disrespecting his style and wanted to show people where so many got their style from. It wasn't really aimed at Joe (Budden, who many people believed the "Chloraseptic Remix" was originally aimed at for his criticism of Revival), but at rival emcees who forgot that Em is the caterpillar- meaning he made his mark on music. I didn't get the sense that he was defensive about the flack from Revival like he was on the 'Chloraseptic Remix'".
Okay, one last question, and I'll let you get out of here. Do you believe Book Of Ryan furthers and promotes Royce's longevity as an emcee, as well as an artist, and not just in the rhyming aspect, but in terms of making great music with replay value?
"Absolutely. a lot of people might be taken aback by how much he sings on this album, however, the themes on so many songs on this album are mature and sophisticated, and go beyond the cookie cutter usually associated with rappers who sing. Because it's an independent release, it's not going to get the push that it deserves, but this is Grammy album of the year material. Much of the album owes a lot to Symbolic 1 and Denaun Porter. Book Of Ryan will make inroads towards showing people he's more than the guy who knows Eminem. He's the guy who can write a collection of songs that draws from his own demons that will be inspirational in to those who hear it."
Sounds like Royce's demons are going to need some help hiding again after we get to finally hear Book Of Ryan. You can go to Rakabash's Instagram (@Rakabash) to see Instagram live videos from the listening session, and in case you missed it, Royce released a bonus track off of Book Of Ryan featuring new Shady signee Boogie, which you can listen to below. Book Of Ryan releases officially on May 4th.
(*I do not own this audio, the image, or any rights to either*)
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