Royce da 5’9″ talks about producing for Eminem.
Royce da 5’9″ recently sat down with HotNewHipHop for their “12 Days of Christmas” interview series. On the show, Royce Da 5’9″ reflects on his discography, learning production from DJ Premier & Denaun Porter, his first Grammy nomination, the love-hate relationship between artist and media, Eminem and much more.
Eminem surprised everyone with his surprise album, Music to Be Murdered By, on Friday (Jan. 17). The 20-track project features a diverse group of artists, from lyrical heavyweights like Black Thought and Slaughterhouse to rising talents like Juice WRLD and Cactus Jack rising rookie Don Toliver.
The two went their separate ways in their respective professions, only to be ripped apart by a terrible feud, which marked the last time they were heard together in years. Following the tragic shooting death of shared friend Proof in 2006, Eminem’s group D12 was able to mend fences, and the two musicians finally reunited. Eminem and Royce were finally on speaking terms again after Royce was included on D12’s album Return Of The Dozen in 2008.
Royce Da 5’9” and Marshall have worked together for a long time, but their collaboration reached new heights when The Allegory rapper made his production debut on Eminem’s critically acclaimed studio album Music To Be Murdered By – a process he described as “a level of stress that’s fun.”
He also talked about sending Eminem his beats and producing for him on the “Music To Be Murdered By” Album.
HNHH: I’m loving your production. I remember you showcased a few beats on your Instagram hinting at a little bit of a Bad Meets Evil vibe, I was pretty into that.
Royce: I sent Marshall some stuff here. I always send him stuff. I mean, so my first placement I got was on his album. So that was a dope accomplishment. And I love when I can send him something and he gets excited, man, it makes me excited. It makes me want to work. Sometimes I need that, you know?
HNHH: Oh, definitely. And it showcases some versatility too. Like the sounds that you were kind of working with on Music To Be Murdered By were pretty different than the ones on Allegory. So it showed that you’re able to adapt to other artists. I mean, obviously, you’re familiar with working with Eminem but did it open a new dynamic? Was it new territory?
Royce: So it’s always a new dynamic because you never know what he’s gonna be on. It all depends on what headspace he’s in, you know? You can do so many things and like, whatever he chooses to do, he’s going to be great at it. He’s going to strive to put his best foot forward. The competition level of just what you have to put into it in order to be able to coexist from a competitive perspective is distressing. I mean, that’s pretty much what my experience is like whenever I’m working with him. I’m a new producer, so having to- producing his first single is stressful, because, like, it’s on the same album as a Dr. Dre beat.
So it’s just a level of stress that’s fun. And I’m up for that challenge. But it’s definitely on a different mind frame. And then like, with those beasts that I gave him for that album, that was my first time working with somebody where when I come around, I have to find out where I fit, and occupy that space, and not go past that. You know? Because that’s his ship. I’m just here to help. So I’m just here to do my part. Actually, I didn’t even get summoned here to help. I’m just here as a friend. And I’m playing him stuff, and he’s liking it. So like, now I got to just adapt to that.
Check out the whole interview on HNHH.
