<\/p>\n
\n\tWiz Khalifa<\/a> delivered.<\/p>\n \n\t15 years after he dropped his classic Blog Era mixtape Kush & Orange Juice<\/em>, the multi-platinum rapper decided to go back to his roots on its sequel tape and tap back into the sound that made him one of stoner rap\u2019s most important rappers. He also brought the gang back together as Cardo<\/a>, Sledgren and his stoner-in-crime Curren$y<\/a> all contributed like they did during that first cypher back in April of 2010.<\/p>\n \n\tKush & Orange Juice 2<\/em> also features the likes of Gunna<\/a>, Mike WiLL Made-It<\/a>, Ty Dolla $ign<\/a>, Don Toliver<\/a>, Larry June<\/a>, Conductor Williams<\/a>, and legends in Juicy J<\/a>, DJ Quik, and Max B, among others. And while those acts are diverse in terms of their own individual sounds, Wiz was able to have them fit the story he wanted to tell and he did a pretty good job. It\u2019s rare if not damn near impossible for a sequel to be as good as a classic, but Wiz did a pretty good job. Clocking in at 23 tracks and 77 minutes long, the Kush & OJ<\/em> sequel is the perfect soundtrack for that cousin walk on Easter Sunday \u2014 as you and your family celebrate not only the resurrection, but 4\/20 as well.<\/p>\n \n\tAnd as he rolled out the much anticipated project, Khalifa went on an already-memorable run of freestyles that started last November with \u201cFirst YN Freestyle<\/a>.\u201d Hopefully more rappers will hop on that wave, and give fans more music that feels fun and low-stakes. <\/p>\n \n\tBillboard<\/em> talked with Wiz about why he decided to take that approach, and about a bunch of other things. Check out our chat below and be sure to go run up that Kush + Orange Juice 2<\/em> this weekend.<\/p>\n \n\tYou\u2019ve been on a crazy run lately with these freestyles. Can you talk about why you decided to go that route?<\/strong><\/p>\n \n\tReally just by seeing the reaction of my fans and the people who support me when I started to get into the mode of promoting Kush & Orange Juice 2<\/em>, and really visualizing what that was going to feel like for everybody else. I wanted to make it an experience, and not something that just dropped overnight and then went away. So, me doing the freestyles was kind of a way to write that narrative and to get everybody on board so they understand what to expect and it got a great reaction. So, naturally, I just kept going. And it\u2019s something that I like to do just for fun.<\/p>\n \n\tDid the freestyles help spark something creatively in you?<\/strong><\/p>\n \n\tI was already pretty much done with the album by the time I did the freestyles. But I think anytime I\u2019m able to just play around and see what people enjoy, it gives me a sense of what to do next or what to continue doing. So, it definitely served its purpose when it comes to that. <\/p>\n \n\tYou and other Blog Era peers like J. Cole, Kendrick Lamar and Drake have crossed over into the mainstream. So, now that you\u2019ve achieved a certain level of success, does that mean that you plan on still playing the major-label game, or are you gonna go back to just making what you feel like making?<\/strong><\/p>\n \n\tI think it all just kind of comes together, and it\u2019s really about the fans and what they want and what people are are tuning into, and just me knowing that people digest my music for the way that I do it. It allows me to be free, but it also opens up a lot of different opportunities for me to put that in other places. So, it\u2019s a beginning of a wave that could, you know, go on for however long.<\/p>\n \n\tWhy do you think rappers have moved away from doing freestyles and stuff like that?<\/strong><\/p>\n \n\tI think because clearances and a lot of people want their their stuff on the biggest platform. It\u2019s hard to monetize a freestyle and if you put a lot of energy into it, a lot of people want it to go far, so that value has been missing. It takes certain artists to push it and to show that the value of it isn\u2019t gone. It\u2019s not really where you\u2019re aiming to put these at. The people and the listeners, and their ears are there, and they\u2019re going to discover it. I think people have to re-understand that and reimagine that.<\/p>\n \n\tSo much has changed since you came in the game. If you were an up and coming rapper today, how would you approach your career?<\/strong><\/p>\n \n\tI would approach it the same way. A lot of the younger artists or personalities, they know who their fan base is. They know who they\u2019re talking to, and they reach out to them, and that\u2019s what dictates what they do or what their next moves are. And a lot of artists are afraid of that, but there\u2019s a lot of power and a lot of value in knowing who your consumers are and the people who want the best from you and aiming what you do towards them. And that would be my advice, or that would be what I would do. That\u2019s what I\u2019m doing now, is just focusing on the people who I know support and are expecting this, and really just making the experience for them.<\/p>\n \n\tOne person that\u2019s carving out a unique lane for themselves is streamer and producer PlaqueBoyMax<\/a>. You were on his stream recently. How was that experience?<\/strong><\/p>\n \n\tYeah, it was cool working with Max, and that was the first time I had made a song live on somebody else\u2019s stream. And even just with that platform of him being, you know, with FaZe and them having the reach that they do. That\u2019s a whole different fanbase than the people who are used to me, and it was good to be able to win those people over, show them what my talent actually is, and work with somebody for the first time and create something in front of everybody that\u2019s just super fun and super cool to me.<\/p>\n