Shad

0:06What up, this is Shadd, you're watching MSN Exclusives. You may have to forgive them forever, every day. They say life can make you bitter or better. I say, hey, sacred or not, all that we got. Love is what it is, or maybe not what you thought. Walk up, one morning started talking to Pops. He said, there's lots you learn, but a lot you forgot. More often than not, then you don't got to be taught. Just remember to remember how you got to the spot of Pops. That was the first time I started working on it for the album. I worked on it. So did it inform the tone for everything, or just it's its own piece? Yeah, it was kind of its own thing, but it was the first thing I started working on. I called up my friend Mike Tomkins that I grew up with too. You've had him on the show? Nice, yeah. You've been big bucks. Yeah, exactly, you know Mike and what he does. So I know Mike since he was like eight. Yeah, we talked about you a lot. I can't show you. Cool, yeah. So I called up Mike and you know what he's doing now.

0:53He's doing tremendous things. So it was just great to get to work with him again. And you know how he works is layering vocal parts. So that song, almost everything in it is voice. Was it always lights? Lights came in a little bit later. So we had the kind of basic elements there. And yeah, I was like, you know what? I think lights would fit well with this. Okay, so you didn't write like you don't think of people and you just kind of see who's around that. Yeah, a lot of it. A lot of it I like to leave up to fate in that kind of way. So she actually had to have the accidents. Exactly, yeah. So she happened to be around just that one day and was like, yeah, definitely down to come down and so she put down her parts. And that's how it's on came together. So like over a long time and actually I think the last verse I wrote for that song is the last verse I wrote for the album. So it was like the first thing I worked on. Yeah, full circle.

1:39The last thing I worked on. So again, the like serendipity I like that. Yeah, me too. So what was the process in between? How long was that time period? Like a year and a half, you know, from the first time working on that song and the first session demoing stuff until it was completed. Yeah. Are you constantly writing in your phone or like, how do you do? Yeah. Yeah. So, you know, I get ideas that come to me. I try to wait for a lyrical idea that surprises me. That's when I feel like it's good. So whenever that comes, I write it down however I can. And usually writing happens pretty quickly after that. I find things just flow. Things flow. Yeah. Because it's just kind of like it's loosens the valve or whatever. However you want to put it, you know, just like that helps. So yeah, so that's generally like where lyrics come from. Are you someone who crosses out words consistently or do you just let things?

2:25Yeah. No, I'm that guy who I can't write and not edit at the same time. So what took the most work out of this work? What song went through the most revisions? Most revisions. I don't know. Maybe FamJam. Okay. Just because I wanted to get it right. Did you just say that because you know I want to talk about it? No. It was going to say before me. No, no. But maybe I should work in TV or something. Yeah. I understand. No, yeah. That one because there was a lot that I wanted to say and there was like a certain amount of nuance, you know, like I wanted it to be celebratory and joyful. Yeah. But at the same time. Yeah. I was serious and I wanted it to be big. But at the same time I wanted to make sure it was personal, you know, so it's not this like just me talking, astounding on this subject and it's like didactic and a little bit boring.

3:10I wanted people to know this is coming from a personal place. So there's a lot of things. And so I think while a lot of it came out quite naturally I was kind of fine tuning a lot of things just to make sure that the tone was right. Because I was trying to do a lot with that. Yeah. Well, it tozed the line. The melodies are happy. The guitar riff like I was telling you love. The horns are cool. But then you have this for one and genocide talking. Yeah. Like you're taking a heavy so we're going to toe the line. Yeah. Of doing that. Yeah. That's where a lot of the editing comes into kind of because you don't want to trick people. You don't want to be like here I'm giving you this sunny melody. But you know, I'm actually going to do this. I that feels like a little heavy handed and kind of mean spirited, you know, but I just wanted to do something big and something real. But at the same time retain some joyful sentiment there, you know what I mean?

4:00So that took a lot of love fine tuning in the lyrics and in the beat that I worked on with Scratch Bastards. So where's the guitar? Are you playing? I've seen you play guitar a lot before. So are you playing guitar? No, that's not my guitar. But that's actually it comes from a West African song that I used to listen to growing up. So, you know, again, like I wanted everything in the song to be personal and kind of close to me. So that was like that riff came from the memory. Yeah. Last time I saw you was at Polaris, one of the highlights of my year. I'm sure like Kathleen Edwards is probably my favorite. No offense to you but one of my favorite guests on the show because she's just hilarious man. She's so much fun all the time. So it was like working with her that day. Amazing. And she made my job very easy which was good. Yeah. The other thing that was great was like just watching someone who the second they step

4:46on stage they turn on, you know, I told her the next day like I'd never seen someone that was that almost gifted in that way of like they just turn on. They really love the stage that much and they understand performance and she can just transform, you know, step on stage and transform. Are you the same way? Like what do you have? Are you a different person? That's the wrong way. Do you go into a character when you go into a stage? I think like when I'm feeling it the music can shift my persona and I would get into a different space totally. But the music has to be there. From her it was just being on stage and just being like charged with entertaining people. She could do it. She didn't even need music. It's true. It's amazing. Yeah.

5:31You're freaking out. Don't tell yourself story. No, I was fine. You know, my job was easy. You just kind of had to like, you know, thank a couple of sponsors and you know. Right. Yeah. The hosting stuff. The whole thing stuff. Yeah. She took care of the heavy lifting of like actually like making people laugh and all that. So, yeah. So on both of those levels it was really cool to work with her and she's a tremendous musician. One of the things I find interesting to get off that topic about hip hop records is the way they're put together. Like I was telling you before. So there's a rhyme influence to beat for you most of the time. It's a beat influence to rhyme. I'm sure it happens both. But you want to give me examples on the record? Yeah, it happens both ways. So, okay. The last song on the album is called Long John and it's just this like kind of loose freestyle kind of thing. And so that one I wrote all the lyrics like it just started one of those loose in the

6:19valve things like a couple lines came to me and suddenly I'm just writing for three days just going going going going going going going. And that one I got the beat afterwards. You know, I was kind of like this needs like a jazzy simple boom bap kind of beat. And so that's an example of it working that way. Remember to remember that one actually started with the track. Right. Like you're saying. Yeah, sure. And it's kind of internalizing just the moods of that. And then just kind of writing stuff that fit that mood. So cool. Yeah. So it can happen both ways. We do something called five questions but with rappers like to get six questions in there because this one I love. Okay. Roder Studio. Studio. Leonard McCartney. McCartney. Parker Biggie. That's tough. That's the one I like throwing in for the hip hop guys.

7:07I'm more of a fan of Biggie's music. But pop as a personality. I think it's like pretty figures pretty largely in hip hop. But as far as like who am I going to throw on at home big? Well, yeah. The lyrics are a little, anyway, I'm not going to get into that. Yeah, I know my East Coast dude. It's from Toronto. Yeah. Okay. Like hip hop is like my sensibilities are pretty East Coast. I heard you talking about regionality and hip hop and how it went away. And I find that very interesting especially now that Twitter and Facebook and like there's all this, everything's together now. Yeah. Yeah. And the way people hear music too like like before regional influences were really big because that might be the only music you've heard. Sure. You know, like to a great extent. So now that's just not the case at all.

7:54Does it matter? No. I don't know. So the only thing that's unfortunate is like people do lose some of like the rich history of music where they come from. You know, I mean maybe is is a potential downside but music is always been about cross pollination. Like it's always been about that. Like across cultures, across regions. So I don't want people to make too big of fuss a bit. It's a good thing and it's quite natural. Like it's always happened. It's just now it happens so much more. Yeah. Cool. Back to five questions. When you hear a song what usually hits you first, lyrics, melody or rhythm? That's a good question. I'd probably say melody. If someone's never heard shad before, what song do they start with? Rose Garden. I think that's my favorite track on TSL.

8:41Cool. And in one word, shad. Shad in one word. Good. Good. I like that. Thanks man. Appreciate it. Thanks.