The Late ’80s – Q&A Interview

Tell us a little about yourselves. Where are you guys from? How long have you been making Hip Hop together?

Alain: We’re The Late ’80s. We rep the five boroughs, in general. Originally, we’re both from Manhattan, but we’ve pretty much lived all over NYC, between us. I’ve known Bred for about 10 years. We made music when we were kids, but I didn’t really start taking it seriously until recently. I was distracted, but now I’m at the point where I realize this is what I have to do with my life. Fuck everything else.

Bred: Yeah, we met working at Fat Beats (the legendary record store), back in high school. We were two of the youngest dudes there, so we clicked and started workin’ on music — but it was really more of a social thing, you know, just for fun. We were always cool, but we kind of went our separate ways for a while. Still kicked it and all that, but I got fully immersed in production, working with different artists, and Alain was out there, doin’ his own thing. Long story short, when he finally decided to get back in the studio, we kicked around some ideas, the creative energy was flowing, the stars aligned and The Late ’80s was born. Well, reborn.

What influences you in making Hip Hop?

Alain: For me, it’s a lack of good shit. I love Hip Hop, and I just feel like a lot of these new artists aren’t reppin’ the culture right.

Bred: I think we both try to make music we wish was already being made for us to listen to, if that makes any sense. Shit we’d buy if we
could, but can’t, so we have to make it ourselves.

Describe your music, and what separates you from other MCs & Producers?

Bred: Our sound is unique. Yeah, there’s an obvious nostalgic boom bap vibe to our shit, but we do it different from other like-minded brothers. A lot of these cats straight jack a sound that already had its time. We try to pay homage to the golden era while still offering something fresh to the game, giving you original styles you never heard before — preserving the culture by evolving it, but without forgetting its soul. Renaissance shit.

Alain: Word. The Marty McFly and Doc Emmett Brown of this rap shit, taking it back to the future.

Who have you collaborated with? Who would you like to collab with in the near future?

Alain: Anyone dope. We’re not on some opportunistic shit, trying to work with mothafuckas just because they got a buzz and might help us get some plays, or whatever. So far, just people we know, or people Bred has worked with. Not into name dropping. I don’t really think about shit like that. We just make good music, and if you’re around us and you make good music too, we’re down to work.

Bred: Yeah, and not just rappers either. We on some other shit. On the title track for “The Hell Below” (our next project), we got a violinist to drop an ill electric fiddle solo. Out the box shit like that. When it comes to collaborations, it’s all about the art and whether or not another artist will help us recognize our vision.

Your definition of “Underground Hip Hop”?

Alain: Art. Hip Hop made for the sake of expression, without any
corporate agenda.

Bred: Hip Hop that sacrifices exposure and financial gain to maintain
its integrity.

Production wise, who are your influences?

Bred: My main influences are probably DJ Premier, Pete Rock and RZA, but I also gotta mention other brothers like Large Professor, Lord Finesse, Showbiz, Buckwild, Diamond D, The Bomb Squad, MF Doom, Madlib and Just Blaze, to name a few. Shit, can’t forget the people I came up with. I could go on, but there’s too many. I’m a student of music, in general. Not even just Hip Hop. Although I gotta salute some of the folks who inspired me, like them, I’ve developed my own distinctive
style and sound — and I don’t think you can easily compare me to anyone, in particular.

Any current or future projects you are promoting?

Alain: Bred mentioned “The Hell Below” earlier. We been working on that for over a year. Actually, we kinda threw our first EP “Sorry We’re Late!” together because “The Hell Below” is taking us so long to finish. We wanted to release something to introduce ourselves to the people, let ’em test the waters before diving all the way in. “Sorry We’re Late!” was some simple fun shit to showcase our skills, more than anything. “The Hell Below” is some crazy conceptual shit. It’s a lot darker, a lot weirder and a lot more thought-provoking. I don’t even know if the world is ready for it, but it should be done by December. Can’t wait to drop this shit.

Can you give us a brief description of the creative process of your debut release EP “Sorry We’re Late”?

Alain: Bred beat me until I got my rhymes right.

Bred: No comment.

Where can we find your music and info?

Alain: On our website, thelate80s.com.

Any shout outs?

Alain: Shout out to Bred Wondah.

Bred: Fuck that guy. He’s an asshole — but shout out to everybody that helped with “Sorry I’m Late!” Shy for the cover photo, Jay and Saga for workin’ the boards, Charles and Subtex for hittin’ the lab with us and Monster for layin’ down the cuts. Oh, and Alain, you know, for rappin’ and all that.