SD chopped it up with Spark for the second time to coincide with his latest tape, Fuck David Stern. We discuss the meaning behind the title, why he chose to keep it even after the lockout ended, working with Big K.R.I.T. and the future.
When and why did you decide to name the mixtape Fuck David Stern?
I came up with the title about a month or so ago. Aside from being an avid fan of basketball, I wanted to come up with title that connected with the people. I figured millions of people around world were already saying, “Fuck David Stern” due to the lock-out, so I ran the idea by my man Cash from DigiWaxx and he thought the title was just as dope as I did, so we ran with it. I’’d be lying if I said I didn’t realize the “shock value” in the title, but sometimes, you gotta go the extra mile to reel the listeners in to see the bigger picture…It’s the classic “Bait N Switch.”
Seeing how the NBA is back, why keep the title?
I kept the title because, regardless of the fact that the lock-out is now officially over, we still missed a substantial amount of games. In my mind, yes, its STILL Fuck David Stern *laughs*. Not to mention, I was already 90% into the project. The concept of the project is NBA driven. Basically, it’ll be half original material & half “freestyles” where I’m spitting bars over NBA inspired beats like Cam’ron’s classic “ESPN Halftime Show,” Joe Budden’s “NBA on NBC,” Rick Ross’s “Finals,” etc. The original tracks will be the songs I’ve previously leaked off my upcoming album, @SparkDawgMusic 3: The Direct Message.
What made you decide to take a break from putting out @SparkDawgMusic 3?
I realized that there’s been a heavy gap in time since @SparkDawgMusic 2 was released. I dropped Half Baked & Friday in the meantime. I’ve been leaking records from @SparkDawgMusic 3, but I just didn’t feel like the timing was right to release the entire project yet. I have a huge single with Big K.R.I.T. called “Michael Jordan”, and another huge follow-up with Interscope’s newest artist Don Trip, along w/my homie K.Camp called #RLSP [Racks x Loud x Syrup x Pussy]. I wanna make sure I’m able to shoot big budget music videos for both tracks before we put @SparkDawgMusic 3 out. It’s been kind of difficult to set up dates for the videos due to the fact that everyone is touring like crazy, Our schedules are hell of hectic right now so I wanted to make sure I atleast put some good music out in the meantime to hold my fans and supporters over.
With @SparkDawgMusic 3, what approach did you/will you take that’s different from the previous installments?
I think the main difference in Vol. 3 is the fact that i cut back on all the features. If I’m not mistaken, Vol. 1 had about 28 features *laughs*. I’d like to think that I’ve established myself enough to where I don’t need the extra assistance. I’m confident enough in my ability to make good music to where I can stand on my own.
You worked with Big K.R.I.T. on “Michael Jordan”. How’d that collaboration come about?
A few years ago, he collaborated with my cousin, Yung Texxus. I always thought the song was dope so when we ran into each other back stage at a concert in Austin. We chopped it up and exchanged contact info. I told ‘em I’d love to send him an open track and he said he was down. I guess, we both had a mutual respect for each other’s music since we pretty much came up the same way, via the blogs and underground magazines like Ozone. I remember seeing him in damn near every magazine I was featured in and on every website/blog I was on, so I’m pretty sure he noticed my grind as well.
Who else, artist or producer wise, will we see you working with in the future?
To be honest, I feel like I’ve damn near worked with EVERYBODY, from Scarface to DJ Clue to Young Money to Killer Mike to Mistah Fab. I mean, the list goes on. Right now, my main focus is getting my Team Spark-A-Lot family out there to the masses: King Koupe, POE, Real Talk, Neechie, plus we got some youngin’s in the camp that are gonna blow y’all away, like Yung Coby & Jumpman. If anybody needs to book me or Team Spark-A-Lot, just hit up SparkDawgBooking@gmail.com.
