Interviews

Published on March 6th, 2020 | by Dr. Jerry Doby

YFN Lucci: HIStory in the Making

2019 left no doubt that YFN Lucci represents the next wave of the sound of Atlanta with his top 10 hit “All Night Long” featuring Trey Songz. Following a string of multi-platinum joints, the single from his celebrated 650Luc project closed out the decade with a resounding bang for the young lion. To boot, Lucci has landed two Billboard Hot 100 singles over the course of his young career and accolades from the likes of XXL, Vibe, and Forbes amongst others.

Lucci inked his deal with Think It’s A Game Records (TIG Records) in 2014 and came out blazing with his Wish Me Well mixtape which led to Wish Me Well 2 in 2016 that delivered the platinum-certified smash hit “Key to the Streets” featuring Migos and Trouble. The joint garnered nearly 70 million Spotify streams and sparked an amazing remix with Lil Wayne, 2 Chainz, and Quavo, landing on XXL’s 50 Best Hip Hop Songs of 2016 and Vibe’s “The 60 Best Songs of 2016” list. The praise didn’t stop there as Billboard named Lucci one of the top Hip Hop & R&B Artists to watch in 2017 and Forbes lauding him as one of the five breakout Hip Hop artists to watch.

YFN Lucci Courtesy of TIG Records

One of this writer’s favs from his catalog is the platinum-selling #1 hit “Everyday We Lit” from his 2017 EP “Long Live Nut“. With over 600 million streams, I’m not alone in my appreciation for the artistry of this rising star. 2019 though proved to be another year of proof that this dynamo is on his way to becoming a massive force in the music industry as his single “All Night Long” featuring Trey Songz reached the top 10 at urban radio and hit the Billboard Year-End Charts Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop Songs

You’ve had an amazing journey congratulations on closing out 2019 with one of the hottest songs on the planet “All Night Long”

I appreciate that…shoutout to Hitmaka for that one right there

Yeah, Hitmaka knows how to put it together. I understand you went into the studio with Hitmaka and did songs with Jeremih, Chris Brown and Trey Songz and the one that landed was the one with Trey Sonz “All Night Long” how did that make you feel?

That’s not just the song that took off, that’s the one that we decided to put out there first and it did good, it went top 10 you feel me and that sh*t made me feel great. We’re currently thinking about releasing one of the next records with Jeremih or Chris Brown, we’re just trying to figure out which one. All the songs are dope it’s just that “All Night Long” was for that vibe man closing out the summer, closing out the year you feel me.

2020 sees YFN Lucci opening the new decade with a new 22 track offering that is a straight ride through, no skips, entitled HIStory, Lost Pages which features appearances from the likes of Kevin Gates, Lil Boosie, Trouble, NoCap, YFN Fat and more. Lost Pages is a reboot of the HIStory mixtape of 2019 with 6 brand new joints which according to Lucci are songs he feels like the world needs to hear right now.

Lucci says of the new project, “With this man I wanted to put some songs on there that I just think the world needs to hear right now; they are real relatable, they lit. It’s got some of the dopest artists on it, I got Kevin Gates, NoCap (free NoCap), Trouble, Boosie, Jackboy, and those songs are the new loops but they got that vibe so we just wanted to release them.

What was most fun about putting this project together?

Really, man, I’m just happy to be putting out music again. For a minute I wasn’t dropping projects, so last year I dropped two projects 650Luc and HIStory so it just feels good to get the ball rolling, it feels good to be putting together songs knowing I’m getting ready to drop. So this year you can expect a lot more new music.

YFN Lucci Courtesy of TIG Records

One of the key things from your projects that I noticed is your ability for introspection and I wanted to find out, from the outside looking in, how would you describe the artist YFN Lucci?

“I would say he’s a dope artist, he makes good relatable music, sh*t a ni**a can feel. Like sh*t I might be going through today Lucci might be talking about that sh*t in his raps and I can feel it and it makes me feel like I know him. And I just respect the sources of where he came from and like where he’s going and what he’s thinking. He’s not thinking just as an artist, he’s thinking CEO, he owns property, he’s investing, he’s thinking real estate, so he’s inspired me so much, that’s how I would say it.”

What sparked your foray into the music business?

Growing up my big brother, my brother raps, he started it, when he was like 15 I was like 10 he used to come home with a song and the whole song would be done and it would be hard and it was his own song, nobody else and that sh*t just made me want to be a rapper, it made me want to make my own music. I started rapping and I let him hear me rap and he brought me in with him, brought me under his wing and I’ve just been going ever since then.

YFN Lucci Courtesy of TIG Records

Where do you go mentally during some of these songs man?

I will just be in my own zone in the booth. I know I may be big to a lot of people but to me, I don’t feel like I’m a big as I should be. So you know even thinking about my past sh*t like that or sh*t other people might go through like one day I’m going to have this or one day I’m going to do this and not just saying it but meaning it trying to chase that and showing ni**as I did do it on some of the sh*t I was talking about.

What’s the most satisfying about making music man? It sounds like you get a lot of stuff off your chest

The way it’s being received, I don’t really vent to nobody, that’s how I vent is in my music. Just people hearing it and me getting it out and people get to say “When I listen to him I feel like that sometimes too” you get where I’m coming from?

What are you looking forward to most for 2020 and the next decade?

Building my label structure, signing new artists, making people’s dreams come true, also getting bigger myself, the sky’s the limit. I just want to keep growing musically, business-wise and with my family, I just want to watch my family grow

How do you maintain the balance between your career, business, and family?

Basically, it’s kind of easy, I don’t really make my schedule but I make my schedule; if I ain’t doing my shows on the weekend I schedule when I want to go to the studio and the days I don’t’ go I fu*k with my family, family and friends that’s who I give my time to. Every now and then I take a day out of the week to be by myself because you have to balance it out

Talk to us about being a CEO, a businessman. What’s been your greatest lesson thus far?

Really just learning, you gotta believe and you gotta do it, you gotta put the plan together and you have to execute the plan, I learned you can’t get anything done without a plan.

What was the biggest surprise for you about the business portion of the music business?

Everybody that smile with you ain’t your friend

Do you talk politics at all?

Nah

How do you feel about people saying artists should just be artists and not use their voice to for social issues?

People are dumb as hell for saying that (laughs). We’re not just artist, were entrepreneurs, we’re thinkers; we should be able to express it

What did you bring from your childhood into your experience of making music?

My struggles growing up as a child influence my music, everything I went through, sh*t I’ve seen, me wanting more; you feel me?

What’s the most important thing you feel we should know about YFN Lucci?

They should know that I’m very dedicated to what I do if I believe in something I’m full force on it, I ain’t going to stop, I ain’t gonna let nobody deter me or tell me something different to stop me from pursuing my dreams. I’m a real hustler

What turns you on about a business project?

The numbers, like you know here’s the plan, you gonna see the plan and you gonna see what people expect and then certain sh*t make you jump on it.

What else should we look forward to in 2020?

I’ve got YFN Fat coming, Wish Me Well 3 is coming, YFN Kay and I have a project coming, we working just stay tuned baby!

More music from YFN Lucci

Connect with YFN Lucci

Website: https://www.yfnlucci.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/yfnlucci/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/YFNLUCCI/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCGhqRGnTE34MXy9LMI9Q4bQ

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About the Author

Dr. Jerry Doby Editor-in-Chief of The Hype Magazine, Media and SEO Consultant, Journalist, Ph.D. and retired combat vet. 2023 recipient of The President's Lifetime Achievement Award. Partner at THM Media Group. Member of the U.S. Department of Arts and Culture, the United States Press Agency and ForbesBLK.