Sound Check: Bun B and Statik Selektah Join Forces for Trillstatik 3
Houston hip-hop pioneer Bun B and super producer Statik Selektah are focused on preserving the competitive nature of hip-hop music with their third installment of their Trillstatik mixtape series featuring an ensemble of A-list collaborations, including Method Man, Benny the Butcher, Nems, Talib Kweli & more.
The rap cypher, hip-hop’s age-old tradition of emcees gathering to flaunt their lyrical prowess, pen game, personal style, and creativity all on the same instrumental. Since the genre’s genesis, the “three C’s”—collaboration, camaraderie, and competition—have been a quintessential part of hip-hop culture and continues to keep the genre alive.
Houston hip-hop pioneer Bun B and super producer Statik Selektah are focused on preserving the competitive nature of hip-hop music. Both elder statesmen in their own right, the producer- emcee duo assemble the rap Avengers on the third installment of their Trillstatik mixtape series featuring an ensemble of A-list collaborations, including Method Man, Benny the Butcher, Nems, Talib Kweli, and many more.
“As an emcee, I look at rapping like an exercise,” Bun B said. “It’s really more of a sport because I’m testing my sword against a bunch of different artists.”
Recorded all in one 12-hour long session, Bun B and Statik make it clear that this project was strictly made for the hip-hop heads. With 15 tracks and over 25 features full of rap’s most formidable wordsmiths, the duo created this record for the love of the craft.
“This is not a money grab. This is for the culture,” Bun B said. “It’s about emcees picking a beat, writing rhymes, going in the booth, and recording in the same room together. That’s almost unheard of nowadays.”
Statik Selektah is a virtuoso behind the boards. His signature soulful vocal samples and drum breaks create the perfect canvas for emcees to flow over, resulting in a cohesive project filled with golden-age hip-hop aesthetics and, most importantly, bars.
Bun B praised his co-star's natural ability to compose a track from start to finish, explaining that Statik is a producer and not a beat maker. “Statik already understands these emcees' artistic sensibilities and places them in the right spot.”
Bun B and Statik Selektah’s Trillstatik 3 is exclusively available to stream and purchase on Bandcamp.