Juelz Santana, a multi-platinum rap star and lifetime member of Dipset, is getting ready to release his third solo album Born To Lose Built To Win via Def Jam/Skull Gang/Dipset. Check out what he told Hiptics about his new album, Ronald Reagan, Barack Obama, his friendship with Lil Wayne, AutoTune, Ron Browz, Jay-Z, and much more:

Just as much as I still got that Diplomat-sound still running through my veins, it’s just escalated [now]. Plus there’s a lot of built up frustration that it’s time to release.

Hiptics.com: Just to start things off, I’ve been anticipating your album for a little while now. Can you give us an idea of what we can look forward to?

Juelz Santana: The album is going to be crazy. It’s going to be classical. I took a lot of time. I’ve had a lot of time to just perfect a lot of different things, to just work. Due to the the time I’ve had off from my last album [What the Game's Been Missing!] until now I’ve grown so much. I’ve always just had that natural ability and talent, [but] as far as the [Born To Lose Built To Win] it’s going to be that Juelz Santana, just one-hundred times better. For all my old fans, you know what you get for me, [and] it’s just elevated to another level now. As far as the music, I always come from the heart [and] speak on how I feel.

Hiptics.com: What producers have you been working with?

Juelz Santana: I worked with a couple of the people that I really wanted to work with such as my man [DJ] Toomp…I always loved his work and I don’t really like working with people [if] I don’t really honor their work. I worked with Polow Da Don. He just did a record that I’m about to leak out…I worked with Bink…A lot of the producers I worked with are similar to me; they’re big, but there also underrated.

Hiptics.com: How about guest appearances?

Juelz Santana: [...] I got a track called “I Want That Old Thing Back.” It’s just me and pretty much all my favorite rappers I was coming up to…I ain’t gon say all of them, but there’s people [on the track] who I was feeling through my walk before I got into the game…Jadakiss, Redman, Method Man, and Fab, and a couple other people [are on "I Want That Old Thing Back" with me]. I’m not going to spoil it. It’s going to be a nice track, though…Of course I’m working with my man Weezy…I worked with The Dream on the album [too]. Dream did a record with me. It’s crazy. Shout out to Dream.

Hiptics.com: Is that going to be one of the singles?

Juelz Santana: Yea it’s definitely going to be one of the singles. I’m doing like a different type strategy. I’m dropping two singles at a time. You know how you get your three singles? So really mine is going to be six. I’ll drop my street record then my radio record, my street record and my radio record, my street record and my radio record. It’s like dropping two singles at one time at each time, [and] probabaly do the half-and-half videos. You know, I’m grindin’. It’s about the plan more than anything now. The music is there. You dig? It’s really about the plan cause the plan is everything; the planning, the marketing, the strategy, getting the people to create the buzz. I already got a lot of anticipation, but I just want to make sure everything’s where it’s supposed to be. I’m featured on a lot of up and coming tracks. I’m featured on Jeremiah’s next single. I just did Lloyd’s first single. I’m supposed to be doing Mariah Carey’s first single. Shout out to my man LA Reid. He put me in some nice positions.

Reagan Era mixtape coming soon. Skull Gung Takeover 2 and Takeover Continues coming soon. I’m probabaly gonna drop a Reagan Era Part 2. Just stay tuned. This is free Pay-Per-View, don’t turn that channel, man. Fly up or get flown over. I’m in the sky already. Get with it or get away from it. Ya heard me?

Hiptics.com: With the title of your next mixtape, The Reagan Era, I was wondering as a symbol, what does Ronald Reagan mean to you as an artist?

Juelz Santana: I’m from Harlem. Harlem was booming back in the ’80s [during] the Reagan era. [It was] the biggest drug epidemic ever. It’s when crack came in…I always referred to myself as “human crack in the flesh,” that was like my whole thing. It was more like a music thing, as far as me just saying, ‘I spit that crack.’ The Reagan era theme came about [because] a lot of people were asking me to [bring back] Back Like Cooked Crack…So now the Reagan Era is just like the rebirth of that whole epidemic. You dig what I’m sayin? Because it’s like when Reagan was in office it was just like all the drugs were flowing in. Everybody was getting money…It was bad for the community with the drug wave, but I’m putting it in a music angle, so it’s like I’m about to release the flood [and] bring the crack back out…That’s the whole outline behind the Reagan Era theme. Like I said, Harlem was definitely big back in them days. That’s when I grew up. That’s when I got to see a lot of things that helped shape and mold me into the person that I am. All the hustlas, all the niggas on the corner, just gambling $100,000 dollars, like who does that? So it was definitely a big time. I’m just trying to bring that feeling back. It was a good feeling.

Hiptics.com: Speaking of presidents, do you feel hip hop music has changed at all since Barack Obama was elected? Has it had a big impact on the music?

Juelz Santana: I don’t know if it had a big impact. I think people definitely are a lot more proud. We got to see a black president [elected]. This is history. Not only was it history for us, it was history for the world. This is a turning point in the world. This will mark shit that they going to talk about in history classes. They gon’ have to teach about this…It did a lot for the world, I wouldn’t just say the hip hop community. I know at the time Jeezy had the song (“My President”) out, but I think now everybody is just trying to get away from this recession just like [Obama's] trying to get us out of this recession.

Hiptics.com: What was your take on Jay-Z’s “Death Of AutoTune” record?

Juelz Santana:I mean to each his own. Jay-Z is Jay-Z. He’s a legend in the game. He can do whatever he want to do. As far as the “Death Of AutoTune,” it’s just some things that I don’t understand where they come from. I think they just be indirect shots…It don’t bother me. I never use AutoTune….It works for some records. I definitely think there was an over-flood of AutoTune, too. I definitely feel like a lot of people were just using it and abusing it. But then again there’s definitely some songs that actually sound good in AutoTune. Some people are actually talented so just as much as they use AutoTune, you can’t take away from their talent…But as far as the other people using it, this is hip hop. It’s about fun. Back in the day, that’s what it used to be…People want to have fun, so you can’t really knock the artists. Everybody’s a hustler man. There’s enough money for everybody. I want to speak about Ron Browz cause that’s my dude. Shout out to Ron Browz. A lot of people don’t know…Ron Browz did the “Ether” beat, man. Let the world know. I be tellin’ Ron…he is a heavy producer. He did “Blow It Out” for Ludacris. He did “I’ll Whip Ya Head Boy” for 50 Cent. These are hardcore beats. Let’s not get it confused…At the end of the day he produces. Like I said, he supplied the Ether, and everybody know what “Ether” did. It’s like you can’t really talk too bad about that one. (Editor’s Note: Browz is known by hip-pop audiences for his AutoTune’d work on “Pop Champagne” and “Jumpin Out The Window.”)

Hiptics.com: And I can’t help but wonder if part of the intention of that record was in some ways to take a jab at Ron just because he still calls himself Ether Boy. I think that’s the name of his label. And he’s very relevant right now.

Everybody got their opinion about shit that they wanna feel so Jay got a right to voice his mind. That’s what hip hop is about. It like Star and Buckwild say, it’s no boundries, it’s no parameters, it’s an open battle field.

Juelz Santana: Yea, that’s what I’m saying, you can’t knock the young boy. You gotta like the young boys do what they do. Like I said, I understand there’s a lot of people using AutoTune. There’s a lot of copy-cat going on, but it’s like that in hip hop. It’s just like a producer. You get a hot producer [and] everybody uses a beat from that producer. Hip Hop has always been a trendy thing like whatevers in people kind of run with that for a while…That’s just how I look at the AutoTune thing…That’s like when somebody come out with a song “Death To Old Rappers” or something. Everybody got their opinion about shit that they wanna feel so Jay got a right to voice his mind. That’s what hip hop is about.  It like Star and Buckwild say, it’s no boundries, it’s no parameters, it’s an open battle field.

Hiptics.com: I feel ya, man. It’s so competitive.

Juelz Santana: It’s all good. I’m coming. I’m on ‘em. Everybody. I been in Bassline Studio with Jay-Z. You know I was recording there at times and Jay-Z just came in there to sit in the back of the room. I came out the booth and [Jay-Z's] like, ‘yo I like the way you get it in, shorty.’ Like back in the days when we was in there…when Cam just first signed the [Roc-A-Fella] deal.

Hiptics.com: Yea. I love that story about how y’all deleted a verse Jay-Z recorded over the “Oh Boy” beat for a remix because it was wack or whatever.

Juelz Santana: Yea, Cam didnt’ even let that shit go out. He ain’t let nobody hear that shit. You know some people would have still leaked it? Cam told Guru [the engineer], ‘erase that shit.’

Hiptics.com: I know loyalty has been a prevailing theme in your music. What rappers outside of your [Skull Gang/Dipset] camp that you consider friends?

Juelz Santana: I mean I fuck with niggas. Weezy my nigga. I fuck with Weezy hardbody. I’m one of them niggas; I’m cool. As long as a nigga don’t cross my line…This shit is about money…There’s enough money for everybody.

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Check out Juelz Santana on Twitter. Juelz also has a MySpace Music Profile.

Click here to read Hiptics exclusive interviews with Big Sean, Nas, Young Chris, Mistah FAB, John Brown, Rhymefest, Big Pooh, Naledge, and more.

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Phone interview conducted by Chris “Cfro” Franco for Hiptics.com. Feel free to use this exclusive interview on your blog/website/online publication as long as credit is given to Hiptics.com in the form of a hyperlink. For all other inquiries email iamchrisfranco [at] gmail [dot] com.

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1. Juelz Santana Reacts To Jay-Z’s “Death Of AutoTune,” Stands Up For Ron Browz [exclusive]

This entry was posted on Tuesday, June 30th, 2009 at 1:17 pm and is filed under Exclusives. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.