A$AP Ferg visited The Breakfast Club this morning (April 28) and spoke to the hosts about his recently released sophomore LP, Always Strive And Prosper, where he explained how A$AP Yams’ death affected the crew, his love of Missy (who he collaborated with on “Strive”) and his future fashion plans.
Check it some of the highlights below and then watch the full interview.
On The Affect Of A$AP Yams’ Passing On His Creative Process
I think it made everyone want to stick together a little bit more. I speak to his mom every day now. And just more of us taking time to fly out to each other and be with each other as a group. Because sometimes we’ll get so busy—I got my own schedule, the Mob got their own schedule, Twelvy was on tour with the Flatbush Zombies, Rocky is doing him, Nast is in London with Skepta. We all doing our own thing because we’re all growing individually. But we must take time for the group because that’s what got us here, us sticking together, and we realized that by losing a man.
On His Sophomore LP And Growth
It’s definitely more personal. For a long time I felt like my fans didn’t understand me. I would songs or post things on my Instagram and they would be, Yo, Ferg, you trying to be artsy now? Why you doing a song with that person? You don’t know who I am if you asking these questions. For a long time I wasn’t used to being a celebrity. My background is art, fashion. If you watch a fashion show, the designer always comes out after he shows his pieces. He wants his pieces to get shine. I was always playing the behind the scenes. But when I did “Work” I was forced to the forefront and I had to get used to that. Now I realized that’s a part of being an artist. I have to open up all of myself. You have the microscope on you, it’s hard to keep things personal. People want to know what type of girl you into, what type of clothes you like. I’m used to not showing my clothes off cause I don’t want anyone to cop my stuff. I wanna show it off but I don’t want to put you on. I don’t want you going to my stores, knowing where I got my stuff at. I’m used to that mentality but kids wanna know. I’m a brand now so I have to let people know.
On Collaborating With Missy, His Influences
If it wasn’t for Missy, Pharrell and Kanye, as a kid, the DNA I’m built of, I don’t think I would be this guy. Missy was so innovated, she was an artist. She directed her own videos with Hype Williams. She has her own vision. She made it cool to put colors in videos. If you think about it before Missy there was the whole Bad Boy movement, black and white, leather. And while that was happening, there was Wu-Tang, dirty East Coast. She bright brightness to it and like a cartoonish, pop-y kind of way. I’m a colorful dude in that way and I don’t want to be stagnant and in a box with things.
On His “Forthcoming” Vs. Second Twitter Flap
Yo, that was the stupidest shit I ever said on Twitter in my life. I was in bed and I was trying to correct somebody and that’s what I get, for trying to put someone in their place. And speeding. And I didn’t know how to edit on Twitter at the time, so I ain’t get it quick enough. I tweeted that shit and went back to sleep. My cousin called me and told me my shit was going off on Twitter, erase that comment. I went back and I was like, damn. I went back and deleted it. I’m a very smart guy, I don’t think I would be where I was if I wasn’t. I was sleep tweeting.
On His Fashion Ambitions
Now I’m working with Citizen for Mankind, that does the denim. They gave me the factory, they taught me denim making for a week. They wasn’t with all the celebrity stuff, they was like, you got to learn denim making. They showed me the tumbler machines, with the rocks and the sandblasting. We sat down with RiRi Zippers, and went over different things that you add to your jeans. They in stores right now, in the Webster in Miami, it’s a high-end store, they sell Balmain and all that stuff. You know what’s dope, I’m not really pushing it like that, because I want it to happen organically. And I want people to like it. I had an Alexander Wang photoshoot the other day with Big Sean, so we just talking and I just look at his jeans and I’m like, Yo, those are some dope jeans. And then I see my custom stitching and I’m like, Those are my jeans! He’s like, Oh, yeah, I did a whole photoshoot in these. He didn’t know they were mine and he was wearing them all week.