Interview: Can’t Knock The Husel

If you’re a fan of the R&B, Neo-Soul genre then you’ve been hip to Musiq Soulchild ever since he hit the scene nearly 15 years ago. After releasing numerous projects and, for the most part, solidifying his spot in the game, Musiq decided it was time to branch out, and the result of that decision was the creation of his alter-ego, The Husel. I caught up with The Husel for a phone interview and this is how it went.

Explain the onset of The Husel. Like, what made you wake up one day and say “This is the move. This is the direction I wanna go in?”

Well, it’s not really me going in a different direction. I’m just doing multiple things at once. I also felt like I wasn’t tapping enough into my creative abilities as an artist. I couldn’t get the label to support me incorporating The Husel into Musiq Soulchild, so I just did something separate.

I read once where you said you felt R&B is struggling. Why do you feel that way?

It is! Look at the numbers. They ain’t like they used to be. Soul, Neo-Soul, R&B? That shit is not winnin’! I know because I see the checks! People ain’t buyin’ the music. We can’t buy our own albums. That’s why I’m doing this now. This is what y’all like.

Music is so different now. There’s so much creativity and experimentation that it’s hard to really place a genre on anything. Who does The Husel make music for?

Anybody who wants to listen, really. The whole idea behind The Husel is to soundtrack the concept of gettin’ up and gettin’ it. Making something of yourself. But again, and I can’t stress this enough, I took the music y’all like and used it to talk about what I wanna talk about. I can’t talk about what I don’t live. I don’t wanna be fraudulent.

If you could, explain your creative process. What’s essential for you to go in and make your best music?

I don’t need a lot. Just a studio, music and time. I’m always ready to go, so I don’t need to do all this extra stuff to get ready.

Your debut, Husel Music drops May 5th, right? What was it like working on that?

Yeah, May 5th. It was a lot easier working on that, than a Musiq Soulchild album, I’ll tell you that. I was able to go in and do whatever I felt, and be as creative as I wanted.

I read somewhere where you’re actually working on other personas, outside of The Husel. You care to shed any light on that?

Yeah, there’s a few more things coming that aren’t exactly ready to talk about yet, but I do have a joint concept album that I’m working on with Bone Crusher. Again, I’m just trying to be as creative as I can.

There are a lot of dope new artists out, right now. Who are you listening to?

I actually don’t listen to a lot while I’m in the process of creating. I don’t wanna hear something and be accidentally inspired by it, then somebody tries to say I stole their sound. I do like DeJ Loaf, though. I feel like me and her are talking about the same thing. How if you get up and grind, you can make things happen. I would love to work with her.

Anybody else?

I’ve been listening to the new Kendrick Lamar. What he’s doing is inspiring and intimidating. You wanna be able to have the kind of creative freedom that he has, while having a huge impact on the culture at the same time.

As I’ve already mentioned, there’s a lot going on in music today. With that said, I ask, why you? Why should people listen to The Husel?

You don’t have to listen to it! It’s not gonna be for everybody. If you don’t like it, cool. Just find the exit. But don’t run off and talk shit about it. I try to focus on the people who get it. So if you don’t like the music, it probably ain’t for you. I make music for the ones who are hungry. If you’re greedy, got it all, but still want more, you probably won’t like The Husel. And that’s cool. I’m not here to force people to like me. That’s corny. If you don’t like it now, maybe you will down the line. Or maybe you never will.

Contrary to what people may think, you’ve made it clear on numerous occasions that Musiq Soulchild isn’t going anywhere. So does that mean we can expect new music soon?

I’m still making music as Musiq Souldchild. It’s just on autopilot, for now. I’m trying to find a way to be Musiq Soulchild and still make the music I wanna make, without all the fluff. I’m not interested in making music to satisfy the label. I think that’s corny. So until I can find a way to do it the way I want to, you’ll get music from me like you’re getting now. But I’m hoping I can have a new Musiq album out by the end of the year.