In anticipation of his first project since returning to the world, The Ellsworth Bumpy Johnson EP, Complex caught up with P to discuss his autobiography and all of the Mobb Deep history contained in it’s pages. Topics include: him and Hav being free agents, their next album and deal, the 70 songs they’ve layed down since he came home, his history and recent reconciliation with Nas, putting Cam’ron onto pink (how dare you question his trendsetting?!), Capone of CNN supposedly testifying against Hav’s brother Killer Black, throwing N.O.R.E. a beatdown (seriously, I gotta read this book), bumping into Jay-Z at Justin’s and later agreeing that the beef was just about the music, his run-in with Saigon, how he thought Biggie and Wu-Tang were type corny when he first heard them, Hav not visting him until a year and a half into his bid, the Mr. Cee incident, how he feels about the new class of MCs in the game and his thoughts on Rick Ross and the comparisons to Big.
On Big:
When Havoc was talking about producing “Last Dayz” in the book and he was telling you to get on it, I was surprised that your reaction was that Biggie was corny.
A lot of people was feeling him, I just wasn’t feeling him. Another thing is that, I used to take things real personal. I was real serious when it came to rapping. I still do, but even more so when I was real young. I was on some other shit dun.
I wasn’t fucking with nobody else but Mobb Deep. I had tunnel-vision, straight up. I ain’t see nothing but Mobb Deep. I ain’t hear nothing but Mobb Deep. And niggas can’t fuck with Mobb Deep. That was my opinion, how I was thinking, and my life. Mobb Deep, fuck everybody else. So when I used to hear certain shit that Biggie used to say, he used to take some of my lines from my lyrics, and use them. That used to piss me off, because I was like, “Damn, this nigga just bit my shit.”
Like what lines?
Like “Niggas bleed just like us,” that’s my shit, and certain other things. But at that time it would piss me off, but now when I look back at it, it’s a compliment. He wasn’t trying to steal. He was basically kind of like a fan. And now I realize because I feel the same way about him. And I feel the same way about certain other rappers too. Just had a different mentality back then. It was little things like that.
Read the full interview here. The Ellsworth Bumpy Johnson EP drops tomorrow (via Complex) as does P’s autobiography, My Infamous Life.
