– This is the first time y’all been here since the last album right?
Elzhi: Yeah, the last album that came out was the self titled SV album, this is the first time, we tryna see how many people in the audience is hip to the new album. We re-issuing the album, we might put a couple new songs on there.

– What was the meaning of Prequel to a Classic?
Elzhi: That was just a mixtape that the label brought out to create a buzz for the self titled album that just came out.

– So what is the reason for the self titled album? Is it some sort of comeback? That’s what people are assuming….
T3: Nah nah nah, basically, at the time, me and El were searching for our identity as Slum Village. And basically it was a new beginning for us, it’s not a comeback, it’s more like a new beginning, because this is the new beginning of this Slum Village, me and El, this is our second album together but this is like the first album where we were really able to gel. The old SV had been a group for seven years, gellin’ together as a unit. Me and El has only been a group for maybe like 3 years. So we just really getting the formula together how we wanna do things so we feel like it was a new start, that’s why we call the album Slum Village.

– Slum Village has gone through a lot of changes within the group, but the fans still stay true to SV, how do y’all feel about the changes?
Elzhi: You know it’s a blessing, usually when groups flip, change, re-arrange, the fans seem to turn their backs on them, cause they are so used to them being one way. It’s just a blessing that the fans still ridin’ with us man, and still lookin’ forward to the music we got to offer.
T3: But we did go through our hater stage. Do not get it twisted, we got some real haters, but I think in light of the passing of J-Dilla, rest in peace, you know my mans, peoples was able to ride with us regardless now, but at first when we had to split, when J-Dilla went his way, SV went their way it was like the fans were divided into… well, “I like Dilla so I don’t mess with Slum like that”. And now the people started to come around, which is a little hard for us, cause –u don’t know if they really in it for SV-….. I accept people any way but I DO remember when they was frontin’ on us because we were NOT with Dilla. I mean Dilla showed us love on all our albums, this is the only album he didn’t produce for us. So, I mean we were still working with eachother, doing projects together. We did record with Dilla for this album they just didn’t make it. It was tough for us but we worked through it. In light of the situation though, not everybody, they wanna act like they was down with SV from the beginning when they wasn’t, but it’s all good! We don’t hold no grudges, we just here to do music, do what we do and as long as u representin’, holdin’ my mans down Dilla and you holdin Slums down, we down.

– Whats in the future for Slum Village?
Elzhi: Slum’s gonna be doin’ their thing. I mean we got solo projects we working on, we got a movie situation that we tryna put together, telling the life of SV, just a behind the scenes look. We got a shoe deal in the works, what else we got? We just got a lotta music to give man, we tryna keep that classic element music, cause I think it’s lackin’ nowadays.

– How do you fit your solo projects in all those projects?
Elzhi: We constantly making music, we live hiphop for real. Always writing, tryna get up in the studio, T makes beats a lot, constantly in the studio tryna make it happen. Bring the classic back in the game.

-Isn’t that hard being on the road?
T3: Yeah extremely hard, but like this time while we on the road I just put some time in London, a whole day in the studio. It’s hard but most of the time we bring a beat machine or laptop or something, be out here writing. It’s also a time for absorbing. For me, I have to cut writing off and absorb for a minute so I can be fresh when I start writing again. That’s the way I write, El has a different approach. For now we just vibin’.

– SV has worked with a lot of artists, who is an artist or producer you would really want on the next album?
T3: Let me tell you like this, we don’t say any more. Cause niggas that stole our whole shit, meaning, can nobody really steal shit, but it’s rare stuff SV always wanted to do and we yelled it and seeing we went through a lotta stuff we couldn’t really grab opportunities like we wanted to. Because I was more so worried if the fans was still with us and all. Right now we don’t say it, we just work with who we gonna work. We got ideas. Right now we working with new talent and we gonna work with some old school too.

– Artists overseas too?
Elzhi: No doubt, we like all different types of music, if it’s live like that it don’t matter where its from.
T3: We gotta come across the artists that fit what we do. Lot of times we got people wanting to throw us beats-galore. Now that Dilla passed. I mean we got beats. We lookin’ for artists not producers, we got producers and we know what sound we want.

– Biggest single SV had, Tainted or Selfish?
T3: Selfish, the one we did with Kanye.

– How was working with Kanye?
Elzhi: It was live, he got appreciation for music, we do too, so it was live like that. That was one of my favorite videos I did with the crew. For many reasons. It was an innovative concept, Chris Robinson added to the flava of the song.

– Any last words for the fans?
T3: Slum Village stands for good music, good hiphop and I just want the fans to know we gonna be real creative on this next batch so be ready.
Elzhi: We just gonna stay classic niggas, you know, that’s what we are about. Making a classic, we not tryna be hot for the moment or just put heat in the street for 15 minutes, we tryna make music that’s timeless, music that’s embedded, within the hands of time, you know, 5-6 years down the line someone picks up an S-villa album and become a fan. And we just wanna keep bringing good music to people and hopefully people keep their ears open to good music. That’s what we about.