The Write Stuff is an occasional series about songwriters.
It’s hard to call a musician who’s received an achievement as huge as an Academy Award underrated.
They know the songs, they listen to the songs, but they just didn’t know.
Credit: Edgar Daniel/VOTO
Some people today don’t even know I was in Three 6 Mafia."
“I’m still doing my rap thing, but my production is getting bigger than ever.
I’m producing so many records for so many people.
You’ll be like ‘Juicy J wasn’t bullsh—ing.'”
I always thought the song was a little goofy, funny song.
I didn’t even take it that seriously when I wrote it.
“I wanted to be a producer from the start.
I never really looked at myself as an artist,” he admits.
Like ‘Alright this n’s in jail, this person’s in jail.
Nobody’s here to perform, so I guess I’ll perform.'"
“Stay Fly,” Three 6 Mafia feat.
“People knew our music, but they didn’t know who we were,” he says.
You’ve got to dig deep in your pockets for the cash if you want it.
I’m telling you, can’t nobody bring you a song better than this song.
I’m just letting you know, this is it.’
I was for sure about that.
I felt that in my heart."
A pivotal Best Original Song Oscar win proved Juicy right.
The label actually picked that one.
They were like, ‘Yo, this is the next single.’
We were like, ‘Nah, that’s not the one.’
We had an argument, and then we said, ‘All right, f it.
Put it out.’
They put the song out and it skyrocketed."
“Int’l Players Anthem (I Choose You),” UGK feat.
“Pat had put his album out, and a year passed, Pimp C called Paul.
He was like, ‘Yo man, I want that same beat that was on that Project Pat album.
“He predicted that they were going to get nominated for a Grammy, and they did.”
“Bandz A Make Her Dance,” Juicy J feat.
“I was thinking about retiring.
Mike Will called and said ‘You got the hottest record in Atlanta.’
I was like, ‘Really?’
He said, ‘You gotta come to Atlanta, man.
You got the hardest record, I’m telling you.’
I went down there, man.
They were going crazy, the record was charting it wasn’t even on Apple Music at the time.
It wasn’t really in stores.
It was just charting by itself.
Columbia Records called like ‘How the hell did you get this record to chart?
Did you pay?’
I was like, ‘I didn’t pay anybody.’
People just picked it up and played it.”
I did it cause I was smoking weed.
I kind of freestyled that verse.
I was like, ‘I don’t know if I like that line.’
And my engineer was like, ‘Nah, gotta keep that man.’
Now it’s like a national anthem.”
“Dark Horse,” Katy Perry feat.
Juicy J (2013)
Katy Perrytold Juicy J that his collaboration withMiley Cyrusdrew her towards working with him.
“She’s like ‘I love your verse on “23,” man.
While it was exciting to work with Perry during an unprecedented run of No.
That’s going to blow up man.
That’s the one.’
And it became the one.”
“Hot Girl Summer,” Megan Thee Stallion feat.
“I was like, ‘Man, she got a dope-ass flow.’
I hadn’t heard nobody rap like that since I was in Three 6 Mafia.”
He and Megan linked up and made three songs for her debut mixtapeFever.
“She’d come to the studio and knock out songs left and right.
I was like, ‘Holy sh–, this is the verse killer.’
She’s killing verses.
She’s going in.
She’s cool, man,” Juicy says of thebreakoutstar.
I want you to put my verse right here.
Do it like this.’
She’s hands-on with how she wants her sound to be.
She’s super hot and she’s super talented, man.
I say God connected us together, and we’ve been making dope records ever since."
For Megan’s 2019 summer anthem, Juicy credits A&R Derrick Milano for helping assemble its collaborators.
“Gah Damn High,” Juicy J feat.
Wiz Khalifa (2020)
For the first single offThe Hustle Continues, Juicy kept things within the family.
“Wizhas been my brother forever, man.
We met on the internet during the time I was doing mixtapes with Lex Luger.
He brought me in as a third owner of his company, Taylor Gang Entertainment.
We’ve just been brothers ever since.”
The song stems from how Juicy has been living the past few months.
“Quarantining, I smoke a lot of weed at home.
Like I smoked so much weed, I be extra high.
I’m high now.”
I’ve had lots of fun with it.
It’s an independent release.
I own 100 percent of the masters.
I feel like this is going to be one of my best albums.
I’m in a good space."
This story appears inthe November issue ofEntertainment Weekly,on newsstands Oct. 16.
