“Deviated leather and it’s 911, bend the corner, I’m on Haynes Street coppin’ a windbreaker,” raps Larry June in the opening line of The Great Escape. For June and his partner-in-crime, The Alchemist, this isn’t just an album but an experience. June’s effortless flow, combined with Al’s signature beats, creates a sonic journey that transports you all over the globe. This 15-track project showcases June’s ability to blend his laid-back, introspective lyrics seamlessly with the producer’s eclectic, sample-heavy sound.
It’s a partly sunny day in New York City, and the duo has come to Billboard headquarters to preview their highly anticipated collaboration. Interestingly, when June visited the offices back in 2017, he was considering quitting rap. Now, the tides have shifted, and the West Coast rhyme slinger is one of the genre’s most beloved acts. As The Great Escape is finally set to release this Friday (March 31), fans have been eagerly anticipating its arrival. The stakes are high, with some of the biggest names in rap (Big Sean, Action Bronson, Joey Bada$$ and more) slated to dish out heat on the duo’s hotly anticipated effort.
“I was challenged on a lot of the beats,” says June of the experience. “It was like a different bag when I was working with Al. You’re thinking Mobb Deep. You’re thinking all that. It’s a different bar.”
Following the release of his latest album, 2022’s Spaceships on the Blade, the San Francisco native earned praise for his ability to flawlessly blend different styles and create a truly unique sound. June’s penchant for classic funk and melodic ad libs place him in a rarefied position in hip-hop, as listeners from both coasts lean to him for late-night cruising music. And this project feels like a perfect match with The Alchemist – who’s been producing classics for over 20 years — by his side.
“He’s fun to work with, and super-easy,” the producer says of his new full-album collaborator. “I work with a lot of different artists, and Larry is kind of how his music is. He’s positive and excited about s–t when he’s doing it.”
There’s a buzz of excitement as June and Alchemist walk inside the legendary Ludlow House with some of the most prominent tastemakers in the music industry in attendance, including journalists Brian ‘B.Dot’ Miller and Sway Calloway, former NBA players Richard Jefferson and Al Harrington, and artists such as Trinidad James and Joey Bada$$. Later that night, Jermaine Dupri and Action Bronson join the festive soiree as they look to support their fellow comrades on their release. With drinks flowing and music blasting, it’s clear that Larry June and The Alchemist have delivered an early album-of-the-year contender.
“I don’t want this to be like a slept-on record, or it gets just credibility — we need to push this s–t on,” says Alchemist. “Put it up next to all the other s–t that’s out there on the high level and let it compete.”
Below, Billboard speaks to June and Alchemist about their new album, The Great Escape, recording the album in different parts of the world, their favorite features and more.
You guys recorded in a couple of different locations like Malibu and Mexico City. What was the thought process behind that?
Larry June: We just were traveling through that s–t. We kind of was hanging out a lot and it was coming together. I had some s–t to do in Mexico City. We shot a video, got a little work done. We really were listening to beats in different places. We would get to locations to listen to beats, nice ocean views and s–t — I’ll think of something, and I’ll take it to the house and record. Or I might do a little here and there. It’s just vibin’ for real.
Alchemist: It’s a different energy.
Larry June: Different energy. That’s all it was.
Alchemist: I’m always in a dark room with no clocks. In the studio, it’s like a f–king casino, you know what I’m saying? I know I can work good there, but I felt like, especially for this s–t, it was like, “Let’s get some different scenery. Let’s just go bug out. Go to Malibu and get on a studio crib.” So, we were kind of just picking different spots. Plus, [June] cooks anywhere. You know what I’m saying? He doesn’t really need a studio, he never did, so for me, it was cool to grab the machine and bring some disks and let’s go over there and start a record.
Your chemistry is strong together. It feels like this is your fifth project. Was that just something that kind of came about? Were y’all friends before this?
Larry June: Nah, man. We just became good friends in the process. I was a fan, you know what I’m saying? We got together. He was cool as hell. S–t, we just started kicking it. I started coming to the studio every day. I don’t even go to studios like that. I was listening in the studio every day, just listening to the beats. Smoked, ordered food.
I know, in music, there’s a lot of egos involved and sometimes, things don’t work out the way you know you kind of want to. Why don’t you guys have a problem collaborating with others?
Larry June: S–t, it’s the colliding of the sounds that is dope. I mean, you can work with people who are actually dope and you can come together and build something powerful, then why not? And I f–k with producers and a lot of rappers too, but mainly producers. I really f–k with the producers. I did s–t with Sledgren. Cardo. Harry Fraud. [Alchemist] was on my list. Like, “I’ve got to get to Alchemist.” We got the same barber and s–t. I’m like, “Tell this n—a Alchemist, ‘It’s time, man.’” It took like a year, [but] it finally happened.
The Alchemist: I think too, it’s like, being secure. Some guys, the ego thing is likely to compensate — but when you’re really secure and you feel good about what you do, you’re not afraid. I’m going to reach out to anybody. And I noticed that about him too. Some guys you work with, they go, “Let’s send a verse to somebody. Let’s send a record.” And then it doesn’t come in two days. “Nah, man. He doesn’t get it.”
It was never like that with him, ever. He was all positive — even if something didn’t come through or not, I’ve never seen him put out his chest like that, like most rappers at some point do. But to me, that means he’s secure. He’s full of confidence. He knows he’s that dude. That’s how it works.
Larry June: That’s why I didn’t do features for a long time. A lot of people didn’t really understand what I was doing for a long time, so I had to put out multiple projects and go hit the ground and go build my s–t hand-to-hand. Now everybody is like, “Oh, s–t. Larry. We f–ked with the brand.” You’ve got to really try and build it. You’ve got to go hit the streets. So, I’m a hustler first. I was outside f–king around, getting my bread, and I just put that back into the music. Did the same hustle. Hand to hand, you know what I’m saying? Ground patrol, really f–king with the people and s–t. You know what I mean? It becomes undeniable where you have to f–k with it.
You both have great ears production wise – it’s high-level. Where did you kind of develop that?
Larry June: Man, I made beats first, but I fell off. So, I understand just the sounds of making it. So, when I hear a beat, I’m thinking about what can I add to the beat as if I was an instrument. It has to sound good on this.
We did eight bars on “60 Days.” I thought the beat was riding was so hard. I could have played the beat without no vocals on it anyway — just played that, sliding down the PCH. I don’t want to rap when it’s too long. Let me just say a couple of bars, sprinkle it on there and keep it rocking. Some of the beats, I would probably have just played with nothing on there. I’d just be talking on them motherf–kers. Something to slide to. That’s probably why I like working with producers, man — because I understand what a producer does.
Alchemist: I got a good theory about what you were talking about. Where he got that ear? I think a lot has to do with the music that you were around as a kid, that your parents listened to. Any time I’m working with artists, and once I start figuring out their bag of sound they like — when I start talking to them about the s–t their parents listened to in the house, it’s literally similar. I don’t even know, but I’m sure your pops and mama were listening to some good music.
Larry June: Yeah, my mom used to play that Musiq Soulchild.
Alchemist: Subconsciously. It just attracts you, because it’s so normal and you’re hearing it. Like even me, whenever that stuff that my pops used to listen to. He used to listen to, like, bossa nova. He would listen to weird rock groups. ABBA. Perez Prado.
Larry June: I listened to a lot of neo-soul growing up. I remember my mama playing it in the crib, over and over. Jill Scott and all of that. The same melodies, for sure. Subconsciously. Donell Jones and all that. I loved the melodies.
Knowing how this project sounds sonically, Larry, do you now have an elevated taste when it comes to production on who you want to collaborate with next after working with Al?
Larry June: For sure. I’m just paying attention to the details a little more — like, lyrically. It has opened up a whole new bag for me. S–t, I’m still building. [Al’s] legendary. I’m still building, trying to make people believe in my sound — so, dope, for sure.
I think it helped though — like I said, helped me rap better […] I feel like I did it perfectly for what it was, and the next one’s going to be even harder. This was the hard part. Now, we’ve got a bag. Even the “60 Days” joint. That was the last one we did. We did that s–t quick. It was just easy, you kind of figured the bag out already.
But even before, working with Al we spoke about this: You’ve gained respect on both coasts, not just the West. You sold out Irving Plaza in NYC your last tour. The respect is there.
Larry June: For sure, and I’m going to continue to do that. But I feel like, with this one, it was just more like — the real hip-hop fans, the real day ones. You know what I mean? Born in ’91. Not old heads, but it can be younger people too. Like, we were in the studio with Earl [Sweatshirt]. They are dissecting everything. “Oh, rewind that, he said what?” It’s like there was pressure on you, like, “Oh nah, them not bars.”
But I just stopped thinking about that part. I just started talking about my s–t. “Deviated leather and it’s 911, bend the corner, I’m on Haynes Street coppin’ a windbreaker…” You know what I’m saying? I’m just saying, f–k it.
The Alchemist: I love that line.
Larry June: I’m just going to go ahead and just give you what I did. I stopped thinking too much. I was thinking too much.
Alchemist: But I was there to keep checks and balances. That line, exactly, was why I wanted to start. That’s the first song. That the first line that comes on. “Deviated leather and it’s 911, bend the corner, I’m on Haynes Street coppin’ a windbreaker…” That’s how you start an album. F–k what the beat sounds like. That image was like, “D–n.” Because I’m big on the first thing that you hear — presentation is everything to me. So, I felt like, “D–n, if we can get them that image in the first two bars, that’s it.”
The opening bar sets the tempo.
Larry June: You know what I learned on this project? No matter what or who you rap with, the people want you to be you. So, I just stay in my bag, no matter what. Even if it’s not the most complex bars. They’re here to hear Larry June. It worked out smooth. He made me comfortable.
