Interview
Earplug
July 2008
Opening with the sampled sound of Godzilla’s piercing roar, LA-bred producer and DJ Flying Lotus lit up the crowd at Slovakia’s recent Wilsonic Festival, confidently barreling through a set that segued between original compositions, Madlib joints, MF Doom rhymes, and even dubstep from Burial. Like the shifting, restless music on his new Warp album, Los Angeles, the mix suggested he’s fervently trying to redefine the downtempo, hip-hop-oriented template. Earplug’s Patrick Sisson sat down with Flying Lotus right before his Wilsonic set and discussed his big break on Adult Swim, the whip test, and growing up in the shadow of jazz legends John and Alice Coltrane.
Earplug: How has Los Angeles influenced your music?
Flying Lotus: Anybody who creates art is a mirror for his surroundings. You’ll ultimately be inspired by where you are. When I’m in London, it’s a different vibe. When the weather’s shitty over there, it’s all depressing and dreary, and that rubs off on the music. What I love about LA is that it can be pretty and ugly; it can be fun and exciting; and it can also be very laid back. You have the mountains and beaches; you can go to the woods and the desert. We’re a little spoiled.
EP: How did your aunt, Alice Coltrane, influence your philosophy on life and music?
FL: It’s more life than music. She set such a crazy example. She had so many people around her who were dedicated to learning from her. For the longest time, I never understood why she had all these devotees. I realized growing up that she was heavy — a very serious, spiritual person. People say she was a “God-realized” person, but it’s way deeper than that surface one-liner about her. She just wanted to help people, especially those trying to create.
EP: She seems like someone who really understood the artist’s frame of mind. What do you do to get ready to create and make music?
FL: It’s hard for me to say — that’s just what I do. I try and stay away from it if I’m not feeling it. If it’s not really genuine, I hang back and work on business for a minute. I’m just a vessel for whatever music is coming through me. Sometimes I make shit, come back to it a month later, and don’t know how I did it.
EP: Your mother was the one who encouraged you to send the music in to Adult Swim, right?
FL: For a while, I was more into film than music. She always joked around with me, telling me that film was cool, but you need to pick up one of those machines again and get back on the music.
EP: Growing up in the shadow of Hollywood, making films must have been tough.
FL: It’s worse growing up in the shadow of John Coltrane. But my mom knew how serious I was about making music. She encouraged me and I was very thankful for it. A lot of folks aren’t like that. They just say, “Get the real job; be a doctor; shut the fuck up.” No one cares about what you’re talking about. “Go and do some surgery.”
EP: When you heard your music on Adult Swim for the first time, were you thinking, “I’m making so many stoners happy right now?”
FL: I didn’t even think about what anybody else was tripping on. I was bugging off the fact that the only TV I watch had my music on it. I had TiVo and was rewinding it and playing it again and again. I was at my mom’s house, and she got to see the results.
EP: Have you ever considered making soundtracks?
FL: I’d love to do that. It’s one of the goals. I’ve got offers. I think one of my songs is going to be in a Nick Cannon/Ludacris movie, an indie film about basketball. At least my sister’s going to see it.
EP: What are your favorite cartoons of all time?
FL: The Ren and Stimpy Show and Looney Tunes. Classic stuff. A lot of the Adult Swim stuff is amazing to me. I watch all of it.
EP: Can you tell me about the whip test?
FL: Before you send music to the homies, you need to take it for the whip test. I have my car subbed out. I go for a little drive, get high, cruise around at slow speeds and listen to my track and check it out. If it meets the criteria, it can go out. But it usually doesn’t. Then, I have to go back and tweak something and fix it up. I drive an ’02 Toyota Camry. It has a leather interior, which isn’t bad, but it needs a wash. It’s gross.