Is there anyone repping Portland harder than Aminé in 2021? Okay - excluding Damian Lillard and the Trailblazers, of course. The hip-hop hitmaker chops it up with Apple Music 1’s Zane Lowe on a flurry of topics centered on his new “Charmander” single, taking on a new music approach and cracking into the Hollywood scene.

There are ample moments in this fire Q&A and to help save some time in everyone’s super busy daily grind, we’ve come up with 7 juicy quotes you can’t miss.

1. Aminé Tells Apple Music About Recording His New Single “Charmander”…

I did a lot of drugs before I recorded this. I don't know if I should say that.It's okay. Cussing for emphasis. Doing drugs for emphasis. It was produced by Lido and me and Lido had been just talking for a while and we never worked together. We knew each other for years and he came by my house. I recorded this joint at like 3:00 a.m. at my house. We had dinner before. It was a chill night. It wasn't really anything too crazy. I want everyone to start their week with Charmander. I feel like it will pump you up.

2. Aminé Tells Apple Music About How His New Material Differs From His Approach on His Second Album ‘Limbo…

I worked a lot on Limbo. It was almost mentally tiring for me because it was a lot of rewriting of verses and a lot of trying to construct this body of work that really hit a certain like line that I was trying to hit. And for this new stuff, I'm just trying to have fun. I don't care what anyone thinks. A lot of the new stuff that I've been doing, we like crank the tempo in different tempos all the time. If I hear something I like, I'm like let's try, you know what I mean? I'm not opposed to anything. Sometimes producers in the studio have crazy ideas. Like, "Yo, you should probably rap over this." And I'm like, let's try it. Why not? So if it works, it works. If it doesn't, it doesn’t.

Yeah like Jid and Smino, those are guys I love and those are just peers of mine that I really feel are always challenging themselves with their flows. And for me I'm also just trying to be a chameleon with the records that I do in the albums, I do. I don't want you to listen to Good for You and then be like, "Damn, this sounds exactly like 1.5 Or limbo." Or whatever. So I'm just trying to be smart with the way I choose records, and be smart with what I put out into the world and just always make sure that I love the record, before anything.

3. Aminé Reflects on His Second Album ‘Limbo’…

I think for me it was a lot of just me trying to prove to myself I could really make a rap record that was mainly rap and really had elevated verses and elevated hooks that just didn't feel more inside of the pop leaning stuff and more on... Just true to myself and true to my roots. And I just really tried to make a album that was true to the reason I fell in love with hip hop, you know what I mean? And that's what Limbo was.

4. Aminé Tells Apple Music About How He Handles Feedback...

I feel like when I'm making music I really want to consider my happiness with everything because I've tried to make things based on popularity and what people would want for me, because I think that's what people want for me. And it's never really worked out for me. I've never wanted to put out that song or, you know what I mean? Like I genuinely have to be happy if I have to ask 20,000 people like, "Yo, what y'all think about this? Y'all like this? Should I put this out?" I don't really know if that's the right choice for me because I have to love it, first and foremost. So yes, I take everybody into consideration, but I'm also like, fu- everybody.

5. Aminé Tells Apple Music About Pursuing Acting…

I got an agent. I do a couple auditions here and there for a couple things when I have time. But the main issue is I wanted to audition for this one show that I really wanted and I couldn't do it because I have to tour.You know what I mean? While they shoot. It's always trying to figure it out. It's just trying to find the right situation that makes sense for you. It's a new space, sitting in front of a camera and reading some lines and not acting like Amine, of course. I love it. It's a new space and trying new things.

6. Aminé Tells Apple Music About His Dog Helping Him Through Quarantine…

My dog has brought me so much happiness because quarantine was just really hard for me. And just being able to have something to do every day, brings me joy. It's a small thing, he's the star of the video too.

7. Aminé Tells Apple Music About Being From Portland…

That's what I do it for really. Being able to be reminded of home and where I come from is the best feeling, especially when you've been in this for a couple of years now. I feel like after two years you start to feel yourself and you just forget about your past life. I mean, for me, I never thought being a kid from Portland would work out for me. You know what I mean? Especially in hip hop, because I didn't really have anything to base it off, as far as the big artists in the world. For me, I just wanted to do well and just try to ... I wasn't trying to be outlier, it just happened.