Apple Music 1: Yo Gotti talks new Gangsta Grillz mixtape, soccer team ownership, CMG's growth and more

It’s no mistake why Apple Music is my go-to for the Attack The Culture Top 50 Must-Hear playlist. Apple just represents top notch quality and of course seeing how artists like Yo Gotti head over to Apple Music 1 for interviews and exclusive drops? Super impressive. So seeing the Memphis legend link with Ebro Darden to talk about everything from putting out new music and his approaching to signing new talent to his label to dropping a Gangsta Grillz mixtape, it’s all big gems.

Yo Gotti talks to Apple Music 1’s Ebro Darden about new music, ownership and more

Gotti has ample topics to dish on these days. With a flourishing rap career and continuing to put on others through his label and mentorship, there’s plenty of things on the Memphis rap heavyweight’s mind.

Yo Gotti Tells Apple Music He Made This Album Because He Thinks No One is Making “Hustle Music” Anymore…

I was making music in between being in the studio with Glo, working on her next album, and Bagg when we was working on the mixtape. And I found myself in the studio a lot more than I be going. I don't really go to studios that often no more, you know what I'm saying? I record in my living room, I recorded this in my living room in the house. I think the energy of being in the studio, going through beats, picking beats, you know what I'm saying? Mixing and listening to what's in the market. I felt like I was missing something out in the market, in the culture, and then I felt like I could create it…To me, I think it's hustle music. I think hustle music is missing. What Jeezy was doing, what I was doing in that era, get money music. We had music that was the soundtrack and the anthems to us or to hustlers out there. Get money. Now, I think everything is super aggressive or super emotional or depressing. You know what I mean? A lot of it is fire. But I don't think it's hustle music, though. I don't think it's the soundtrack to get money.

Yo Gotti Tells Apple Music His New Strategy Is To Release Shorter Projects…

I think I said on “Driveway Furniture,” "I'm putting nothing but mixtapes out from now on." It's not really a chart goal. It's more like art pieces. I look at it like I want to put out short projects. This is the shortest project I ever put out. So, short projects is like art pieces and they're purposeful. Each project will speak for that moment, whenever I put it out. And it ain't no pressure, because like you said, I'm just doing what I want to do, how I want to do it. It's like exercise.

Yo Gotti Tells Apple Music What He’s Looking For When Considering Signing a New Artist to CMG…

I think the next thing is one of the things about every artist I ever worked with, I always spend time with them, lot of time before we done the deal. Meaning like, "Yo, we like them, we into them. Boom, fly them out to meet with me." I meet with them. If I like them from the first meeting, we just start inviting them around like, "Yo, come kick it with me.” So, say for example now, if I was looking at an artist right now, right now I'm in between GloRilla and Lil Baby tour. I'm in between MoneyBagg Yo tour. So, I'm doing a lot of traveling right now in between both of those. So for example, if I was looking at an artist right now, I'd be like, "Yo, come out here to the Glo tour with me. Let's catch a couple of cities." And I would just have them with me, just moving around through a couple cities. But I'll be paying attention to them. So, it's these little things and details that I think that you can never know unless you actually spend time with the person. So, I try to spend time with every artist I ever worked with. That's how it always worked. And from that point, I can determine is you a hustler? Or is you got short goals or long-term goals? What type of individual you is? Because we don't want to be hustling with nobody with short goals.

Yo Gotti Tells Apple Music Why He Decided To Become a Part Owner of the Major League Soccer Club DC United...

It was a few years ago when I joined the club as an owner, part of the ownership club. I mean, I think diversifying growth as an entrepreneur, I mean, whoever thought we would own part of a professional sports team? And to me, those are one of them things we were talking about earlier when I say I try to show by action. I try to show to the young guys in my city by action, what we can do and what we can become if we stay determined and disciplined and on top of what we're trying to do as young hustlers and entrepreneurs. But when the opportunity presented itself, one, you got to always remember too that you got to be in position when an opportunity do present itself. That's a gem within itself, right? Don't blow all the paper. Make sure you got the paper, make sure you're saving the paper. You never know what opportunity may drop in your lap and you can't even take it. You know what I mean? Because you got too many chains and you're flying too many jets.