Coming off a highly energetic set at Summer Set Music Festival 2016, MOD SUN made time between sharing shots of Jameson and rolling up a quick joint to pass to the avid fans to speak to me about his upcoming project and journey that got him there. Having worked with Schoolboy Q, Dizzy Wright, MGK and others it was exciting to see what the next step in his already illustrious career.

UHH: So, off the bat, I am here representing Upcoming Hip Hop.

Mod Sun: Yeah, that's my people. I have to send you guys my new album when it's finished.

In your set you mentioned that first album. In the past you worked with MGK and Schoolboy Q, what are you plans for big features on this upcoming album.

Well first off I can't say all of them, but I will give you a few. I just finished a song with Jon Bellion. I worked with DJ Mustard (he was on stage as we talked) and FKI. I have Black Bear and Mike Posner on it. Shit I got D.R.A.M. and Rich the Kid on the one out now (“Smokin What I'm Smoking On”).

So of course you dropped a new song on stage we should talk about.

Yeah I dropped the new song “Uh uh” produced by Graves. Yeah, that song is about to be a problem. The album is all about to finish up right now and that song might have a feature by the biggest artist in the world right now.

One of the things I was most interested in was the transition from Scary Kids Scaring Kids (played drums) into hip-hop.

Well I was playing drums before. I have always been a writer at heart, like I love writing and I love words and I was speaking with my hands and my feet before and that wasn't enough. So I wanted to move to doing whatever else I could with the mic. Initially listening to myself playback on the mic singing I was like no. I am not a singer bro, I am just not gonna do it. Right now, we are rapping too. This is what you would sound like and what I sound like when we rap. If you can talk you can rap and what better way to inspire people than to do something that everyone can do. Not everyone can be amazing. 'Yo I hope you got my back, I'm about to spit it on the track” Like anyone can do that. Why not inspire others? And I am a drummer so I turn my music into my rap. I can rap fast, I can rap slow I can sing and do it all now. The transition was something I always wanted to but I found myself finally in the music. I thought I was going to do all sorts of other things. I tried to be a pop-rapper. I tried doing really deep stuff, but when I rap-rap on hard beats its fuckin' incredible; your ears perk up. So that's where I finally found my voice so that's what this album is about, me find my voice and really rapping my ass off. When I did that raw cypher 2 years ago everyone was like 'damn this mother fucka can rap'. People didn't know, like I have 400 songs out there and I go hard on half of them. So I put it all together now and I'm going to kill the rap game; I am going to be one of the best.

I loved everything you did out here and it really was a perfect day.

Absolutely, and as soon as the album comes out I can play all of the new songs. The album will be coming end of September.

Photo by Rachel Anker

Along the lines of you being a writer, do you have any plans for a new book?

Yeah, yeah, yeah, now that the album is finally finished. [I am] and for just hearing me now I write books and I have an incredibly successful book called Did I Ever Wake Up? that has done more for my career [than my music] but I realized that this [performing] is my vehicle its what I love to do, being on stage. I had to drop [writing and painting], and just [focus on] music and now that I'm done with it I am going to get back into writing. Probably another poetry book.

We don't have much time left here I know you are excited to get out and hang out with the fans, enjoy the festival.

I am plugging Upcoming Hip Hop heavy. I have a song [with Dej Loaf called “We Do This Shit”] check it out, I have a song [with D.R.A.M. and Rich the Kid called “Smoking What I'm Smoking] check it out. I am about to drop "Gucci Nail" next week

One last thing now that you brought up Dej Loaf, how did it feel to not only have her in a song but to have her in your video? I know she is one of hardest people to get a cameo from.

[I] don't like to talk perfectly in interviews I like to tell the truth. People like to charge money [for guest spots in videos] and Dej Loaf did that shit for free simply because I was one of the first people to fuck with her. [Early in her career], she had like 3000 followers [on Twitter] and I tweeted out her video and she remember that. [She said] 'just because you supported me in the beginning I am here because I want to be'. I am about to drop a behind the scenes video for the “We Do This Shit” video and she says [what I just mentioned]. The industry is actually beautiful. They try to tell you its ugly but there is a lot of righteous people in this [industry]. Once [I] stop dipping my toes and jump head first I am going to change [the whole industry]. Dej Loaf did that [song] for the love, like she could make money of [the song] but she did it for the love.

Great, great stuff man. Thank you again from myself and Upcoming Hip Hop, we look forward to your album.

Thank you, thank you again.

Connect with Mod Sun
Facebook.com/modsun
Twitter.com/MODSUN
Soundcloud.com/modsun
Instagram.com/modsun

Look for his new album to drop late September and find out who his 'major feature' will be on his upcoming album.