Pac Div aren’t strangers to the hustle. The left coast trio, consisting of Mibbs, Like and BeYoung, have been pushing out music since 2006 (“Sealed for Freshness: The Blendtape”); with (Universal) or without label support. Finally releasing their first debut album “Grown Kids Syndrome,” in August, and changing management, Pac Div isn’t pressing the breaks, if anything, their going harder than before.
Hours before taking the stage at the Grind N Hustle concert at SOBs, NY on Monday (April 25), Pac Div took time to talk to Billboard’s The Juice on the move to Grand Hustle Records as management, their sonic evolution and Lil B going “Gay.”
The Juice: How has the move to Grand Hustle Records affected you?
Mibbs: It’s been totally positive. It’s just a different type of grind with this new management. [The energy] fits more of what we’re trying to do. We’re really trying to hustle. That’s what Grand Hustle is about. [Laughs]
Why do you feel like you have to be more fast-paced more so now than before?
Mibbs: Fans got ADD. They’ll jump off you in a second and jump on somebody new.
Do you feel like the pressure to always grind can negatively affect the product?
Like: It can, cause then it becomes forced than natural. I like to be inspired; I like to do music at my own pace, when things come to me. The Beastie Boys only have a few albums, they’d go through five-year gaps in between albums, but when the next one hit it’d be huge. You can’t just pop out albums like that, you have to take your time. [That’s] if you give a f*ck about music.
You’ve been working on upcoming album, “Grown Kid Syndrome,” for a minute, what’s changed since you started working on it?
Like: Some of the records [we last talked about] are still on there. If anything, we hooked up with No I.D. and made a dope ass track called “Greatness.” We hooked up with Jim Jonsin, he had some records [for us]. I produced a couple of joints that we previously didn’t have. I’ve been working hard at that. We’ve been bottling up the same aesthetic as our last albums but with a bit of evolution where you can still can hear us.
Are you scared that you’ve lost fans through out your evolution, or will, now that you’re getting a stronger label push?
BeYoung: If you want one sound, then yes. Back then we were right from the crib, working 9-5’s. Over the last couple years we got the chance to go places and see other things. After you do that, it’s kind of foolish to just speak to one person. I can see if you alienate totally where you’ve came from but if it’s still there and it’s evolved, it’s hard to hate on.
Mibbs: We’re still Pac Div. We’re still paying for our own videos. They ain’t forking out money like that [either.] It is a machine and I pay attention to things. The label wants to brand you too, and we haven’t seen none of that yet, but we’re just going to pay attention.
BeYoung: We can always go and be Pac Div by ourselves. Right now what you’re seeing is us working with somebody else to see what we can build. At the end of the day, we will always be able to say, ‘fuck everybody, we’re doing us.’
How do you feel about “Grown Kid Syndrome” making it’s debut while the swag movement is strong?
Mibbs: We started working on “Grown Kid Syndrome” when the hipster movement was going on and people were calling us hipsters. We just go with the flow, I’ll rock with it. We’re cool with Lil B and everybody. If they want to work we can work but we’re not going to box ourselves into anything.
Speaking of Lil B, how do you guys feel about him titling his album “I’m Gay”?
Mibbs: That’s the only way you’re going to get anywhere in the world. You can’t second guess yourself. As for the situation with Lil B, I don’t quite understand it all the way, but it goes back to the word “swag,” cause it’s just like [saying], ‘I don’t give a fuck, I’m just doing what I do and I don’t care what no one says.’ That’s powerful. You got people that follow you after that. I’m not trying to say that I want to be like Lil B, but I look at that and respect that.
Like: So going into the gay album title, man, it’s whatever you want to do, whatever floats your canoe. He can name it whatever he wants. I think he’s talented guy. It sounds like he’s trying to push himself to perfection. His work is more developed, that’s because he cares. I’m hoping for the best. We rollin’.
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