Avid Atmosphere fans lit up at the news that the dynamic duo would be going on tour at the top of 2020, and the excitement only heightened when a few short days after the announcement, a new album dropped. Although their latest release Whenever was put out with no warning, the twelve-track album boasts an impressive feature list and pushes Atmosphere out of their comfort zone to adopt a style no one could have predicted.

The veteran group, comprised of rapper Slug and producer Ant , have been heavy hitters in underground rap since the ’90s. Their debut album Overcast! was born with the sentiment that it would be their only chance at creating a hip-hop record, but it turned out to be the start of something legendary.

Both Slug and Ant hail from Minneapolis, where the duo initially bonded over their love of music and not much else. Their collaboration has blossomed into a friendship that requires few words and a generous helping of mutual understanding. They also co-own and manage Rhymesayers Entertainment, the Minneapolis-based indie hip-hop label they founded back in 1995.

Atmosphere has always been hailed as a pair that makes music with depth and emotion, adding layers to the minutiae of everyday life and rhymes that are truly relatable for regular people. Slug was the first to coin the term “emo rap,” a spot-on descriptor of their vibe. With treasured songs like “Sunshine” and “The Woman with the Tattooed Hands” sprinkled across their vast discography, Atmosphere can be angsty, restless, romantic, dark, and curious.

Their newest album shows their ability to keep evolving while remaining Atmosphere at their core, with hard-hitting features including the unmistakable sound of Slug and Murs on a track together, classic collaborative sentimentality, and beats that somehow feel very French.

In the midst of their current tour, I called Slug on a Thursday afternoon to talk about Atmosphere’s new album, the effect of legacy in the music world, how it connects us all, and growing your own vegetables.

TAYLOR ENGLE: So, how is the tour going so far?
SLUG: It’s good, it’s organic. All of the shows have been a lot of fun. Service with a smile, you know? We’re just tryna kick it.

I feel that! When you first announced you were going on tour, you hadn’t dropped your new album Whenever yet, and then a week later it was out. What was the reason behind that decision?
We didn’t want anyone to know we had an album yet. We had to announce the tour early so they could start putting tickets on sale, so we just pretended it was based off the last album, Mi Vida Local. But we ended up finishing Whenever so fast, it didn’t make sense to create another three-month promotional cycle around it when I’m literally still doing interviews about Mi Vida Local. Shit, we’re like a gift and a curse to Rhymesayers because we just do whatever, whenever, and we don’t stop. The label is like, fuck, stop giving us music. But I try to let them pace shit how they need to pace it.

When God Loves Ugly was released in 2002, you mentioned in an interview that you were “over-the-hill” at 30-years-old. How do you think this stereotypical age bias in the industry has shifted since?
I think it’s sort of an artist-by-artist situation. For instance, we’ve never put a ton of resources behind our marketing and promoting but our success and relevancy is based on the connection we have with our fan base. Our growth happens through word of mouth. Someone who appreciates us puts their friend onto us, and then their friend gets into it, and the connection to that friend will always be a part of their connection to the music. There’s so much of that going on that, even if we were to disappear from the map, our connectivity would live on. That bond will remain. Like Pink Floyd, I’ve never been a huge fan of their music, but I’ve always respected them because I saw my friends who liked them were just so adamant about trying to convert their friends to like them, too. When you go to a Pink Floyd show, you see the audience treat each other like they’re all one big family. It’s almost like the OG Beyhive was Pink Floyd fans, know what I’m saying? Kids at school who liked Pink Floyd found each other. We have something like that.

Yeah, that makes a lot of sense. How do you think that relates to mainstream hip-hop?
We’re overlooked by a lot of contemporaries in the world of rap, and we’ve never really been embraced by mainstream. We’re part of the culture, but we’re also alternative to the culture. It was always trendy to hate on us rather than like us, but we capped on that. As long as you’re saying our name, you’re aware. To this day, I meet people and they’re like, “Man, I never gave you a chance. Now that I’ve heard you guys I’m like, why was I sleeping?” I feel like we’ve crossed the line into being a legacy act. I’m not here to trick anyone or beg you to stream my shit like Justin Bieber just did. I don’t care. And I’m not saying that to be edgy; I care about my audience. I just won’t lose sleep over who ain’t fucking with us.

The features on Whenever are a perfect mix of old and new. How did you select who would feature on the album?
Me and Nicky Jean have been trying to figure out how to do a song together forever, and it just hadn’t happened. Actually, she was on a Brother Ali record and it hurt my feelings! I’ve known her since she was like 15 — she used to come to Fifth Element in Minne while I was still working there. I was a grown ass motherfucker trying to sell records, and I was used to dealing with kids asking questions about music and shit, so her coming in and asking questions was normal. Years later, I bumped into her in Philly. She was working at the Electric Factory, making moves with The Roots and I was like, “Holy shit, that was you!” We stayed in touch, always threatening to make a song together, and finally I had the song. Me and Ant have always been a little scared of putting a singer on our tracks because we didn’t want to sound like we’re trying to cross over. That’s how it was in the 2000s — now, there’s no such thing. Art is art. So I finally had a song that I felt could use a singer, instead of the lame ass hook I had. I sent her the track, and she sent me something back within an hour.

For “Dearly Beloved,” I knew I wanted Musab and Muja Messiah on a song where I dropped a bunch of Prince references. And then we got Murs on the track with Gifted Gab and Haphduzn. I had first seen Gab on the TL, and I immediately reached out like, “Yo, you’re fucking dope.” When I first made “Whenever,” it was me and Haphduzn on the track and I reached out to a few people, including Gab. She immediately returned the verse and it was fire, so I put her on. She was the one who suggested we bring in Murs. Murs is my best friend, but I hate working with him. He’s such a pain in the ass.

What does this album mean to you?
Man, I don’t know what this album is. It’s going to take some time to reveal itself to me — most albums do. It requires more than just writing them to understand them. We were actually commissioned to make this record. There was a director and producer from a TV show that came to us saying they wanted us to make a soundtrack for the show. So I wrote the songs with this in mind. Atmosphere, in the past, has typically made music that takes itself a little too seriously. I saw this as an opportunity to make songs that didn’t. I want to say this album sounds French! “Postal Lady,” “Love Each Other,” “Dearly Beloved” — these songs all sound French to me. I don’t know why that is. But anyway, we made them and then the deal fell through. So I said fuck it, let’s put it together and see how this sounds as an album.

Some feedback on the album so far has been that it sounds more optimistic than past Atmosphere music. Do you agree with this?
I’m not sure why people think it’s optimistic. I was just trying to make songs that would make people want to Shazam it. I was looking for stuff that didn’t remind me of Atmosphere records. The beat to “Romance?” I would never put that on an Atmosphere album. The beat to “Lovely” — what do you even call that fucking beat? Some weird Russian French swing music shit, I don’t know. I saw this as an opportunity to go outside of the Atmosphere box, and I loved it. I feel like it’s given me a few new muscles for what’s next. We’ve always been in that how-do-we-save-the-children box, and now it’s a how-do-I-save-myself box. At the risk of sounding like a fucking fortune cookie, you can’t save nobody else if you don’t save yourself first. What I’ve been doing is genuine, but I want something even more genuine. Being genuine allows for fun, and I had a lot of fun making these fucking songs.

How has yours and Ant’s relationship evolved over the years?
When Ant and I were younger, we were just feeling our way through shit — even our friendship. Our friendship was based solely on making music; we didn’t really know there were other common threads, like food, family, films, fanaticism (god, that’s a lot of F’s). Now it’s found its way into the music. We’re becoming our final form (ok, this is getting fucking weird); we’re evolving again. He has some kids now, so he can relate to a ton of shit I’ve been going through, and we live in the same city again.

And how have you evolved individually as artists?
I didn’t used to use my voice as much. I used to rap with anxiety, but now I’m learning to use quiet voice, loud voice, and actually hit and sustain a few notes. I’ve also been engineering myself, recording myself. Spending time exploring new things and gaining a new set of legs. Evolution is weird because it usually means progress, but I don’t mean that in this case. That’s for the listener to decide. In this case, maybe it means I’m growing teeth on the outside of my mouth because I need to protect myself from sand flies, know what I mean? We’re not evolving, we’re reacting.

As for Ant, he always made moods. Now, he’s making fucking cinematic soundtrack-type shit. His stuff has always been super moving, like Mobb Deep. Mobb Deep never gave a fuck about beats — they wanted to make dark music, and that’s what made their beats so great. Ant is similar. Look at God Loves Ugly, or Seven Travels. All moods. Now, he’s working with live musicians – he’s expanding his horizons. It’s allowed him to really go Quincy Jones on this shit, specifically the last two albums. Whenever is the soundtrack to a French horror film, and Mi Vida Local was the soundtrack to darkness.

What’s next for you guys?
I’ve been working on projects since I turned this one in. I don’t know how to articulate the direction I’m in. I’m just taking it as it goes. I have to allow my songs to become less self-aware. An Atmosphere song knows it’s an Atmosphere song. I want to break that. I don’t want it to know what the fuck it is. I’m not here to reinvent the wheel; that’s for the younger artist that hasn’t found their voice. I know my fucking voice. So what’s the best way I can apply it to the times?

Do you have any advice for the readers?
Yeah, learn how to grow your own vegetables. Everyone should. The cool thing about living in a house is you actually have a fucking yard. We grow cucumbers, beans, bell peppers, tomatoes, squash, strawberries…I think that’s everything. Oh, and nightshades. I don’t really fuck with ’em, but the family does.

Speaking of applying things to the times, a lot has changed for you, as far as settling down with marriage and a family. How has that change affected your music?
It’s had the same effect that every experience in my life has had thus far: positive and negative. I started referring to myself as “dad rap” somewhere around 2010/2011 when we made The Family Sign. If you listen to those stories, there’s a moral. I was seeking resolution. That’s dad rap. I’m scared to say it too often anymore though, because they started applying it to Jay-Z. They already stole emo rap from me, damn!

Nonetheless, as long as the music is genuine to the experience, you’re doing the right thing. That’s not just rap – that’s everything. If your art is a reflection of you and your experiences, you’re doing it right.

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Photos Courtesy of Anthony Cosme