A$AP Ferg credits Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs for paving the ways for rappers to become mainstream popstars.
Talking about the popularity of current hip-hop stars, Ferg explained to American GQ that he sees them as the new purveyors of pop.
And asked about who led the way, Ferg was quick to praise Combs, who burst onto the music scene in the ‘90s under the name Puff Daddy.
“I think Puff was the Berry Gordy (Motown record label founder) of his time,” Ferg stated. “He was like, all right, ‘We don’t have a Berry Gordy who’s going to represent our type of music. I want to create my own Motown, which is Bad Boy (Records)’. And he did that. And then there’s an evolution that happens after that. We had to see Puff to know what we could do better, or know what’s possible. To see Puff in shoots with Kate Moss and Naomi Campbell and things like that, or when Big Daddy Kane did the naked shoot with Madonna and Naomi Campbell—we had to see what was possible as a rapper. We never saw a rapper do that!”
As well as his music career, the 29-year-old star has dipped his toes into the fashion world, working as a brand ambassador for Jimmy Choo and having a sneaker deal with Adidas.
And when it comes to his work, Ferg is looking for longevity, and not just making a quick buck.
“I don’t feel like we should follow the week-to-week schedule of album releases. That’s people problems. We’re humans, we’re not machines just making new chips, or machines creating some f**king s**t that’s not organic,” he sighed. “And if you are an artist who’s trying to do that, it’s not going to last too long. It’s microwaved.
“So I’m not in the business of creating microwaved music. I could, but it wouldn’t be in my best interests. Everybody wants more music, because that’s a payday for everybody. That’s a payday for me! But I never really wanted to compromise my art.”
