A.B. Slater flows like a smooth criminal in his 9-track EP DRILLER. Paying homage to the late King of Pop, the rapper merges drill and sampled Michael Jackson records for each soundscape. “Essence,” however, draws admiration from Wizkid’s song of the same name. In its entirety, the beats exude good vibes and encourage listeners to bust a move.
Lyrically, the New York-bred flexes on his opposing forces, making them eat their words with not-so-light threats. At times, he also woos his P.Y.T. by professing his true feelings and treating her like the queen she is. The core of DRILLER showcases the rapper’s bravado, confidence, and tenacity. In “Baby Be Mine,” he even raps, “A.B. be colder than Iced T.”
“Baby Be Mine” is a West Coast-influenced record that sees A.B. Slater considering a relationship with a dime who’s easy on the eyes. After being persuaded by this lady’s demeanor to settle down, he lists why they’d be perfect together. The rapper then differentiates what it would be like dating him vs. an average guy.
“Wowoing like Micheal/I’m the one that you should choose/If you could only have one star/Papi shampoo, he spits. “I’m in the hood like the bums are/Like A Painting from Basquiat better with age/40 plus and only got like two grays.”
In the second verse, A.B. Slater shoots his shot while keeping things fun. He elaborates on his type of love language and aura.
He delivers,
“She a hot little thing, got a little bling/I see her no ring nice ink/Got on my T-Pain shit like let me buy you a drink/She gave me a wink, and hit me with a smile/And a look like she wanna eat me up like Mr. Chows/She don’t even know I’m bout to make her kitty meow/What I got in store would make a lioness roar.”
Natalee Gilbert got a chance to interview A.B. Slater about his artistry and DRILLER. You can read it below:
What is the creative concept behind your album’s name?
The Album is themed after Micheal Jackson’s Thriller Album, he’s always been a musical inspiration to me and with the 40th anniversary of his classic album being this year, I wanted to pay homage and tribute to him in a creative way, so I made a Hip Hop/ Drill version of Thriller and named it Driller. I basically kept the same track order as the original Thriller album also.
How does this project differ from your previous work?
Previously I was releasing random singles, this body of work is more cohesive, and thought out.
Explain your creative process with this project:
I listened to Thriller every day on repeat in the morning for about three or four listens straight through. Then I selected my six favorite tracks and one by one started making my version. I wanted to have three original tracks and six tracks off the thriller album for my Driller project.
What kind of ‘sound’, production-wise, did you have in the back of your mind, prior to entering the studio for this album?
I wanted it to sound like a Party On the moon! Lol. All jokes aside music is supposed to evoke emotion so I just wanted it to sound like a vibe, a good time and a good mood.
Were there any records that didn’t make the cut?
Yes, I did something to Billie Jean and Wanna be starting something, but ultimately left those off.
Favorite record to make and why?
“Take A Look” with my bro Blakk Morris, similar to how the original Thriller album only had one feature, track number three, the girl is mines, with Paul McCartney, Driller only has one feature, track number three, Take a look with Blakk Morris.
A song we can expect a visual for:
I’m currently working on the visual for Beat IT.
What should we expect next?
More music, more visuals, more projects, I’m trying my hand at acting too, I have a guess role on a web series on YouTube called Bishop and Chaney. I’m ready to end the year strong and kept going from there.
