Ken Carson wants you to feel the rage. The Atlanta-born rapper started making music at just 13, around the same time he attended his first-ever concert, a Young Thug show. It was there that he realized just how much power a performer could have over a crowd. Carson has since become one of rage rap’s biggest names, and his most recent projects, Xperiment and Xperiment-Cartunez , have only made his music louder and harder to pin down. He’s also racked up a fiercely loyal Gen Z following, including Johnny Knoxville ‘s children, who might just be his biggest fans. The feeling, it turns out, is mutual. Carson grew up watching Knoxville’s antics on Jackass , so it only seemed right to get the two of them together. Before embarking on his Xperimenting t our, Carson called up Knoxville to talk about childhood mischief, horror movies, and why he can’t stand songwriting.— DAPHNÉE KABONGO
JOHNNY KNOXVILLE: Your shows are insane. The crowd goes crazy, and you don’t stop moving the whole time. You’ve got to be in shape for that.
KEN CARSON: Definitely. I want to be even in more shape, shit.
KNOXVILLE: Do you prepare before you go out on the road?
CARSON: Yeah, before I go on tour, I go two months doing two workouts a day.
CARSON: I got a tour coming up at the end of August.
KNOXVILLE: Do you have anyone opening with you?
CARSON: Yeah, I’m bringing xaviersobased and Prettifun, some underground rappers who are going to get mad exposure during the tour.
KNOXVILLE: You’re paying it forward like with how you were discovered, right? Tell me your backstory.
CARSON: I started with 808 Mafia. That’s what got me into rooms. Me and [Playboi] Carti used to always see each other and then one day he was like, “Yo, what the hell do you do? You young as shit, and I see you all the time. It’s no way you go to school.” And I’m like, “Nah, I just graduated.” But I was 15, 16 at the time and he was like, “Graduated? You lying.” But I went to military school, and I finished mad early.
CARSON: So I was 16 with nothing to do. He was examining everything I had going on and was like, “Yo, I fuck with you. You’re going to be my first artist.” And I’m like, “What? Say less.” This is way before Opium even was a thought.
KNOXVILLE: You were the first artist on Opium?
KNOXVILLE: Wow, that’s a huge honor. When you started with 808 Mafia, you were 15?
KNOXVILLE: That’s really young. How did you get in with them?
CARSON: My friend Lil 88’s uncle is TM88, who’s one of the founders of 808 Mafia. We were on the phone and he was like, “What’re you doing?” And I was like, “Nothing. Watching these 808 Mafia studio sessions.” And he’s like, “What? That’s my uncle. I’m going downstairs right now.” He put me on the phone with him and they was just mad cool. They were like, “Oh shit, pull up.” And I pulled up, and I never left.
KNOXVILLE: So how did you get in with them? Writing, producing, performing?
CARSON: Shit I don’t know, just being a cool young motherfucker. [Laughs]
KNOXVILLE: What was your first thing you did with them?
CARSON: Oh, I was definitely rapping. I wasn’t writing or nothing.
KNOXVILLE: Right, you don’t write. You just go off the top of your head.
KNOXVILLE: No shit. You’ve got to be disciplined to sit down, and it’s a real time suck.
CARSON: Bro, I tried it one time. Never again. That was probably one of my first studio sessions. I’m like, “Let me just try and make the greatest song ever. Write it real quick. Take my time.” That shit wasn’t even worth it. It took me about six hours to do the whole thing plus recording it. And I’m like, “Damn, I just wasted so much time.”
CARSON: No. It wasn’t as good as when I freestyled.
CARSON: Yeah, I feel like when I’m in front of the mic, it’s no thinking. Your instincts turn on, your muscle memory clicks in and shit.
KNOXVILLE: It’s fight or flight. Tell me about your childhood. Did you grow up with love or chaos, or did you grow up with both, like me? [Laughs]
CARSON: I grew up with both. I used to try and stay out of my mom’s way because we weren’t in the best situation. So I would try and be gone as much as possible.
CARSON: Whether I was with Young Thug, Carti, TM, in the back of my mind, I’m like, “Yeah, I got to bring this shit home, get my mom right.”
KNOXVILLE: Are you and your mom close now?
KNOXVILLE: And how old were you when you lived with Young Thug?
CARSON: Shit, everything from swag to music. He’s the one I used to sit down with and just record.
KNOXVILLE: He would just go off the top of his head too?
CARSON: He would also be in the middle of the booth, where everybody could see him. You could sit there and learn or you could sit there and just watch. It was more people definitely being entertained. I took the initiative to learn. He’s not the only one I’ve seen, though. Him, Carti, Future, everybody. I’m honored to witness all of that at a young age, because now I take it into my own direction.
KNOXVILLE: On one hand, you’ve been lucky, but on the other hand, you’ve made your luck. You’ve learned, and you’re disciplined, and it’s very impressive.
CARSON: Thank you. I’m still learning. There’s no wrong with learning, bro.
KNOXVILLE: When you think you got shit figured out, you’re in trouble.
KNOXVILLE: I love the fact that most of your songs are two or three minutes long. You’re like The Ramones.
CARSON: Yeah. I feel like a song doesn’t have to be three hooks, two verses. My purpose of making a song is to get that burst of energy out of you. I’m not going to get that burst of energy out of you for five minutes. The faster, the better.
KNOXVILLE: Faster, funnier. That’s what we say in comedy. What was your first big hit? Was it “Yale”?
CARSON: Yeah, that comes from my second EP and it happened so fast and drew so much attention.
KNOXVILLE: It’s a great song, and it’s super focused. There’s not too many bells and whistles, and you show great restraint, which is a nod to your talent, confidence, musical maturity. Did you produce that, or did someone else?
CARSON: Starboy and Outtatown made that, my producers from Amsterdam.
KNOXVILLE: Have you worked with them more?
CARSON: Hell yeah. They probably got the most placements of anybody in my discography.
KNOXVILLE: Riding around with my son and daughter, we listened to you so much. They were so excited when I was asked to interview you. I said yes, because, first of all, I like what you’re doing. Second of all, they would’ve kicked me out of the family if I had said no.
CARSON: Nah, this is a full circle moment, bro. I remember getting into fights with my sister, and then us watching Jackass after. They played all three back-to-back on MTV, and she was trying to change the channel. I was not going for it. This is the exact day Lil Bro became Big Bro. Literally. I remember like it was yesterday.
KNOXVILLE: Were you watching the movies or the television show?
KNOXVILLE: That’s how Jackass is supposed to be. It was always supposed to be the films, where we could do whatever we wanted.
KNOXVILLE: That’s when everyone was most out of their mind.
KNOXVILLE: That’s all the cast’s favorite too. [Jeff] Tremaine described it as, “Everyone was ready to die.”
CARSON: The porta-potty. That’s my favorite one, bro.
KNOXVILLE: Yeah. I didn’t know the poop would become weightless.
CARSON: How y’all come up with the prank idea?
KNOXVILLE: Well, if it’s a prank, then they don’t know anything, because it’s all real. But say you’re Bam [Margera], and you’re terrified of snakes, well, you just won the snake bit.
KNOXVILLE: Or you’re Preston [Lacy] and scared of heights, well, we’re going to put you up on something high. The worst thing you can do is tell someone what you’re afraid of.
CARSON: Damn, I should have been in the recent one.
KNOXVILLE: Yeah, man. We would’ve loved to have you. Tyler, the Creator was in the last one.
CARSON: Yeah. He had his own TV show too, Loiter Squad . That shit was so funny.
KNOXVILLE: Yeah. Jasper [Dolphin] was on that.
CARSON: He had the whole gang on there. Taco, everybody.
KNOXVILLE: Well, that’s nice. Thanks for asking. I’m doing good, man. I just got off vacation with my kids.
CARSON: For real? I just left from there.
KNOXVILLE: We just left about two or three days ago. We may have been there at the same time.
CARSON: Damn, that’s crazy. I went over there to just clear my mind.
KNOXVILLE: You keep quite a schedule. Are you able to relax when you go on vacation, or are you always working?
CARSON: I don’t really go on vacation. I’ve probably been on vacation twice for three days each. I’d rather be in the studio.
CARSON: I just feel weird outside of the studio. When I’m not working, I feel like I’m missing out on something.
KNOXVILLE: So I would say Spike Jonze has been my mentor. Who’s your mentor?
CARSON: Playboi Carti. That’s my mentor when I got to ask some shit.
KNOXVILLE: What has he taught you over the years?
CARSON: Stay consistent, stay self-motivated. It’s all about self. If you’ve got yourself, you won’t have to worry about anybody else.
KNOXVILLE: That’s important. How many months a year do you tour?
CARSON: Last year, I did a lot. Usually like six months.
KNOXVILLE: Do you like touring or do you prefer to be in the studio?
CARSON: I love touring, but when you’re making an album, touring is not the best thing to do.
KNOXVILLE: And you’ve done that when you’re in the middle of a tour?
CARSON: Yeah, I’ve made an album on tour before. It’s not the greatest thing to do, because you can’t chase the same vibe every night. If I’m going to the same studio every day, it’s easy to keep that same vibe. But when I’m in here, then there,or I’ve got to record on the bus tonight, it’s unpredictable.
KNOXVILLE: Yeah, and your focus is split, because you just came off-stage or you’re going to go on stage. I’ve heard other musicians say that doing an album while touring is not optimal.
KNOXVILLE: Are your producers usually in the studio with you, or they send you the beats, and then you lay something down?
CARSON: I always have producers in the studio with me, and I always have people sending me beats. So even if the ones in the studio I don’t want to get on right now, I may have some in my phone that I might want to fuck with.
KNOXVILLE: Out of every 20 beats you get, how many are good?
CARSON: Hell yeah. They good as fuck, bro. They dedicate their life to this shit. Shout out to them. I’m honored for even having a team of producers or anybody who’s working on beats for me at all.
KNOXVILLE: You want to mention any of those producers?
CARSON: Starboy, Outtatown, Lil 88, Lucian, F1lthy, AM, Cliff Shayne, Legion, Skai. I can go all day with this. Four3va, Dulio, 2Hollis.
KNOXVILLE: That’s awesome. What’s the best concert you’ve been to?
CARSON: Easy. You see how fast I responded?
CARSON: They just had it, bro. Every song was a different energy, like the whole stage would change. They were at the Braves’ stadium, so it’s like 70,000 motherfuckers. That’s probably my favorite band too.
KNOXVILLE: They’re pros. Their songs aren’t very long.
CARSON: That’s where I get it from though. The rock bands need your energy, bro. They’re not going to have it for that long. Even “Jesus of Suburbia,” it’s five minutes of mellowness, and then it goes crazy, and then they bring it back down, and then it goes crazy again.
KNOXVILLE: Did you go to a lot of rock shows growing up?
CARSON: I didn’t go to a lot of shows growing up. I didn’t really know what a show was until Thug was going on tour. And they were like, “It’s a show tonight.” And I’m like, “A show? All right.” We get there, and I’m like, “Damn, it’s mad people, they’re all here for Thug?” I knew what a concert was, but I never had the urge to like, “Oh, I got to be there.” So when I was there, I was like, “Damn. Wait, this is crazy.”
KNOXVILLE: Did you get the bug right then?
CARSON: I was ready to get on that stage.
KNOXVILLE: So there have been moments in my life where I’m good with money and other moments where I haven’t been so good. What moment are you in?
CARSON: Like I said earlier, I’m learning. [Laughs]
KNOXVILLE: That’s a very honest and fair answer. [Laughs]How old are you?
CARSON: You’re going hard, bro. I love to see it. I would’ve never guessed that.
KNOXVILLE: Yeah, I’ve been at it a while.
CARSON: Nah, facts. I would’ve never guessed that. Fuck, we’re getting old.
KNOXVILLE: Too old to deliver the mail, but I can still lick the stamp.
KNOXVILLE: So you like a lot of horror films, right?
KNOXVILLE: I don’t watch that many of them, because I watched Halloween as a kid, and it fucked me up.
CARSON: Halloween actually got me into horror, the Rob Zombie version.
CARSON: Yeah, it’s not as crazy as the Rob Zombie.
KNOXVILLE: No, I’m writing it down. So what music are you listening to right now?
CARSON: I’m usually in the studio so it’s hard for me. I’ll take a ride home in silence before I’m just listening.
KNOXVILLE: Yeah, you probably listen to your stuff. You’re constantly editing, recording.
KNOXVILLE: It’s been a real pleasure talking to you.
CARSON: Bro, it’s nice to meet you. I hope we can catch up whenever.
KNOXVILLE: Good luck with everything, man. I think you’re fantastic.
CARSON: Thanks, bro. I think you’re fantastic.
Source: Fashion
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