YOUR FAVORITE MTV SHOWS ARE ON PARAMOUNT+

A$AP Ferg Spent A Week In 40's Studio, Linked With Future For 'Always Strive And Prosper'

He's taking this to 'New Levels.'

It's already been two years since A$AP Ferg dropped his debut Trap Lord, and although he's been doling out some earworms since then, his sophomore album Always Strive And Prosper is still an event to look forward to.

Ferg told MTV News that our first taste of A$AP will be "a huge smash with me and Future called 'New Levels' dropping in January" and he's also got some collaborations on deck with Pharrell, Stelios Phili, DJ Mustard, Swizz Beatz, DJ Khalil, plus Drake's longtime producer Noah "40" Shebib.

Apparently 40's studio -- where Ferg spent a week recording -- is no joke.

"40 has the fully quipped studio, with [about] three doors to get to the studio and these big speakers that are crazy loud but they don't hurt your ears [somehow]" Ferg said, laughing.

"They're like scientists over there. He's great on the technical side of things -- very strategic, nothing is done by mistake. We were trying to create ear candy, something that feels good, but still feels innovative and not generic."

He also spent some time "just painting" in the studio with Swizz Beatz, getting great advice from Pharrell, and eventually assembling the project with DJ Khalil to make it cohesive.

"I worked closely with DJ Khalil to bring the project together. He brought in an orchestra and opera singers to make it real musical. And I just always wanted to do this -- I put Clams Casino in the same room as DJ Khalil."

The Harlem rapper explained that Clams planted a microphone in the room to pick up the audio from their jam sessions, and that will play on the album, running commentary included. "You're gonna get all of that energy from when we first created it and hit that sound," he said.

He wouldn't give us an exact drop date for the album, but he promised that it would arrive by January along with visuals that he'll be directing. Before that, we'll get to see what he put together while directing Future's "Thought It Was A Drought" video, which they filmed partially in Spike Lee's home.

Hear him break it all down in the interview above.

Latest News