As his debut disc Testimony tops the charts, Def Jam's August Alsina is speaking to TheYBF.com about sharing his journey, some of the media's biggest misconceptions about him and why he understands Chris Brown's struggle. More inside....
August Alsina is having a very good week. He first caught our eye (and ears) in 2012 as a new breakout artist collabo'ing with Lloyd on August's song "Sucka". And now, his debut album is making waves.
After years off hustling to break out of New Orleans' 9th ward, the Radio Killa/Def Jam artist has a gold single under her belt ("I Luv This Sh*t"), a chart topping album (Testimonysold 64K copies and debuted at #2 On The Billboard 200), and fans around the world are connecting to his mix of gritty story-telling, trap beats and R&B swag. During a 1-on-1 no-holds-barred interview with TheYBF.com, August comments on Chris Brown's legal troubles, clears up some of misconceptions and shares why he decided to be so revealing on his album.
On celebrating the success of Testimony:
"I’m finally being able to tell my story. Not only my story…just everybody in the struggle. Any struggle. Any shape, form or fashion. I finally got an outlet to speak on. I put so much of myself into the album that I really just want you to walk away with a piece of me. A piece of my soul. That’s really what’s its about. The album is for the people. A piece of my story. A piece of my heart. A piece of motivation."
On growing up in New Orleans (before and after Hurricane Katrina):
“New Orleans ain’t the same. It’s a different world out there now. There are different people in New Orleans that done came from all over. It’s gotten way worse. More gritty. If you came up in New Orleans….you’d know the difference."
On vulnerability:
"Before I put the album out I thought to myself…how much do I give to the people? How much do I say? [I realized] my reality and my come up is not only my story...it’s my family’s story. But I never wanted anyone to feel like I was telling our business.
At a certain point, if you believe in your artistry, there’s nothing to stop you from telling the truth. I just got to the point where I’m gonna tell the truth because I know that it may help some people."
On brutal honesty:
"I think that God sends you through a whole bunch of sh*t so you can speak on it. Not everybody lives your life and not everybody can do what you do. Not everyone knows your experience – if you can share and touch the next person why not do that?"
On the importance of f*cking up:
In each situation I always do what I feel is right. In any situation where I make a decision I'm gonna stand on it. If I make a decision there ain't no taking it back. I did it. It takes a f*ck up to know to do it the right way the next time. It takes a f*ck up to grow.
On the song "FML" (Fuck My Life) and Chris Brown:
It's like making it out of a situation, but still being trapped. At the end of the day, we’re all using each other to come up. Some relationships are real…some are fake. People build you up on a platform just to see you fall and tear you down. That’s were 'FML' comes from. Chris is a great guy....nobody understands. They just build you up so much. And everybody makes mistakes. The fact is...he makes his [mistakes] on tv. Ya’ll see my f*ck ups. I don’t see ya'lls.
On the biggest misconceptions about him:
A lot of people think I'm rude and cocky (remember the "106 & Park" outburst?). I'm far from that. I'm a real f*cking person. People make that assumption because I walk into a room and I don’t have too much to say. But to be honest…this is real life for me. This is my lifestyle….I'm not gonna hold a random conversation with a random person.
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We like this guy.
Testimony is in stores now and can be downloaded here.
International fans can catch August during his upcoming international tour:
On Instagram...
August posted,"Thank you guys for hearing & being apart of my #Testimony . I'm humbled. We gotta keep growing, take that #1 spot."
Photos via August Alsina's Instagram/Def Jam/Hannibal Matthews