Swizz Beatz had nothing but good things to say about Kanye West and the My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy recording sessions in a new interview with HipHopDX.
Promoting his and his son Nasir Dean’s new TV show, Drive with Swizz Beatz, the super producer told DX that his time working on Ye’s magnum opus “felt like an ongoing mixtape.”
“It didn’t feel like an album was being done,” Swizz explained. “It felt like you could go into the booth, do whatever you want to do. You know, you come in the studio, and Kobe Bryant might be in the studio. You never knew who was in the studio.”
He continued: “Every day was like Saturday Night Live or something. Or the show chairs, where everybody want to know your name, right? It was just like going to a frat house, you know? […] But the main thing was the creative juices were flowing in there. Everybody in there had superpowers. Musical genius frat house.”
You can check out the interview clip below:
This isn’t the first time that Swizz Beatz has shown Kanye West some love. Back in 2021, the Ruff Ryders producer detailed Yeezy’s involvement in helping send off DMX at the Barclay’s in Brooklyn, following the legend’s death in April of that year.
“It was a very genuine act of love and support from Ye,” he said. “You know, it wasn’t too much talking, it wasn’t no negotiating. X showed up to his Sunday Service and was a big fan of it so I knew that this was something X would want to do, and Kanye was more than happy to facilitate his expertize and his choir. Shout out to the entire Sunday Service.”
He added, “It was last minute… people didn’t know what we were dealing with behind the scenes. It wasn’t televised but when people got in there, the stage was still being built because everything was so last minute, but we didn’t wanna stop and said: ‘You know what, keep it going.’ And shout out to the Barclays Center for having super patience with us.”
Swizz Beatz also spoke more about the memorial service, referencing the monster truck and thousands of bikes going through the streets of New York City.
“You know, just wanted to send our brother home in a very, very amazing way and something that people haven’t seen,” he said. “Even the monster truck, because DMX loved remote controls so much, it just felt funny putting him in a hearse. It’s like, ‘Nah, my brother belong in a monster truck, you know, this is the dog, 10,000 bikes, let’s go.’
“And to see the monster truck coming across the bridge with all of the riders behind it, I know that he was up there smiling and to see the production as a reflection of his life at the Barclays Center streamed worldwide. I know that he was happy with that as well and it was amazing… thank you for everybody that contributed to that.”
