B.o.B writes off haters in ‘Fuck ‘Em We Ball’
The Decatur, Ga. native previewed his ninth mixtape, out today, at Tree Sounds Studios
- Christina Lee
- B.o.B., Tree Sounds Studios’ Mali Hunter, Mike Will Made It
Last night, just hours before he turned 24, B.o.B stood before an audience of bloggers, producers and fellow emcees, including RocNation protégé J. Cole. “This is my ninth mixtape, and I’m getting back to where I started doing eight mixtapes and two albums ago,” the Decatur, Ga. native said.
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“Preach,” an audience member yelled back.
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Inside Tree Sounds Studios, B.o.B was previewing Fuck Em We Ball - which, based on the snippets he offered, sounded like the ideal soundtrack to his birthday party tonight at Opera Nightclub. Songs like the title track and “Campaign,” featuring longtime co-conspirator Playboy Tre, were fueled on little else but heavy bass, drum-machine beats and B.o.B.’s flow, which often operated in double-time.
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Fuck Em We Ball comes less than six months after B.o.B’s sophomore album Strange Clouds, in which he answered to seemingly dueling expectations, from longtime followers of his mixtape grind and casual fans of his Grammy-nominated work. Far less seems to be at stake now, although as the night wore on, B.o.B shifted to calling Fuck Em We Ball an album, rather than a mixtape.
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About halfway into his preview, he even paused “Everythang” (“a song for the ladies” - meaning, a slower song about ladies) to point out how he played the bass and electric guitars himself. Evidently, B.o.B. still felt as if he had something to prove.
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Immediately following the preview, B.o.B. spoke with CL about the making of Fuck Em We Ball and what he hopes to accomplish this year.