“BIG TALK” IS THE NEXT NATURAL STEP IN THE EVOLUTION OF GIANT

“I know who I am. I appreciate who I am. I enjoy the struggle. All of it feeds me, and I put it into my art.” – GIANT

Some of the best music ever created in hip-hop was made by one MC, working with one producer, sharing a vision. From Gang Starr, to Kweli and Hi Tek, to more recent projects like Alchemist and Gibbs, there is a special synergy that comes from a duo locking-in to create exceptional music.

I’ve followed this trend in Richmond as well. Noah-O comes to mind. He has full-length projects produced by DJ Mentos, Fan Ran, Taylor Whitelow, JL Hodges, to name a few. Talented MCs like Nickelus F and Fly Anakin, have both locked-in with Ohbliv for albums. One of the latest MCs to work exclusively with a single producer to create a special project is GIANT. If you’re not following closely, you may know him as Millz, but understand, Millz is gone — GIANT is here — and his new album, Big Talk, is exclusively produced by Ant the Symbol.

I asked GIANT how the collaboration with Ant came together. “It was natural. Our relationships started around 3 or 4 years ago. He would send me stuff, and I’d work on it and send it back to him. We just built a relationship from there. Ant is one of the people who really kept me focused on music, even when I was focusing on other things,” GIANT said via phone. “When Big Talk came to be, it was just natural that Ant and I would do the project together,” he continued. “I like to lock-in with one producer. A few of my projects are like that,” he said.

Big Talk sounds like the next natural step in the career of GIANT. It sounds like evolution. The album is dedicated to his son, Elijah. When I asked GIANT, what is different about this album, he elaborated on his personal growth. “Growth and understanding make this album different. Everything you saw in the past was blind shots. Things that were cool to me (at the time) — but not exactly how I wanted to do it. I recognized what I used to be — and how I used to move – sometimes I used to make music that was almost too personal. This project really transitions that, and, in many ways, allows me more creative freedom.”

Big Talk is just over 44 minutes. It has 11 tracks and 3 skits. On first listen, you may hear just a dope album. But, if you’ve followed GIANT’s career, I think you will hear more — more growth, more life experience, more range. I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the chemistry between GIANT and Ant. Ant’s production can never be put in a singular musical box. His creativity, style, and taste, are vast, and you hear it on each of Ant’s projects. Yet, something is liberating about Ant being Ant, and GIANT wanting to explore creative freedom. It allows for a project with a few surprises.

GIANT and I finished our conversation discussing how Big Talk will be different from a marketing and business perspective. I won’t give away all the game. I’ll just say his plan for Big Talk is focused and nearly 12 months long. It will include just about everything you can imagine: visuals, press, social media, etc. I could hear the energy coming from him over the phone about the process. He seems as inspired by the business as he is the music. My experience has been that combination of creativity and business yields positive results. We’ll see exactly where it takes GIANT.

Big Talk is out now on all streaming platforms.