Today, Xzibit's classic Restless LP turns 18, and the legendary rapper celebrated the occasion by hitting up The Breakfast Club for an extensive interview.
Off the bat, Charlamagne makes sure to give X his due props, dubbing him one of the best lyricists to ever come out of the west coast, despite not necessarily being respected as such. "I think it's because of the other things I've been involved with," reflects X. "When I started doing other things that weren't popular in hip-hop at the time, like reality TV, doing movies, films, or advertisement." Of course, Envy mentions the ubiquity of Pimp My Ride, and how it somewhat hijacked Xzibit's image. "When it came to Pimp My Ride, it was like, soccer moms and shit," he laughs. Now, however, he maintains that he's simply happy to be where he is, regardless of how a fan might know him.
Those who appreciate Xzibit for his music understand that the man has a deep catalog; not only was he a bonafide Aftermath affiliate during their peak, but his At The Speed Of Life and 40 Dayz & 40 Nightz albums remain underground favorites. On that note, X takes a moment to reminisce on some of the relationships he forged throughout his career. As it happens, West Coast icon King T was among the first to give X his shine, long before ever meeting Dr. Dre. "Dr. Dre is one of my closest friends I believe," says X. "I see him as a mentor, I see him as somebody who gives me solid advice, even when I don't want to hear it."
When asked to elaborate on said "solid advice," Xzibit laughs. "Case in point, I had the opportunity to go and do Magnum PI for CBS. It was a five-ten year commitment, I'd be living in Hawaii. I went to talk to [Dre] about it. And he's aware I have a cannabis company, Brass Knuckles....He sat me down, and was like, 'why? If you have the ability to stop tap dancing, you should.' I was like 'damn, you right.'"
For more wisdom from X, be sure to catch the full interview below. Also, should you be seeking more X to the Z, you can check out our exclusive interview right here.
