Dealer Authenticated: An Interview with YL, Papo2oo4, and Subjxct5

The Tri-State trio speaks to POW about the way their records are forward-thinking yet steeped in history.

Art by DJ Short

A Knicks championship, an influx of international pandemonium for the World Cup, the Mandate of Heaven activated by Mayor Zohran Mamdani: summer in New York City and its Tri-State sister cities in Jersey and Connecticut has a golden aura. Beneath the sweltering heat and begotten ticker tape spinning in the jaws of streetsweepers, hip-hop’s ancestral Mecca is also the center of indie rap music. Alongside the soul-scouring avant-garde of Backwoodz Studioz and the deranged soundclashes 1C members old and new have conjured up sits New Jersey’s Subjxct5 and Papo2oo4 and the city’s YL.

The trio vaulted themselves into East Coast hip-hop’s hallowed strata by releasing defining albums with one another. Despite Subjxct5 producing both records, each would be crafted in diametric sonic opposition. YL’s Only Ones Taxin’ synthesized every rap classic heard blaring out car windows once the temps hit the high 80’s without breaking a sweat. Meanwhile Papo’s husky hollers fell in infinite layers across Papoholic Vol. 1, a pseudo-Trapoholics mixtape channeling the harebrained calamities of a Wile E. Coyote caper.

When played side-by-side, you hear the tranche of shared experiences that makes them a natural grouping. References to forgotten 00’s hoopers like Steve Francis and Jeff Hornaceck, an abundance of Cash Money influence that many New Yorkers will suppress from their memories, swearing it never hit their corner of the map; punchlines that would make Lloyd Banks blush and shouts to local legends whose legacies live on through rips of DJ Clue mixtapes—all the little details you had to live through to understand.

Now in their early 30s, YL and Papo have lived enough to know what works best for themselves. The early 00’s, the era where they first hopped off the porch to hoop in the parks and hone their raps, may be the aesthetic trend of today but every reference in their raps comes from memory not research. They’ve seen the world shift from their stoops, and have made careers as independent rappers and globetrotting performers off an authentic understanding of their region’s sought after swagger.

Enter Triple Double, the trio’s new 22-track odyssey blending the sacred texts of East Coast elitism and wavy summertime sonnets. There’s smoked out loops fit for Styles P freestyles (“Check Out”), glimmering wavepools erupted by 2Pac samples (“Ambitionz”), shoutouts to triple double machines Nikola Jokic and Derick Queen, stank face funk that could wake the whole block (“Walk In”), and speedy drill adjacent party records Ice Spice should be begging to restart her career with (“Pigalle”).

The afternoon before a show in Chicago alongside frequent collaborators Starker and the Pastelle Records crew, I was able to corral the trio for a Facetime interview about the process of putting together Triple Double, the rappers they mold themselves from and mentally compete against, and staying authentic in a time where their natural style is being pillaged by internet hypebeasts.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

How did you guys all come to meet each other?

Papo: Sub and YL linked first in like 2020. Pandemic hustlers, the only niggas working.

YL: Yeah Sub pulled up one day and was like, “You’d fuck with my homie Papo” and the next time I saw him he just pulled up with him.

When did you start putting Triple Double together?

YL: It was after a show we did in Paris. I remember there was just this crazy energy, and I swear Pap came off stage and was like, “Yeah It’s time to do the tape.” Just off the adrenaline. They were fucking with us so heavy out there and I saw the vision.

Pap, what was the sign for you?

Papo: The night before we actually just went out to some cool event, and I was like “Damn I should have been performing here” because everyone was like “Yooo what are you doing in here” and they were fucking with me. They were even more surprised to see YL because y’know they’ve seen me before they know I be out there. They were hitting me with the [fake French accent] “YL is here too!” [laughs].

Then that next day we did 4 studio sessions in one day. Lowkey that’s how it all started.

YL: All the songs we did in Paris became the building blocks for the project.

What were those first songs?

Papo: “Sweet Stuff,” “Pigalle,” “Paris.”

And who thought up the name? It’s so fitting just because of how heavy you’ve all been with the sports references.

Papo: It came from thinking he’s triple R, I’m double 0 4, throw it together you get Triple Double.

YL: Yeah it came mad quick.

Papo: I’d had it in mind for a while really.

Subjxct does a lot on here but how did you get connected with guys like Laron and Feardorian?

Papo: To be honest, I wanted to get a Feardorian joint. We been tapped in for a while but I never saw a reason to get a beat from him. Then one day I saw him post, “Yo any artist who wanna work I got beats for everybody.”

YL: Nah literally. ‘Cause he had sent me one while we were in Europe, but when we got back we just thought it made sense. He’s fire and fucked with both of us.

Papo: Roland Jones we met in Paris.

YL: Nah, Barcelona.

Papo: Wait, yeah, yeah. He’s big on internet vaporwave, DJ Smokey-type shit.

YL: That Laron joint just came from a session with him and Subjxct. They cooked that up together.

Papo: Laron’s an extended member.

Yeah I’ve seen y’all work with him and Lord Unknown a ton, I figured that was just a homie/family connection.

Subjxct: Lord Unknown my tag team partner for real on the beats.

For Subjxct, when you see these guys putting a project together are you then tailoring stuff for them or do they just get free choice of whatever you have?

Subjxct: 50/50. We’ll all be in the studio cooking and boom they’ll hope on a beat. Sometimes they’ll hear what I have and just want to jump on it too. Depending on the mood for real.

Because you guys work so closely with Subjxct, do you have a different process working with him versus someone else?

YL: It’s just comfortable. I already know the process, it’s just like kicking it with your homie types shit.

Papo: He really just be making beats in the background.

YL: Literally. We’ll be chatting and then like Subjxct’s made three joints. He’s a guy that cooks up everywhere. In L.A. he was going crazy, we did like 4 joints out there. He’s cooking in Uber rides.

Has doing all these shows changed how you approach songs?

Papo: A little, not really.

YL: It’s not something we focused on. We just try to do us and talk about the shit we do. Sometimes we rap about the shows, like it bleeds in but we just do us.

It’s all that slice-of-life, specific POV of how you guys see the world.

YL: I feel that. I think me and Papo both appreciate the small shit.

[We had spoken the morning after The Hand Of OG Game, where the Knicks completed the largest single game comeback win in the history of the NBA Finals to push NY to a 3-1 lead.]

How are you guys feeling off the Knicks win last night? Are you guys alive?

YL: Bro. Last night was wild stressful.

Subjxct: I’m a Celtics fan, I ain’t stressed about shit!

Papo: It’s cool to see, the energy is back on our side. I feel the world has been hating on NY for a minute.

Pap, having your logo be a play on the old New Jersey Nets logo, are you more a Nets or Knicks fan?

Papo: I like both to be honest, but I don’t like the Brooklyn Nets. I’ve lived in New York and Jersey forever so I like both teams.

The Brooklyn Nets have a bad vibe. I get it.

Papo: New York and New Jersey really just the same place but people can’t get over the petty little differences. We all the same.

I see the little differences now being up here, like Jersey folk seem more quiet.

Papo: From Boston to like, Philly is still not that big. We really all just one. Way I see it, from like DC to Boston, we’re all just one kind of people. It’s all Northern East Coast type of people.

YL, How was it like growing up in Chelsea within the city?

YL: It was just cool, it’s just a place forever changing. I’ve seen mad businesses come and go but it’s home, I fuck with it still. It’s right in proximity to everything I need. I wish there was more Spanish food but it’s good.

You guys have been touring together a bunch recently in the states and internationally. What’s been your favorite spot that you’ve performed?

YL: Japan is crazy. Barcelona is insane.

Papo: Outside of America. Florida was cool though.

Subjxct: Portland! That’s my personal favorite.

Papo: Portland is lowkey it for me and Sub. They rock with us over there.

What is it about Portland?

Papo: Smoked so much weed. Plus, they got Nike, they got everything up there. That’s the swish town. They relate to us. They got cultured white folks up in that Pacific Northwest. They really fuck with rap, all those poor, hood white folks. They really about it though.

Pap, when did you first start rapping? I know I was late getting in at Papo On P.E.D.’s because you had so much before that, but when did you see this as something to take seriously?

Papo: By myself, like 2020. I was in a group before that started in like 2015-2016. I stopped being with them around the Pandemic, I met Subjxct and we just started rocking. So yeah like 10 years now.

Pandemic really felt like the turning point for all of your careers, what do you think it was that allowed things to start moving for you?

Papo: Really it was the videos. I didn’t use my pandemic bread to buy Casamigos or dumb shit. I was shooting music videos. Subjxct got a studio mid-pandemic in New York too so we just were recording every day. I got a Pitchfork article mid Pandemic too and I didn’t even know about it for a minute. They don’t tag you or anything when they do that so for like two weeks I was getting hella followers not knowing why. But once I saw it I was like “Oh this is what they like from me? Bet.” So I started catering to what they like from me.

Did it feel like a big difference, going from making stuff for yourself to making more of what you thought people wanted?

Papo: I was on some GothMoney-type shit before. I was always rapping, but I’d go places and people would be like “Why don’t you rap like an East Coast rapper?” cause I was living in LA at that time. I’d have some songs like that, and they’d like them, but it felt easy to me. I liked being creative and I felt there was a limit to “boom bap” and loops. It felt mad simple. Which is why I never wanted to do it. We from Jersey, you want to talk rapping rapping, everyone can do that. Who makes it sound cool is a whole different story but I think anyone can hop on a loop. But Blogs liked it so might as well try it out.

What about you, YL, when did you find and start feeling comfortable in your sound?

YL: I’m like Pap in that I’ve been putting out music on the internet mad long. Every project felt like I was doing something that was the most me in the moment, or the most updated version of me.

It feels like you’ve really honed in on a pocket now. Just in going from putting out five to seven projects a year, trying a ton of connected but distinct styles, to one or 2twofocused ones that mesh them all together.

YL: Yeah, that’s what I’m trying to do more now. Slow it down a bit and get my execution proper. I try to do it right, and not have to play catch up once a project is done. Just doing what I think is the right way. I’m always trying to figure out if it’s better to just dump music because I have so much. I can do that every day if I wanted. But how shit is presented means a lot, and how important you make it to people matters.

Which is something I love about this tape so much. It felt bigger and more intentional. You two coming together finally for a full length, Subjxct taking the DJ hosting role which was such a fun part of Papoholic Vol. 1. Which, Subjxct, what made you want to start putting vocals down in that way?

Subjxct: I think it started around when I was fucking with Wiki. We’d do shows and I’d do that live and one day we just gave it a shot on a proper song. For certain projects it doesn’t make sense for more than one or two songs. But on this me and Pap were going back and forth and he was telling me to do my shit on it.

You guys are all under the same management umbrella now as well too, how did that come together?

YL: Like a year or so now? He booked me and Papo for a show and then…

Papo: Yeah we didn’t have anyone we were working with like that.

YL: He was mad enthusiastic, which means something too.

You guys have just been free agents this whole time? That’s impressive considering how much you’ve all done.

YL: Yeah. I hate when people say, “Yo you need a manager,” because they don’t realize how hard it is to find someone down to be persistent for you and do things that you just don’t want to do. Finding someone that self driven and motivated is hard to come across.

After this show, what other shows do you have coming?

YL: We about to be in Japan. Starker is coming out with us too.

Pap, you’ve also been dropping a ton of music videos, is there another full project coming this year?

Papo: I gotta keep up with RX Papi man! He’s my only competition right now. That’s the only nigga that’s really got it. He just makes music and lives life, it’s natural. There’s no jig behind him or what we do. Ain’t no political weird shit we just rap. I’m on that same time, just live my life, rap, and if you like it or you don’t fuck it.

Have there been challenges touring so much or being around each other so much? It feels like there’s always a show, a session, or something going on with you guys considering how much you put out together?

Papo: It might look like we are always together but not really.

YL: Yeah when we’re off tour we’re back home. We for sure kick it every now and then but it’s cool it looks like that.

Papo: We do try to link at least once a week though I’d say. Figure out what’s up with these shows, see what Caillin has to say, all that. We gotta brainstorm and get the ball rolling.

Sub, who are some other rappers you’d love to lock in with for a full project?

Subjxct: Boldy James. I fuck with ANKHLEJOHN heavy. Shit, even Larry June for real.

Papo: Man we need Subjxct to get with Wiz Khalifa! That’s the greatest rapper of all time.

Subjxct: Facts, Curren$y too.

Papo: Niggas talking about Drake and Kendrick but nobody talk about Taylor Gang. We really Taylors here bro. I’ll put my life on it that Wiz got a better discography than both. Man he made “It’s been a loooooon time”

Subjxct: BG my favorite old head I need that project too.

It’s funny y’all say Curren$y and Wiz because when I first got into YL those are two people he really reminded me of. Were those guys you looked up to?

YL: Both of them and like Dom Kennedy. All those dudes made me want to start rapping. All the mixtapes they were dropping every month I was big on. I was just a straight up Blog Era dude though. Kid Cudi all that.

You guys have always sounded very genuine in your appreciation for old school cultural stuff, sports, clothing, etc. and it’s never felt like nostalgia bait. How does it feel seeing the masses try to adopt that same style or pull from that same time early-00s period?

Papo: It’s kind of annoying because my shit’s been 2oo4 since 2009. We’ve been trying to save and document an era that nobody thought about or thought was corny for a long time. People only like it now because it’s cringey, but I appreciated it because that’s the era I really lived in. These people don’t understand or they do it in a corny way. They make Pharrell-type beats calling it Y2K vibes and it makes my shit look bad. This is the sound I’ve been pushing for a minute and now the whole industry is on it. I’m not getting love for it, and that’s OK cause I don’t want to be a star. But it’s time to switch it up, we on other Y2K sounds they don’t value. The internet’s perspective is fucked up. People will say Dilla is better than Kanye or DOOM is better than Jadakiss and it’s like, nah, I was really there that wasn’t the case man.

There for sure feels like a lot of people picking and choosing what to remember. Like they’ll hook on to Pharrell, but don’t care to shout Swizz Beatz who was also massive in that time.

Subjxct: And Swizz is like my biggest inspiration!

Pap: Young Jeezy is one too! He came out like 2004.

Subjxct: That Swizz shit is a dying sound too. Walking to the store hearing mutherfuckers blast Ruff Ryders joints, it was really our shit.

YL, I feel you’re the most heavy on the fashion side, how do you feel seeing trends from that time pop off or get used by big companies?

YL: They’re all pulling from the same spots, just like the music. There’s a lot to pull from if you’re going for the Y2K stuff. Everything comes back around and gets repackaged. What was once regular day-to-day stuff is now a big trend. I really don’t pay attention anymore, I fell back from rocking football jerseys and that type of stuff because the people you’ll see out wearing the same stuff will make you feel corny. It don’t even feel like me no more. I’m just back to basics, back on Supreme.

With you guys being more solidified than ever, and these last few projects really doing well, do you have a more clear picture of what you’re striving for career wise?

Papo: Larry June, Curren$y and Wiz Khalifa. Just live comfortably and rap about my life.

YL: Yeah, that.

Papo: I don’t want to fabricate shit. You could be cool just drinking orange juice, smoking weed, driving cars, and fucking hoes. I’m not trying to make a political statement.

YL: Just stay on the road and keep touring.

Papo: We trying to be capitalists. We gotta be realistic and get this bread.

Where are you trying to tour that you haven’t done yet?

In unison: Australia.

Papo: America is burnt out bro. Europe and the rest of the world appreciates us. We gotta do Japan and Australia.

Subjxct: They fucking love rap out there.

YL: Facts I get messages all the time they love us.

Subjxct: I’m trying to play Russia too, not gonna lie.

Papo: We also about to hit Hawaii too!

Subjxct: Huh? Word? Yo this nigga just broke the greatest news in life I’m happy you got to hear that.

[Cailin (their manager) looks like he’s hearing this for the first time, too.]

YL: We sold one CD out there.

Papo: I put some money in the air so we can make some! Speak it into existence bro! I’m trynna be Wiz Khalifa. I need a song with Burner! People think he just a weed guy but he got tapes with Jacka. I’m a Bay Area rapper by heart. I’m about to have 1,000 albums too.