3 KEYS: Second Hand Accounts w/ Bloodmoney Perez & Messiah Musik
The ‘3 Keys’ series discusses intriguing albums, with three key pieces of commentary from the artists’ themselves!
One of the most powerful signs of a thriving artform is that people of all ages remain welcome, and can still contribute quality work. Alaskan veteran MC, Bloodmoney Perez, is one of many shining examples of this dynamic in hip-hop. With a career spanning multiple decades, Bloodmoney has re-inserted himself into the game over the past 5 years after taking a parental hiatus. It’s a common refrain to hear veteran rappers say, “this latest album is my best”, or, “I have never sounded better”. That being said, after listening to Second Hand Accounts, Bloodmoney Perez’s latest collaborative album with Messiah Musik, it’s hard not to agree.
1) [For both] The creation of Second Hand Accounts is the culmination of years of friendship and musical collaboration between the two of you. Could you detail how your relationship has developed over the years, and how that bond influences the music you make together?
BP: For me it was seeing Messiah Musik work with my dude Uncommon Nasa on NY Telephone. I was a huge fan of what he had done with Quelle Chris, and the tracks on Nasa’s album. That had me reach out to ask about collaborating, and Messiah being the person he is, listened to my music and then sent me a pack of about 22 beats. This was around 2015 that I got all of these. I was in a weird place with creating and wondering if I still had it in me to compete with this blog era and ever-growing need to have visibility and while I had songs started, I just had to pause where I was at. Messiah didn’t apply one ounce of pressure and let me sit with the beats I knew I’d use, which all eventually became Time is a Motherf*****. From there, seeing how well I sat in his grooves and how much it highlighted my style and tone, I knew it was his beats I needed to rhyme on. Messiah Musik had always been supportive and believed in what I did, and we just grew more aligned sonically and supportive as comrades over the course of the last 4 years. He’s my Alchemist.
MM: When I started getting credits/placements about 10 years back, Bloodmoney was one of the very first people to show love. I'm not sure if it was the Quelle record or Armand Hammer at the time of initial contact, but I'm sure I sent him some of the beats that didn’t get picked from those records. Frankly, it was both exciting and flattering for me; it felt like a sign that heads were starting to take notice. At the time BP ran the SYFFAL blog and was getting into some production, in addition to rhyming. One thing I recognized immediately once I started getting tracks back, was what a natural fit Bloodmoney’s voice was/is over my beats. So we commiserated over that, and then the initial batch ended up part of Time is a Motherf*****, BP’s 2018 album that I did about half the beats for. From there, it’s just been a steady incline...
As Messiah explained, Bloodmoney Perez sounds fantastic over this style of production. These heavily-layered and ear-grabbing beats could command all of the attention of the listener, if in the hands of a lesser MC. However, with Bloodmoney not only is he a technically strong MC, but his vocal delivery is a real force. Just as it was with Suede on the last ‘3 Keys’ piece on Metatron’s Cube, I have to stress that Bloodmoney’s voice is similarly a significant part of his appeal. The gruff commanding vocal presence makes everything he says sound important and prescient, cutting through the densest of Messiah Musik’s beats.
In both responses, you can see that there is clear love between these two artists. Second Hand Accounts fittingly sounds like it was crafted with real care and an attentive ear. You can hear the genesis of their creative connection on Time is a Motherf*****, but you can hear a progression in what both of them brought on this latest album, lyrically and musically.
Relationships are built on a foundation of mutual respect and trust. Messiah Musik and Bloodmoney Perez possess that in spades.
2) [For Messiah Musik] The production sounds very different from Trapdoor and Only Child. What was the sonic blueprint for Second Hand Accounts that you aimed to cultivate for Bloodmoney Perez specifically, and why did you feel this sound fit Bloodmoney so well?
MM: First off, thank you, because that for me is of the utmost importance {that each of these came out sounding unique}. Most people that I've worked with have gotten the shpiel from me that I think my sweet spot is holding down 1/4 - 1/3 of the production on a given record. So the prospect of making beats for the entirety of a full length (albeit x3) was intimidating, and I'm glad they all came out sounding different. Simply put, I just use my best judgement to send people beats I think are a good fit for them. Something I think is right up Bloodmoney's alley, may not be the right fit for Defcee or Nasa. Sometimes, the beats are undeniable and I send ‘em out on a first come first serve, or stock them away for some future use. But generally, I try to approach with some tailoring, and based on my prior work with BP, I like to think I know the certain qualities in the beats that are really going to make his vocals pop.
2021 was a massive year for Messiah Musik, so much so that it won him my “Producer of the Year” crown in the 2nd Annual RMPPs. A significant reason for this achievement were these full-length albums that he produced. Only Child feels the most left-field and abstract of the three, providing a new twist on qualities that Uncommon Nasa has built an entire career off of. Trapdoor was often serene and pretty, perfectly matching the tone of Defcee’s earnest introspection. Finally, with Second Hand Accounts, Messiah tailored this album to feel absolutely rugged.
Why this rugged sound fit Bloodmoney so well, is due to the fact that there is a palpable weariness and grit to Bloodmoney’s voice, and lyrical content. While other artists may shy away from certain topics, or approach difficult subjects with trepidation, Bloodmoney tackles everything with a directness that really makes an impact.
I appreciate how analog Second Hand Accounts sounds, which is a significant difference from Messiah’s previous full-length productions. A key credit goes to the sure hands of FilthyBroke Recordings on the mastering job. I found it particularly impressive how sound was layered on this album, where songs like “What I Became” and “Hades” feature dense blends of percussion, fat basslines, and jazz flourishes that all collide in a beautifully thick wall of sound, while still being intricately placed in the mix to parse individual sounds.
There is a wide array of sounds presented on this album that lead to some moments of beauty, like on “Ghost in the Lobby” and the closing track, while also presenting some beats that really knock your teeth in, like “Take It in Blood”, and “Samo”. Messiah’s production is dense, providing you with tons of ear candy to chew on as you replay this album.
3) [For Bloodmoney Perez] You have recently spoken publicly about this Messiah Musik collaborative album being potentially the last rap album of your career. I find this especially relevant to mention, given the subject matter of this album that felt very focused on imparting wisdom that you accumulated through your years on this Earth. If this was in fact your last fulsome installment of rapping, what is the lasting message or feeling that you wanted to give off with this ‘last hurrah’ of an album?
T: You know, at 44 going on 45, this is always a thought I have. Production has been incredibly satisfying (shoutout MIMZ) and I’ve had more and more folks reach out to me for beats. So I teeter on that line of “I’m too old to rhyme, and I’d rather provide the canvas for other poets” and, “you know what I’m at my finest and I got more to say” so… end of the day I don’t know. I just want to enjoy releasing art that draws shit from the deepest parts of me.
Bloodmoney’s rhymes feel almost philosophical in content and delivery… varnished with a weary and seasoned wisdom that is raw, making his thoughts sound the furthest thing from pretentious.
What comes through loud and clear on this album is that Bloodmoney has some things to get off his chest. I particularly appreciate this sense of gratitude that informs much of the perspectives that Bloodmoney presents on this LP. This gratitude feels like the central driver behind his current more mature worldview, as he so eloquently illustrates on “Rest 6”:
“I’m winning every morning that I’m starin’ at the sun in”
- Bloodmoney Perez, “Rest 6”
This positive and hopeful perspective is clearly informed by extremely trying times in Perez’s past, which he transparently delves into in many moments on Second Hand Accounts. Sometimes he reveals past mistakes and regrets of his, and other times he details traumatic experiences that really left a mark on him, and that really leave a mark on the listener. The most powerful moment for me was on “Ghost in the Lobby” where he delves into past guilts that he has been carrying with him for years. On this song he so poetically writes about how his Father’s departure impacted him:
“I left you for a reason, why you crying in your beard?/Use the pain as fuel, while I couldn’t see clear
Sorry for the canyons that formed, when I disappeared/Everything’s pre-ordained… feel it in the air”
- Bloodmoney Perez, “Ghost in the Lobby”
Ending this song in this manner absolutely took my breath away. After recounting a difficult loss, such as the loss of a parent, Bloodmoney capping off this thought with the notion that it was pre-destined… is heavy. As someone who lost their mother, this song, and that passage in particular, really took me somewhere.
However, Bloodmoney also leaves some room on Second Hand Accounts for some good ol’ fashioned grimy rap too, found on killer cuts like “Faces of Death”. This song also features an insanely vicious guest verse from Defcee, seeing the Chicago MC reach a new level of cold with one of the best verses of the year (check out my interview with Defcee here). The delivery from Defcee in this verse was on another planet, dropping killer line, after killer line.
“Why look over the metrics, when I can open dimensions?”
- Defcee, “Faces of Death”
Similarly to the production, Bloodmoney’s rapping performance on Second Hand Accounts is dense and poignant, giving you tons of reason to keep pressing play, over and over again. This LP provides everything you can ask for from a rap album. Great beats and rhymes that have a purpose.
If this truly is the final chapter for Bloodmoney Perez as a lyricist… he picked a great time to give us a wonderfully potent piece of himself.
Buy Second Hand Accounts here and stream below.
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