Akbar Khan
“Tour is like church,” Kenny Mason says. That’s a wild comparison for a rapper known for the blown-out chaos of his live shows (I was at his Camp Flog Gnaw 2024 set and it was absolutely insane) but the Atlanta rapper is insistent. He sees his mosh pits not as a violent jerking of bodies, but as a place of worship. He’s spotted fans holding iPads in the crowd like Bibles and assures me his pits are the safest in music. “No one ever gets hurt, ever,” he preaches in a calm and steady tone. I believe him immediately.
Mason isn’t the most religious rapper in the world but the process of making his new album BULLDAWG, was spiritual, he says. The 31-year-old grew up in Atlanta’s Zone 4, a pocket of the city with its own exit and "swag," separate from the greater A-town area. His dad played him a lot of Tupac growing up, specifically All Eyez on Me, a record he remembers as “dark and eerie” for a kid. On the flip side, Mason was exposed to gospel music from his grandmothers forcing him to go to church not once, but three times a week.
This balance of lightness and darkness in Mason’s life is heard across BULLDAWG. Mason speaks of love more than ever and injects his beats with gospel samples, but he also rocks off about the evils in the world with Dominic Fike and refers to JID as his evil twin on a dark link-up track “TEST ME.”
Akbar Khan
When Mason pulls up to the FADER office on a Wednesday afternoon, he immediately recognizes me from a brief interaction years prior, even recalling the exact time and place. He’s wearing the same chrome-winged dog necklace I saw him wearing back in 2024, which shows his appreciation for having constants in his life. A childhood of moving back and forth is what brought him to music: “I would always have a CD player [that] was always there, no matter where I went.”
Ahead, Mason talks about questioning his place in music, overcoming pain, and BULLDAWG being the most “him” project he’s made to date.
The FADER: Can you tell me about growing up in Atlanta?
KENNY MASON: Atlanta is broken up into six zones, and the zone I’m from is called Zone 4. The exit is kind of its own exit. So it’s like a part of Atlanta, but it’s its own thing. It’s got its own swag. And still to this day, it’s got its own swag.
What’s that swag like?
Man, it would be like discount malls or strip malls where people have all types of crazy designer stuff that they ain’t necessarily supposed to have. You’ll see people workin’ regular jobs — somebody at the car wash, the barbershop — lookin’ exactly like a rapper. I always thought that was cool.
Was music a big part of that childhood?
I used to be ridin’ around with my dad in Ben Hill. He listened to all types of music. He played Doggystyle, Snoop Dogg and All Eyez on Me by Tupac. When he played Tupac, his voice to me as a kid used to be so powerful that I used to be scared of him. Those old ‘90s rap albums sound very aggressive, almost eerie. I grew up to love it, but that definitely gave me my swag as far as the dark stuff.
When did you realize you wanted to make your own songs?
Probably when I was around 11 or 12. My grandmother passed and we had to move out of her house and bounce around with family a little bit. No matter where I went, I kept my songs on a CD player or an iPod. I realized through that personalization that I could do it, even if it was just to myself. By high school, my friends hyped me up to start showin’ them. Then once I found out girls liked it, it was over with.
Out of everything you’ve released since then, what do you think is the most "you" project?
I 100% feel like it’s BULLDAWG. That’s what it's all about: accepting and valuing your real identity. I had to discover who I really was to even make it. I had to lose people and be forced to be with myself. I asked myself: Am I just what I do? A lot of artists live in this bubble where you are just a consumed product. I didn't want to be like that because I wouldn't survive. This album saved my life, for real. It was a spiritual thing.
Akbar Khan
You mentioned it being a spiritual process. Growing up in Atlanta, was religion always a big part of your life?
Older Black people don’t play about church. I had to go at least three times a week: youth study, choir rehearsal, and the service. I’d be with my grandmother and aunties and they’d stay in church two or three hours after the end. That was bred in me. I’m not particularly religious, but I am spiritual. The influence of those Southern Black choirs is always gonna be in my music.
You’re talking more about love on this record, too. Is BULLDAWG Kenny a loverboy?
I guess, yeah. I’ve loved, and I think it’s a strong creative force. I’m the type of person where it’s hard for me to find somebody I like, but when I do, it’s intense. It’ll take over my whole world.
How did you and Dominic Fike link up for “HEY OPERATOR?”
Dom actually sent me that song a couple of years ago. I feel like what he’s talkin’ about is super relevant because the world feels heavy right now. There’s a lot of escapism in music, but being real about stuff is helpful. Dom is a crazy writer and he was gracious enough to let that be a part of my album.
You linked back up with JID for “TEST ME.” What’s that chemistry like?
That’s my brother. We’re dumb cool. He told me, “I got all these features for other people I gotta do, but I’m putting yours first because this song is so fire.” The song is very dark and evil, and me and him together — that’s our swag. Evil debauchery vibes.
The production on this album feels even more guitar-heavy. Who’s playing those parts?
This album was my first time actually playing guitar, or trying to. My friend Shane Moran, who was in Title Fight, is all over the album and he told me he taught himself. That’s the best way. I looked at my favorite guitar-based artists and realized they just have their own unique style. I didn't want formal training. I just want my own style and to get great at it.
You also worked with feardorian on “BOUNCER.” How did that connection happen?
Dorian is amazing. He’s brilliant and his musical knowledge in the crevices of the internet — where he goes and finds stuff — is crazy. Music is just pouring out of him. He’s a great spirit to be around. He flipped this crazy sample from an obscure band. It’s wild.
You have a line on the record: "Overcoming pain is different than surviving." What’s the distinction for you?
To survive something is just the bare minimum. It means you’re still alive, but the thing changed you forever. I don’t want anything to have that power over me. I want to overcome it. A smart dude once said you’re not really healed from something unless you can talk about it.
You said you’re "bringing rap and rock back” on “BOUNCE WIT ME.” How so?
It’s me bragging because I’m really good at rapping and I’m making it fun again. A lot of rappers act like they don't even like rapping. I like rapping, bro. I like trying. And I feel the same with rock music. There are certain spaces I am not in that I should be in — because I’m Black, to be honest. But the irony is that is a punk position to have. I’m wearing it on my sleeve.
