I loved writing fiction. I mean, once I found the character, or the characters, and knew who they were and knew their back-stories, it really - I mean, I went into my studio every day, thinking, 'What's gonna happen to Billy today?'
When Dre and I started making the 'Straight Outta Compton' record, every day on our way to the studio, we would listen to the 'It Takes A Nation' album.
I look at my paintings for a very long time before letting them out of my studio. I like to get on the treadmill and look around at all of my paintings while I exercise. I try to stare them down to make them reveal their weaknesses. If they reveal weaknesses, they get repainted.
When I record music I like to be in one place and kind of have a base to keep going back to.
When a piece is done, I mix it before going on to any other piece.
I still like to keep tapes of the few minutes before the final take, things that happen before the session. Maybe it's superstitious, but I believe if I had done things differently - if I had walked around the studio or gone out - it wouldn't have turned out that way.
Big Pop songs are born of inspiration and spontaneity. The question becomes how do you create spontaneity when you're going into the studio five days a week?
When Ando arrives in the studio, he picks up his pen even before he gets a cup of tea, and he stays seated until the very last train at night. He hardly eats, just nibbles at little balls of rice at his desk.
I'm not one for walking the beaches humming a melody. I love the discipline of sitting in the studio, writing and listening. That is my domain.
I'm not a studio rat. I do find sitting around playing the same song 12 times kind of tedious. I like to get in and get out.
I had this perfect situation where my studio was a three-minute walk away, and every day I would go to the studio. If I had an idea, I could work on it at the highest level possible.
I'll take a shot of vodka if I want it to be raspy... I tell whoever's in the studio to get boiling hot water, like super boiling, that they're afraid to give it to me. I put it exactly on the back of my tongue to shock my body. That cleans it up.
I get up at seven for the make-up, Rita Hayworth at six, Joan Crawford and Bette Davis at five. I don’t want to know the time when I’ll have to come to the studio even earlier.
I have mugs of hot water every morning because the studio is cold, and also because it makes my throat sound clearer.
Sometimes I get ideas for lyrics in anyplace, but I work a lot in the studio. So I collect little bits of lyrics. I go through the box of lyrics I have and see if something fits.
Most days, we don't get to the 'SNL' studio until noon. On Monday, we pitch the host, and that's our shortest, lightest day. Tuesday is our longest day - some people don't leave until Wednesday night. It's just a long, long day.
We live in a bubble sometimes, and you can get out of touch with your fans. You go to the studio, you come home. But coming to Comic-Con is a real opportunity to connect with the people that made your show happen and are responsible for its continued success. It's really humbling.
I wanna go in the studio and just go back to the same amps and stuff I'm so comfortable with the sound of. Which I think is important to stay original.
