Redman knows fans are waiting on the long-gestating Muddy Waters 2. The New Jersey rap legend has been referencing the album for years and he recently gave an update on the status of the project, which he first announced as far back as 2010.
Like pretty much everyone, Reggie Noble has been adjusting to post-COVID routines. As such, Muddy Waters 2 has been delayed because of the pandemic's affect on the industry, but also because of Redman's perfectionism.
“You have to understand that I’m a self-contained artist," Reggie told HipHopDX. "That means I engineer everything right here in my house that I’m talking from. I engineer, I write the music and I mix in my house. What I learned from Def Jam — because I’m a Def Jam baby — I learned all my tutelage on how to put out music through Def Jam."
Muddy Waters 2 is the planned sequel to Redman's highly-acclaimed 1996 album Muddy Waters. He spoke about the album a decade ago as a planned project with his longtime production comrade, Erick Sermon.
“I’ma do a Muddy Waters 2 and take it back, [which I’ll release] next year,” Redman said back in 2010. “[If] y’all want that ’90s feel back again, check for Muddy Waters 2 next year, I’ll bring that to you.”
But things have obviously shifted over time. Nonetheless, it sounds like Muddy Waters 2 is still happening. Red acknowledges that he'd mentioned two years earlier that the album would drop that year, but likes being able to operate at his own speed.
“The only thing now that’s missing is me having a date and me rushing when they want me to put it out," he explained. "I’m able to move on my own time. Last time I talked to you, I thought I was ready, but I wasn’t. A couple of months ago, I knew I was ready to put the album out, but COVID hit. I’m like, ‘I want to be able to be out there to promote the album, not sit from a couch doing interviews.'”
*HEADER CREDIT: Redman performs onstage during the Summertime in the LBC music festival on July 7, 2018 in Long Beach, California. (Photo by Scott Dudelson/Getty Images)