Mullage has got an origin story that’s probably never graced a hip-hop and R&B act. Braelon “B Town” McMullen and Marquez “B Boi” Hutchinson, who both hail from Atlanta, Georgia, were doing their thing as solo acts before shipping off to the Navy where they served for four years. But it wasn’t until they were in the Navy that they found one another and began to perform together. Even after they came back from the Navy, they hadn’t yet begun their career as Mullage, soon taking the advice of friends to band together and try to make it as a duo.
Mullage officially formed back in December 2008, when B Boi and B Town signed a deal with From The Ground Up Records, under which they’re currently recording their debut album The Element of Versatility. Though they’re only a third done with recording, they’ve already generated a nice buzz for themselves with the eclectic pre-album mixtape Elevators (download here), which saw the pair teaming up with heavy hitters like Wyclef Jean, T.I., Juvenile and a host of others. Before their album drops next year, Mullage hopped on the phone with Showing Out to discuss when they decided to join forces as Mullage, why their debut won’t feature that many guest stars, how they work together in the studio and what else we can expect from them in the near future.
You’re both from Atlanta, but you didn’t join forces until you were both in the Navy. When did you realize you were both from the same area?
B Town: I think we realized… Well, we actually knew that we were from the same area once we started doing music together, when it wasn’t officially a group. We’ve actually been doing music together for like four years, but we didn’t officially become a group until December of last year. We found out then, but we were still both doing our own thing in the town. We both had our own solo careers and B Boi was working on his solo album, and I just came on halfway through and I was on half of his album, and we were introduced to each other by mutual friends. Doing music was his dream as well. So he brought us to the same label and we just started from there and began to do music throughout the four years, but we made it official December of last year.
What was the moment when you decided to really pursue a career as Mullage?
B Boi: It happened over a matter of time. We were doing music together and it was just the type of music we made and the people we had around us. They was the ones that really pushed us into doing it, you know? They listened to the music and they often told us that we should form a group, and like you said, both of us were headed in our own directions. But over time, music brought us back together and December 2008 was when it became official. And being that we were on our own career paths, we decided it would be better if we worked together going forth and taking off from there.
Let’s talk about the Elevators mixtape. How long did it take for this to come together?
B Town: Off and on, I would say probably eight months during our spare time. During that time, we were working on our album - and still are - so it can come out at the top of next year. We just tried to make everything concept-based, so we wanted to see how we could mix it and match people with our own story.
What’s your recording process like? Is there one person that takes the creative reigns?
B Town: It’s usually a collaboration, and with a producer as well. We write a lot of things on the spot, we don’t receive tracks and ride around with them for a week. Everything is within session, so it may take 4FIVE minutes or 12 hours. It all depends on the vibe. But everything is definitely on the spot. We just try to think outside the box.
You have some heavy hitters on this mixtape. Was it tough getting people to contribute?
B Boi: I wouldn’t really say so. We don’t thrive off of features. We look at we got on a song and decide if we’ve filled every void needed, and so be it. But as far as features are concerned on the pre-album, they were all through friends of ours, whether it be from the label or from a personal standpoint. We wanted to make sure that every feature that you heard on the album was needed, not so much wanted. At the end of the day, we felt like we put this project together pretty good based off what kind of music we did.
You’re currently working on the debut, right? How far are you into recording?
B Town: We’re currently working on it, and we’re about a third of the way done. The tracks we already have recorded, as well as the storyline and what we’re trying to do with the album, I’d say we’re around 33%.
How does the album take the mixtape sound to the next level?
B Town: It’s a bigger sound. The songs are a lot more structured. We’re really targeting what we want people to get from us. That’s just our experiences, from just being in the Navy for four years. We had the opportunity to see a lot of things that a lot of people don’t, especially from the perspective of music. So we’ll definitely be doing that and continuing to make relatable music, just on a bigger scale.
As with your mixtape, I’m sure some people that don’t know who you are will be drawn in by the big names. Do you have big guest features planned for the album?
B Boi: We do, but only if it’s needed. As a new artist, it’s definitely easy to get overshadowed with big names on your record. And then when that happens, you don’t get the proper respect and what you feel what you deserve, so when you’re new, you’ve got to prove yourself. If it’s needed, then it’ll definitely be on there.
Do you have a name for the album already?
B Boi: Yeah, The Element of Versatility.
Who came up with the title?
B Town: It came from us doing basically what we want to do. We don’t like to be put in a box as far as music. We do different genres of music. We sing, rap and write as well. So it’ll be a combination of all those things.
How do you usually decide when you’re going to rap or sing on a track?
B Boi: It all depends on the vibe of the song and who we’re trying to reach with the song. So if we’re listening to a song and it’s about women, we know that women are more susceptible to a dude singing to her. It just depends on the vibe of the track and what it calls for at the time. We’re never going to do this many raps and this many singing tracks. It’s just whatever the song calls for in the studio at the time.
So now that you have an idea of when you want the album to come out, when are we going to start seeing videos and the whole promo machine kicking in?
B Town: We have two singles that we’re going to release off the album. “Never Loved You” on the rhythmic side, and we got another one on the urban side called “Grown Man.” Both lanes at the same time, kind of like how Outkast did with one of their latest projects. We feel like it’s needed in the market space to show your versatility and just make you relevant to people all ages, colors, creeds, all of that.
What else can we expect from you before the album drops?
B Town: Well the second single that we’re releasing off the album is also on the pre-album, “Grown Man.” But check us out at www.myspace.com/mullage and on Twitter at www.twitter.com/mullage. We also have a foundation Walk a Mile in My Shoes where we’ll be raising over 10,000 pairs of shoes for the needy as well as troupes overseas.
B Boi: We also have another mixtape dropping in February with DJ Ill Will and DJ Rock Star titled This is For the Radio.
