A little smooth talk gets you far. That’s the mantra of Houston-based artist Baby Bash, who made his mark on the charts a few years back with his super-fly single, “Suga Suga” and has been following up ever since with equally flirty tracks like “Bubbalicious,” “Menage a Trois,” “Na Na (The Yummy Song),” and, well…you get the idea. Bash is generally more comfortable behind the boards—he’s written and produced hit records for R&B-pop singers like Frankie J and Paula DeAnda—but he didn’t mind giving himself a little shine the other day when we talked about his new album, Cyclone, which dropped this week and features the T-Pain assisted club banger of the same name as its first single. Here’s a taste:

SC: Your music gives off the vibe that you’re a pretty laidback guy. Is that a fair assessment?

BB: Yeah, I’m a laidback dude. I don’t have a big ego. I’m not trying to be Mr. Battle Rapper or Mr. Rapper of the Year. That’s not my thing. I’m too kicked back for that. Plus, I’m more of a songwriter than a rapper, you know what I mean? Everybody’s a rapper nowadays, but not everybody can write a hit. I write hooks and D sections and choruses. Rap is the last thing I worry about in a song.

SC: “Cyclone” is making its way up the charts right now. How did you end up working with Lil Jon and T-Pain on that track?

BB: I met Lil Jon backstage at a concert about a year ago—he’s a down-to-earth dude. He just came up to me and said, “Hey Bash, I like your style and I feel what you’re doing. You got a melodic flow. I got these crunk beats, and if you get this aggressive crunk beat and sprinkle your melodic flow on it, I think it’ll be a good sound.” And I did it. And T-Pain happened to be in the studio next door [while we were recording], so he came through, said he liked the song and jumped on it. He was a down-to-earth dude, too. We did it in about 30 minutes. It feels good for some of my peers, like Lil Jon and Akon and T-Pain, to understand what I’m doing, because they’re musical geniuses. So if they like what I’m doing, then I’m doing something right, and it don’t matter if the mainstream ain’t really understanding me all the way.
SC: Your album is dropping the week of Halloween…

BB: October 30. Put it in your trick or treat bags!

SC: …so what’s the best Halloween costume you ever had?

BB: Let me see here. The best Halloween costume I ever had was probably in 11th grade, when I was a ghetto Pee-wee Herman. I had the suit on, but I had stunner shades on too, and I was acting loopy. I have enough confidence in myself to be the butt of a joke, just to make other people laugh. It was funny.

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