You might not recognize Dijon McFarlane’s face, but I bet you’ve heard his name. Both Drake and Future drop Dijon’s musical moniker, DJ Mustard, in their “Jumpman” verses. McFarland’s signature tag — “Mustard on the beat, hoe!” — might have found its way to your headphones, via any of the bangers the 25-year-old beatsmith has crafted for 2 Chainz, Big Sean, Tinashe, or Tyga. Since 2010, Mustard — together with fellow Los Angeles-native lyricists YG and Ty Dolla Sign — has been serving club-ready hits cut from his native California’s sonic history steeped in swaggering bounce. Now, Mustard is cooking up a whole new flavor.
Last week, Mustard stopped by Zane Lowe’s Beats 1 radio show on Apple Music to premiere his freshest track yet, “Whole Lotta Lovin’.” The single is a deep dive into dance territory — a daring departure for both Mustard and his vocal collaborator Travi$ Scott. Scott’s glitchy sing-speak, which first dripped syrupy slow on early mixtape efforts like “Skyfall,” has been injected with pure EDM energy. On Monday, Mustard released the track’s accompanying video, packed with surreal shots of Scott and a diverse crop of dancefloor ravers going dumb to Mustard’s build ups and breakdowns. But when the Houston rap maverick refreshes CeCe Peniston’s 92 club classic hook — “Finally I can move how I want/ And I need, pick a time and I’m zonin” — he might as well be talking about the track’s architect.
Not at all content to chill on the self described “rachet” style he’s engineered, “Whole Lotta Lovin” is Mustard at his most unpredictable — and that’s exactly how he likes it.
I heard that you got started DJing because your uncle let you spin at a family party when you were 11. Do you remember what you played?
I played so much stuff. LL Cool J had a song called “Headsprung” at the time; I probably played some Frankie Beverly and Maze, some Isley Brothers. I remember DJing on CDs, so I’m sure it was mostly what was in my uncle’s collection.
You, YG, and Ty Dolla Sign really came up together and created a new kind of California sound, but you also worked with lots of Atlanta rappers early in your career. Do you think regional sounds still exist in hip-hop?
I think they still exist for sure, but I’m not looking to make any specific sound. Right now, I want to do everything. The song I just released is me, but it’s a new twist on what I always do. I don’t want to be put in any box, I don’t want people to say ‘Oh, he can’t do a dance song, a pop song, a rock song.’ I want to be free to make what I want and I’m hoping I can break the barriers with this. It’s like, ‘Here’s a black dude coming in the dance world and doing something good, something tasteful.’ This wasn’t corny, this is something people can really relate to; it’s a worldly song. So if I can come with this, I shouldn’t be labeled with location — or even as an urban producer — anymore. I want people to say ‘oh, you never know what he’s gonna come with.’ Because when you say ‘Travis Scott and DJ Mustard,’ nobody could have thought what that was supposed to sound like.
So how did “Whole Lotta Lovin'” come to be?
I worked on the song for months. When Travis was working on his album, he brought the song to me and asked me to work on it. At the time, it was me and Metro [Boomin’] and we did a beat to it, but it wasn’t the feel that Travis wanted, so it never made the album. I kept sitting on the record because I really liked it, so I tried to give it to Kid Ink. It’s not that people didn’t like it, but nobody was budging on it. So I went back to the studio and I kept trying to make it right. Once I got it where I wanted it, I went back to Travis and said I wanted to use it as a single.
Is EDM just the start? Should we expect to hear more diverse sounds from you in the future?
You should expect everything. This coming album is not the regular Mustard. It’s not so much dance, but we’re going to tap into everything. I love music, so I want to try making all types of it. I’m doing whatever feels good.
When you premiered the track on Beats 1 the other day, you said you’d like to start bringing in people to help engineer challenging aspects like piano parts. Are there any super unexpected people you’d like to work with?
I’m most excited by working with up and coming people. It’s not that I’m not interested in working with established artists, but right now, I’m focused on people who are hungry — who are coming with brand new ideas. I can’t think of everything myself — nobody can. I don’t care if it’s the biggest producer in the world, if you think they make all the beats singlehandedly, it’s just not true. So I want young, new, fresh talent — people who were like me before I had money, before I had nothing to do but just make beats and come up with all different types of ideas. That’s who I want to work with.
You have so, so many hits under your belt and you’re only 25! Metro Boomin is 22 and Mike Will is like 26. Is it something about this age — or generation — that drives you all to create such new sounds?
As I said before, it’s about how hungry you are, but a lot of people don’t get that it wasn’t singlehanded. I didn’t singlehandedly do what I did by myself; I had YG, I had Ty. Metro had Future, Mike Will had Future and Gucci. That played a big role in our careers, but we took from that and ran with it by working with other artists. Metro’s super on the right path, he just has to keep going. Same for me, same for Mike. Everyone keeps doing new stuff and being successful.
What are you most looking forward to in 2016?
I didn’t have a bad year last year, but I was just wasn’t really working as hard; lots of friends coming in and out, lots of bullshit. I was just trying to get everything together and focus, so now, it’s more about getting geared up.
DJ Mustard’s Pin Trill collaboration (featuring a bottle of mustard, a beet, and a garden hoe — the legend) launches today at noon. Check it out here!
Credits
Text Emily Manning
Photography Eric Chakeen