Nardwuar Interviews Flying Lotus About Family Connections And Dr. Dre [YouTube Video]

Flying Lotus, aka Steven Ellison, is one of the hottest producers in hip hop and experimental electronic music. He's also a tremendously talented instrumentalist and raps under the name Captain Murphy. While in Vancouver, he was interviewed by one of the best interviewers in the music world, Nardwuar. Watch the official YouTube video above.

Flying Lotus' grandma, Marilyn McLeod, was a songwriter who wrote "I Get High (On Your Memory)" originally sung by Freda Payne... or was it? The song was on Freda Payne's 1977 album Stares and Whispers, but Lotus reveals that his grandma thought someone else might have been the actual singer on the track. Another gift is "The First Night" by Monica which features a sample of "Love Hangover" by Diana Ross - another song co-writen by Marilyn McLeod. The song has also widely sampled by the likes of Bone Thugz N Harmony, Stylez P, and more.

The second gift is another family-related record, John Coltrane's Live In Seattle recorded in 1965. Coltrane married Flying Lotus' aunt, Alice Coltrane (née McLeod). They also talk about a Flying Lotus collaborator, Thundercat, whose dad, Ronald Bruner, drummed for Diana Ross among many others. This ties into a Suicidal Tendencies punk record gift, which features Thundercat on bass and has a picture of him rocking out on the back cover.

A lesser known musician and family member of Flying Lotus is Ernie Farrow, which ties into the gift of a Yusef Lateef's Live at Pep's record featuring "Uncle Ernie" on bass. Flying Lotus is blown away by the gift and this is when he starts to kind of lose it - in a very charming, funny way.

Nardwuar says "you're into the '90s era Death Row, but what about '80s era Death Row?" which results into The World Class Wreckin' Crew's "Juice" single featuring a young Dr. Dre in his first group. The album cover says Kru-Cut Records is the label, and Death Row didn't really exist yet, but you get the idea. When Nardwuar tells FlyLo that LA Weekly reported Dr. Dre was watching his Coachella set from the side of the stage, he freaks out.

One of the most interesting connections might be to Leigh McCloskey, an artist who was once an actor on the hit show Dallas. FlyLo talks about him as "one of the most inspiring artists that I've ever met." and "this crazy painter, philosopher guy who lives out in Malibu."

Completely unrelated to music, and completely something you'd expect from Narduwar's incredible research skills, they discuss Lacey Duvalle, a porn star who went to high school with Flying Lotus.

For Flying Lotus' latest music, news, and tour dates, check out his Zumic artist page.

Source: NardwuarServiette YouTube