In an HipHopDx interview, Nipsey talks about getting back to his Independent grind after patiently waiting 2 years for the still pending release of his formal debut, South Central State of Mind. On Monday, December 20th, Nipsey’s new publicity team, Hoopla Media Group, arranged for one of the west coast’s most exciting new artists to break down his breaking of ties with major label home Epic Records to resume his independent hustle via All Money In Records. During his discussion with HipHopDX, Nip also revealed if he was, as it seems, taking a daring shot aimed at the head of one of his west coast forefathers, Dr. Dre, on the first leaked joint from The Marathon.

HipHopDX: I only asked about the label – their responsibility, or if they had any – because recently I spoke to legendary left coast producer Mike Mosley, and I guess he was choppin’ it up with you at the time, and he let it leak that you were about to go back to being independent.

Nipsey Hussle: Honestly, I was always independent before I signed to Epic Records. The way that Epic heard about me was thru our movement as All Money In: what we was doing in L.A. as far as mixtapes…as far as the touring we was doing just in our region. So when we got with Epic it was kinda like we started working together. But, just to keep it completely 100, I’m in the process of negotiating my release right now. And we just gonna go back to doing what we been doing, as far as an independent company and serving our region. But it wasn’t really no big fallout with the label or nothin’ like that, it’s just Epic went through internal changes: they fired the president, Amanda Ghost, after actually becoming a subsidiary of Columbia Records. Half of they staff is gonna be laid off or fired. And the original staff that brought me in the building, that shared the original vision of really what Nipsey Hussle was, they’re all gone. So, being fair, it ain’t really nobody in particular that we can point the blame on, it just kinda was like a dissolving of the core team that started on the project. So it serves both interests for us to just go back to what we was doing originally. I’ma walk away with all my masters; I’ma walk away unobligated, with my brand built. And it’s all love and respect for everybody at Epic. We took a chance together. It was a lot of money spent, a lot of success together, and it’s no hard feelings.

HipHopDX: I don’t wanna start off on a rugged note, but I gotta ask about the line from “Mr. Untouchable”:“High ‘til we die, so it’s muthafuck a Detox.” I just need to find out if that was intended to be a shot or not?

Nipsey Hussle: I mean, it ain’t a shot, ‘cause it doesn’t say f*** Dr. Dre. But, you know, “High ‘til we die, so it’s muthafuck a Detox.” …It ain’t nothin’ personal to Dre, it ain’t nothin’ personal against Detox, it’s just I’m on this All Money In shit… Niggas take it how they take it. I’m out here in these streets. I’m in L.A. I don’t see none of them people in L.A. I’m a real one out here. I don’t know about none of them other niggas… Like I said, it ain’t no direct f*** Dre because if it was then I woulda said f*** Dre. It was just me speaking my mind at that moment.

Basically I’m on some if I can’t get money wit’chu, it’s f*** you. It ain’t nothin’ personal. I ain’t never really reached out to Dre, or Dre ain’t never really reached out to me, so it ain’t a shot against him, it’s just, my focus is on what I’m doing now. I’m basically in a mindset of like, either you with me or you against me type s***. So, the niggas that’s with me, they on the right side, anybody else is in the line of fire. And when I shoot I’ma knock heads off.