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If you’re lucky enough to attend one of Kid Cudi’s shows on his To The Moon Tour, than you probably saw him bring out King Chip to the stage. Formerly known as Chip Tha Ripper, a name he still goes by, the Cleveland, Ohio native is best known for his standout features on Kid Cudi’s smash hits “Just What I Am” and “Hyyerr,” both which hold a special place in Chip’s heart. The former boasts a whopping 72 million views on Youtube and counting, while the latter brings you into the exact vibe Cudi and Chip were in while recording. 

In fact, it was the moment Kid Cudi said he needed to smoke that King Chip entered the stage at Cudi’s sold-out Los Angeles show, bringing him a blunt like a good friend would.

Beyond his work with Cudi, King Chip stays locked in the studio, constantly creating and inspired by his surroundings. One thing about Chip: his voice is distinguishable, his lyrics are relatable, and he’s here to remind audiences all around the world to live their best life. 

Sheen Magazine spoke with King Chip during two days off in Los Angeles, at a beautiful studio in West Hollywood. Read below as we discuss how tour has been, why he changes his name, his new album Bonfire, forthcoming album Charles Worth, goals, and more!

How are you feeling? It’s a vibe here.

Oh yeah, definitely a vibe. I feel great. Blessed. We have two days off right now, then we go to Texas.

How’s tour been? 

Tour’s been wild, it’s been really good. It’s packed every night to the ceiling, it’s a lot of love. Nothing but love and high energy. 

How is it being the only guest on the tour? 

It’s pretty cool. The set list is strong, so he didn’t really need too many guest appearances. But the music that we have together is so powerful, I love coming out there. 

Do you like performing “Just What I Am” or “Hyyerr” better? 

I don’t know which one I like better, I love them both. “Just What I Am” is a party, I love “Just What I Am.” But “Hyyeer” is just… you can’t even compare them. They’re different.

Do you have a special memory from “Just What I Am”? 

Man, so many. We made the song in a studio out here in California. I almost scrapped the “neighbors knocking on the door.” I’m like “that’s corny, I’m not about to say that.” But they told me “nah, keep that.” I’m like “alright.”

How often are y’all smoking? 

Really when I’m eating or sleeping is when I’m not smoking. Other than that, I’m smoking all the time. Sometimes I take breaks though, because it’s good to take a break. 

How often do your breaks last? 

For like four hours. [laughs]

Why’d you change your name to King Chip?

Really, it was a time where there was a lot of transitions happening. I was moving to California, I remember I learned a bunch of stuff about my family. Then, Lebron James had left to go to Miami. That’s the homie.They’re like “yo King James left, but we still got King Chip!” Oh that sounds dope. It was popping up left and right with my fans. 

At that time, I just had my son. I was looking into my family, seeing who we were and the story that I’m told about myself about people who don’t know me. I’m like nah, let’s really see who I am. Came to find out that my family was precolonial, they were already here before. We didn’t come from Africa on a ship or nothing like that, we were American Indians. They were in the tribes and all types of stuff, so it made me respect America more. It made me respect myself more, so King Chip. 

But people still call you Chip Tha Ripper right?

Yeah! Now, I got two names. King Chip’s done a lot of good music, so has Chip Tha Ripper. They’re both me, it’s just names. It’s not like I’m a different character.

Do people get confused? 

Some people still haven’t figured it out. They have both artists and haven’t made the connection. Chip The Ripper is gonna make the music that’s fun. King Chip is gonna make the music that’s also fun, but informative. Something useful.

Talk about your new album, Bonfire, produced by Lex Luger right? 

Lex Luger produced it, I’m a fan of his work. We did a record before, years ago. We always stayed in contact. We got to talking one day like “we should do an album.” Next thing you know, he started feeding me music. We made an album real quick, took about six months. 

Why Bonfire?

It’s tribal. A bonfire is a celebration. Just the definition of it, that’s what I wanted to bring. I wanted to get rid of all the fear. All the things we can’t use, we put them in the fire and come together. It was a good time to rally together. Bonfire is not regulated, it’s the people coming together to organize to do this. It means something, so that’s what it’s all about.

What can we expect from your new album, Charles Worth? 

That’s me! My real name is Charles Worth. That’s a perfect example of why my next album is going to be called my real name, because it’s more about my story of who I am. I’ma be dropping about three to four singles leading up to the album. I got a few singles coming for sure. 

Are we gonna get a super vulnerable side or you? 

It’s gonna be everything. It’s definitely not going to have one sound, it’s going to have a lot. It’s going to be a trail mix. [laughs]

Any goals at this point of your career? 

My goal is to use the music and everything to get into something that I can do to give people that they can use. Like Garrett Morgan, he made the stoplight. He gave us something that we can use. I want to have something like a stoplight, that’s my goal. 

Anything else you want to let us know? 

Kingchip.com.