Killer Mike Keeps His Promise to BIG B And Guests on New Single “Pretend” After Collaborating on a Custom Motorcycle Build
Killer Mike Keeps His Promise to Big B And Guests on New Single “Pretend” After Collaborating on a Custom Motorcycle Build
Wellness Check, Big B’s First Album in Over a Decade Also Features G. Love, Common Kings, Merkules, and More
Listen to “Pretend” ft. Killer Mike HERE
In June 2022, 4x GRAMMY-Award-Winning hip-hop artist Killer Mike proclaimed “I look forward to giving you a verse” when he worked with motocross legend Carey Hart and eclectic “street culture nursery rhymes” artist Big B on a custom Indian motorcycle build. Two years later, Killer Mike has upheld his promise and appears as a featured artist on “Pretend,” the third single on Big B’s forthcoming album Wellness Check. “Pretend” is available today via Regime Music Group. Listen HERE.
Big B has worked with his best friend Carey Hart on bespoke Indian motorcycle builds since 2016. In June 2022, Hart and Big B worked with Killer Mike on a custom build as documented in a two-episode series via DUB Magazine. Big B flew out to Vegas to assess what Killer Mike was looking for and it was revealed that he has a “love for all things with big motors and wheels” with a Batman aesthetic. They viewed Killer Mike’s car collection ranging from a 1969 Firebird to 1972 to 2018 Hellcat and he wanted a “Robin to the ‘69 Firebird or ‘72 Buick’ in terms of look and feel of the car.
When Big B returned to the Hart Compound in Santa Barbara, California, he and Carey Hart consulted with one another and designed a custom bike with two-tone matte and gloss black, copper accents on the rims, custom speaker lids for loud audio, and red racing brakes. When they reunited with Killer Mike at Hoonigan Compound in Compton, California to unveil the custom creation with its menacing Batman look, he was ecstatic.
“My final words to Carey and Big B are thank you! Big B, I look forward to giving you a verse. Carey, I look forward to just hanging out more and learning more. I appreciate all the blood, sweat, and tears you put into the bike—the love is felt. I’m gonna take damn care of her and one day when I die, it will be in a Killer Mike hall of fame or something,” he boasted on his custom Indian motorcycle.
Fulfilling his promise of a verse, even after picking up 4 GRAMMYs at the 66th Annual GRAMMY Awards, Killer Mike delivered on “Pretend,” a retrospective of Big B’s life experiences inspired from youth to adulthood taking stock and embracing it all regardless of outcome. “It’s inspired by the early days of innocence and wonder as a kid imagining the time is set on repeat so that it never ends,” says Big B. Killer Mike assertively comes in after the breakdown section elevating the song to new heights on his verse speaking to simpatico kinship energy signing off with a toast “to living life ‘cause we don’t really know what happens after.”
Wellness Check is Big B’s first album under the Big B moniker in over a decade. In addition to custom motorcycle builds, he also serves as Carey Hart’s right hand man in 501(c)(3) charity Good Ride and Las Vegas-based tattoo shop H&H Tattoos. After launching Americana-inspired outlaw country group The Felons Club, his musical endeavors shifted into a no-expectations retreat with songwriting duo TAVALANE (Johnny Baldaray and Jared Palazzolo) in Joshua Tree, California that spurred the rebirth of Big B.
With a full album’s worth of material, Big B decided Wellness Check was the perfect descriptor for his musical renewal after a decade-long hiatus from Big B albums. Adding on a layer of double entendre, in 2021 Mahoney had to go under the knife for a heart valve replacement surgery forcing him to face mortality head-on prompting a deeper introspection about his health and preciousness of time. This experience is akin to the literal concept of a wellness check where officials check in on the welfare and safety of an individual’s well-being. With Wellness Check, he reassures fans, friends, and family alike that he has conquered life’s trials and is more resilient than ever with fresh material mirroring this evolution.
“‘Wellness Check’ is essentially a loud shout that ‘I AM OK’ to the world that knows me as a recording artist,” proclaims Mahoney, “And for those who wrote me off, I am here again to say a few things and celebrate where I am now.”
In addition to Killer Mike, Wellness Check also features legendary & innovative blues artist G. Love, Orange County-based reggae-pop mainstays Common Kings, California ska royalty Jesse Wagner of The Aggrolites & Kip Wirtzfeld of The Debonaires, session guitarist Justin Derrico (Pink, Beyonce, Robin Thicke), and more.
Wellness Check will be available via Regime Music Group on July 26th. Pre-order the album & get exclusive merch bundles HERE.
TRACK LISTING
- Wellness Check Intro
- Time ft. DJ IZM of Bliss n Eso
- Sidecar ft. G. Love & Peachole
- Pretend ft. Killer Mike
- Loser ft. Johnny of Tavalane
- Broke AF ft. Common Kings
- Fallin
- Further
- Two Choice ft. Merkules
- Slow Down ft. Jesse Wagner of The Aggrolites & Kip Wirtzfield of The Debonaires
- Drugs & Alcohol ft. DJ Product
- Fuck You
- Shinjuku Hotel ft. Peachole
- Sparks ft. Jared of Tavalane
- F2TF ft. Justin Derrick
- Simple Song
