Benji., the versatile Pittsburgh-based producer, singer, and songwriter, also known as a member of Spillage Village, seems to effortlessly navigate through hip-hop and R&B. His influence spans some of our favorite music of the decade, from producing tracks on JID's "The Forever Story" to touring alongside EARTHGANG. Beyond his collaborative work, Benji. continues to expand his music with solo releases, such as his latest project, Love Gun 2. His music has vibrant soulfulness and beautiful songwriting. Get to know Benji. below:

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First off, congrats on Love Gun 2. Take me through the process of this project and how it came together. How did it expand on the first one?

This was a much more natural process for me. I got to really be hands on. I didn’t necessarily produce every song, but I had my hands on it, whether I was playing bass or not. I was just being very musical about it, and using my greatest strength with my musicality and instrumentation. Being able to utilize the musicians or producers that I’ve come to know over the years, and being able to utilize them in this capacity – taking kind of like a Quincy Jones role with writing some ideas and music and being able to delegate responsibility. On the first Love Gun, they were songs I had written for years, and I was like “Yeah, this sounds great together.” This one was like real craftsmanship. 

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The other thing I noticed while listening to the project is that you are very well versed in all styles of music. I can’t classify a genre. There are rock aspects, funk aspects, and R&B. What would you say was the inspiration behind the project? 

I remember listening back to N.E.R.D. when I was growing up and how they would kind of fuse a lot of stuff together like punk-rock and hip-hop. Pharrell was just a mad genius. I think also just my background growing up with such a musically inclined family, playing in churches as a child, but also being exposed to jazz, especially being from Pittsburgh. It is a very big jazz city. It is also just my love for noise. Growing up, I loved rock music because it was just loud. It felt good. It was like a release. I am huge on Foo Fighters and KISS as well. They were one of my guilty pleasure bands as a kid. I just love music. I felt like as I was getting older and getting better as a musician and a producer, my capabilities were starting to take shape. I remember early in my career, I tried some stuff that I didn’t execute well, but it always felt like I could do it. It just needed work or another person, but overall everything that I have been exposed to and my inspirations took shape on making this project. 

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That expands into my next question. Growing up in the church, growing up listening to rock, being a musician, and being able to play bass. How has that helped you stand out? You sound different with this project. Your music is very unique.

It is hard not to compare when making music. For me, it is just knowing and being very comfortable with what I do and how I do it. I allow it to essentially be the voice in the vehicle of what I am trying to write or get across. I am exposed to so much music, and I love it because there is so much greatness out there that can easily trigger inspiration. It is easy to get caught up in trying to sound like somebody else because of that. You want to try that sound and see where you can fit in or where you can have some type of thumbprint, and I struggled with that a lot because there is so much good music. From a creator standpoint, do we really want to reinvent the wheel or do we want to build a better car on top of it? As I am getting older I wouldn’t say I am dialing it back, but just seeing it out for what it is has allowed my music to stand out a little bit more. Now it is just like, “What is required?” as opposed to, “What can we do?” I remember when Rick Rubin was working on Yeezus back in the day, Kanye would come up with all of these crazy ideas and Rick Rubin would be like, "Take this away. Take that away.” It is so much easier to strip away these ideas than it is to add something that is unnecessary or that doesn’t exist. 

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Was there a moment on this project where it kind of clicked of finding that balance of doing something different, but also stripping it back?

Yeah, I think with songs like “Message,” “Keep Coming Back,” and “Howling At The Moon,” those are very unique soundscapes. Nothing new, but very unique for my style of music. I really cherish Christo for being right there to help me not do too much but also encourage me to try this and that. I first produced “Howling At The Moon,” myself, and then I sent it to Christo, and he came back with new drums that everybody hears. It blew my mind because the collaboration aspect of it is his mind and my mind. His vision and my vision seeing something which to me is what makes the record so special. He saw something completely different with the same information. I was just in the car losing my mind. I think the collaborative aspect of this whole project allowed me to tighten up on the balance. Songs like “Told You So,” “Be Mine,” and “Beautiful Song,” were recorded in New Orleans with five or six guys in the studio. Everybody was playing their part, we were jamming, and seeing what felt good.

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You mentioned Christo. Expand on what it is like working with him and having him executive produce the project? 

It was really cool for me. We have grown up together, we have played all of the same sports, went to the same schools, dropped out, and pursued our passions in the same way. This was cool for me because he had full authority. Where he is at in his career and where I am at, it is almost like, “Why haven’t we done this before?” He is just a mad scientist for one. He is also an incredible ambassador for music. He is a quiet assassin of sorts. 

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You being from Pittsburgh, talk about what that city means to you and how you want to be an inspiration in the city?

It is a slow cooking city. You get one here and you get one there. It is always bubbling. I feel proud that I have been able to carry it out this long and there is so much potential. Hopefully with all of the things that I have been able to do, I can just keep inspiring people to keep trying because it is a city so ripe with talent on all levels. 

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Speaking of your come up, Spillage Village has been incredible. How did that come together for you?

JID and EARTHGANG all went to college together which is where it originated and then 6LACK and Mereba came along after that. I think before I got there in 2020, they had about four projects. My familiarity with them was through Christo because he was already working with JID and EARTHGANG earlier in their careers. I was hip to them for a while and even had one of their old merch t-shirts just lying around. In 2020, I had just finished tour with EARTHGANG — my first national tour. I just finished opening for them. I got the invite to come down to Atlanta and help work on the new album. Then COVID happened and shut everything down. It was probably one of the biggest springboards of my career by just being trapped in the house working on music with them. I didn’t even know I joined the group until I saw the album cover and saw my face on it. Then there was a tweet from Zeke that said I was the newest member of Spillage Village. That is how I found out, and then I was added to the group chat like five minutes later. I was just eating lunch, and I was scrolling, and I saw the cover and was like, “Wait, that looks like me.” 

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Speaking of going on tour with EARTHGANG. One, what was that experience like but two, how did being on the road either change or make you adapt to how you make music?

When we started that tour in 2019, I didn’t really know what to expect. I had done a ton of local shows to that point. I think I did like eight cities up to that point with my band. The next step was a national tour. The first part of it was this introductory moment for me where I am the first person people see. Usually, the opener is not that good or not what you came to see and you’re not really paying attention. With me going out there and doing my thing, I instantly had people’s attention. Whether it is Salt Lake City or Eugene Oregon, they were chanting my name and this was pre Spillage Village. It was crazy because I was the new guy. It opened my eyes to how many more things are possible. From that tour, being like, “I need to tighten up on things. I need to get back in shape. I need to work on breath control.” Night after night you get to practice and rehearse. That tour did so much for me and my career and opened the door to what being an artist is all about. On top of that, I got to play bass for Earthgang on two tours. Seeing both sides of the production and opening for an artist. I wouldn't trade that experience for the world.

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How would you say it bleeds into recording? When you made Love Gun 2, were you like, “Oh, maybe I could arrange this song differently because it will sound better live?”

A million percent. I think the way I approach music and making music has to translate to the show because that is where that full circle moment comes. I am always thinking about the show when I am writing. There is always going to be a presence of live music with the songs themselves, whether it is just an actual bass line or some drums or whatever the case may be. I want people to listen to my songs and want to hear them live. I get a few comments a day saying, “I want to hear the extended version of “Keep Coming Back,” or “Be Mine” because of the instrumentation. That has always been intentional for me. 

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What song are you most excited to perform live?

All of them. For me personally, “Keep Coming Back” is going to probably be my absolute favorite. It was just a lot of fun to make. There was a lot of energy and a lot of love put into it. There is such a release of emotion that I think is going to be fitting for a lot of people to give that back to me on the stage, and I will give it right back. I think that will be a cool moment. 

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You also produced on “The Forever Story,” by JID. What was that moment like producing one of his best songs ever, “Kodi Blu 31? What is it like working with JID?

It is funny how that song came together. I was living with my brother in Atlanta at the time and he played the beat. It didn’t have a bass line on it at all. Also, I don’t know if you know this, but I wrote a whole song to it before it was “Kodi Blu 31.” The next day, I asked my brother if I could play a bass over it, and I got an idea immediately. The next day, JID wrote a song, and I was like “I gotta be quicker than that.” It was so great. I knew it would be a great song, and it is incredible. We went to Raleigh, North Carolina to finish it up. That is where I did the ending part. Working with him is fun because you don’t know what he is thinking at all. You have the freedom to try some stuff and see what catches his ear. He is a genius as well. The way he can flip is crazy. You have to be sharp. That is for sure. It sharpens your tools and makes you the best you can possibly be. I also produced “Better Days.” That song wasn’t supposed to be on the album. Just being in the studio working and just trying different stuff, he made a whole song to it. Right before release, I got word we had to throw it on the album because “2007” didn’t get cleared. 

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How does being around all of these creative minds inspire you to keep expanding on your sound?

It is very inspirational. I don’t really view myself as a rapper, but I also don’t really view myself as a singer per se. I am just capable of a lot. It is just about making sure what is being done is done the right way. Being close to artists such as JID and EARTHGANG and everyone else I have been around. Even artists that I look up to like Mk.gee or Dijon. It is like a bunch of self help books because you want to be better. There is a whole bunch of music that inspires me to keep expanding and not being stuck in a box that we call R&B or whatever. The most important part is just being myself, and I know it’ll translate.

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I agree, and I think it goes back to what we were talking about wanting to be on the cutting edge of something. I think you being yourself will naturally put you on the cutting edge of something.

There are eight billion people on the planet. Nobody is the same so if I am just myself, it makes all the difference. There are so many people that would support you if you’re just yourself, and that is what I think has helped me a lot. Just standing out and continuing to make waves and making music I know I’m capable of making that I know people will enjoy because it is me making it and not trying to fit in this box or me trying to replicate anything. 

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How do you want to inspire other people and how do you want people to take in your music? 

I think it is like a journal. These are like journal entries. It is me in the truest and rawest form. Whenever I am able to put pen to pad to mic to Spotify, it is something to digest. I don’t think stories are meant to be taken literally all of the time. When we are talking about ourselves and what we feel, I think there are things to champion.