Peso Pluma says he learned how to speak English with the help of some of the biggest names in hip-hop.
The Mexican rapper, 25, made an appearance on Complex’s 360 with Speedy while promoting his latest album, ÉXODO, which arrived last Thursday and features collaborations with Cardi B, Quavo, Rich the Kid, Anitta, Ryan Castro, and more.
According to MySanAntonio, Pluma, born Hassan Emilio Kabande Laija, was born in Jalisco, Mexico in 1999 and mostly raised in Guadalajara. He moved with his family to San Antonio, Texas and learned English while living in the U.S. for junior high and high school.
However, the Grammy winner says his best English teachers were Kanye West, Kendrick Lamar, and Drake.
“When I was in the U.S., I wasn't able to have a real conversation with someone, you know?” Pluma told Speedy Morman at the 9:35 mark in the video up top. “I had this goal to learn English and I didn't know how to do it. Music was very special for me to learn English, because that's the way that I learned.”
“I didn't learn through any books, through any lessons, [or] any teacher. I learned through music. And that specific slang that is used in hip-hop and rap…those are words that you don't learn in any book.”
Elsewhere in the interview, Pluma also talked about meeting Travis Scott, 33—whom he calls “one of his biggest inspirations”—for the first time in Miami last year.
“That was the only time that I got to say hi to him. It was in Miami and I mean, he's one of my biggest inspirations, and just having a talk with him,” Pluma said.
“I try to learn things [from] whoever I talked to and especially those kinds of artists that are worldwide. I just try to learn new things from them when they speak and when they talk to me. I’m really glad that he likes my music as well, as I like his music for sure.”
When asked if a collaboration could happen, Pluma merely said “maybe” with a smile. Musically speaking, he hasn’t determined what direction a La Flame link-up would go. Whether he jumps on a more American hip-hop vibe or gets Scott to rap over a corrido tumbado, Pluma says he wants to feel out the vibes first.
“That's the way that I've been working all my career,” he said. “I just don't force things. I just don't like to go direct to the collaboration. I just wanna feel people. I just wanna vibe with people, and try to have that chemistry first.”
Also on 360 with Speedy, El Doble P detailed the time he met another one of his musical heroes, Jay-Z, 54, at the 2024 Grammy Awards.
“It was kind of a moment because when I saw him it was like, ‘Probably it would be nice to say hi to him,’” Pluma said. “I just had this feeling that I had to go to him…I [stood] up and went to him and it went good.”
“I was surprised because I didn't—I didn't even imagine that Jay-Z knew one of my songs,” he added.
Despite not knowing what to say at first, Pluma says he congratulated Jay-Z after accepting the Dr. Dre Global Impact Award. Hov also had some kind words for the Mexican superstar in return.
“He was like, ‘Keep doing what you're doing. Congratulations too.’ And I left,” Pluma recalled. “He was drinking out of his Grammy. That’s boss. ... I just admire him and respect him a lot. He's one of my biggest inspirations too, and the way that he did things with hip-hop and rap and taking all these new artists to pop out."
He added, “Doing what he's doing with Roc-A-Fella, what he did with Roc-A-Fella Records and what he's doing in fashion and in every aspect, like, he's just a businessman, you know? And I really admire that and I really look up to him, and I wanna be like him one day.”
It seems like the “Ella Baila Sola” singer isn’t wasting any time in following in Jay's footsteps. “I'm just starting to do my own label, it's called Double P Records, and I'm very proud of what I'm doing [by] helping new artists and putting them on the map,” he noted.
