Heath McNease: Yep. Just a collection of songs I'd been working on. Four of them I actually wrote a week before the album recording happened. I was originally just going to do an EP.

Heath: I don't think I will ever really approach any of my acoustic material differently because the songs just happen so fast. They usually just spill out, because it's something that's been bottled up that I just didn't know how to express until the inspiration came for it.

Heath: With a song like that it was natural. On The Gun Show, I was more intentional about trying to merge them. I'd like to do an acoustic/hip hop record where it sounds a lot like "Come Prepared" or "Too Much Love" but has a lot of rapping. But I would only be doing it to try to make money off of a pop hit. haha. It doesn't push boundaries enough for me in terms of looking at it as a full-length rap album.

Heath: Oh he's a great guy, man. We've been homeys for about four years now. I actually turned Playdough and a lot of the homeys onto him years ago. He is just the nicest, most unassuming guy. Always working hard and always there to give you what you're looking for musically. Definitely comes from that Dilla and Madlib school of production while still making a lot of meat and potatoes rap too. Well-rounded guy who just continues to grow and progress.

Heath: Honestly, I hijacked his idea. haha! The truth is that he sent me and Playdough a folder full of Nintendo beats for a project he was planning on starting called Straight Outta Console. He wanted it to be a huge compilation album. I'd been dying to do a mixtape, so I just jumped at the chance and told him to just let me do all the creative writing and it could be a mixtape instead. He was immediately down and we got to work in the middle of March. It came together quickly. He is just as important to this project as I am. He was the heart and soul of it. I just took his amazing music and wrote stupid raps to it, which was liberating for me, because there's never been a time where I wasn't intimately involved in the music/beats/production of the album.

Heath: Oh man...Super Mario Bros. 3, Battle Toads, Doctor Jekyll & Mr. Hyde, Super Donkey Kong, Aliens, Krusty's Fun House, Bomberman, Tetris, Mike Tyson's Punchout, etc. Sooooo many.

Heath: I honestly don't play anything new, really. My all time favorite is The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past. I love Tecmo Bowl, Mario 3, Kung Fu, all of the games in the Mega Man series, Double Dribble, Castlevania, Metroid... dude, just so many.

Heath: For Beats' Sake did a Castlevania sample that has a really staggered rhythm that I turned into a song called "Chopstlevania." It was a blast because the pattern was just so fun and freaking original. Paperboy was a blast, because it's just such a ridiculous concept... and I love that game so much. "Tanuki" was absolutely meant to be. That's when I knew this project was gonna be a winner.

Heath: Me and Tom (For Beats' Sake) have already talked about doing multiple installments of this mixtape series where we just do more NES samples. Then do a [Super Nintendo] mixtape. Then maybe Sega one day. We'll see. This one's gotta move some units and generate some freakin' interest first, haha.

Heath: Fab Da Eclectic does the title beat, "Nintendo Thumb remix" with KJ-52. And Davey Rockit is doing all the scratches. He's one of my favorite DJ's and beatmakers. I'm blown away by the talent involved with this project.

Heath: KJ-52, Okwerdz (Grind Time), RedCloud, Fred B., Sev Statik, Sivion, Cas Metah, maybe more. I can't even remember haha.

Heath: Just the freedom of knowing it wasn't for a label. Knowing it wasn't gonna get picked apart by churchy entities. Knowing I could say the word "freakin'" and not worry about how it might be perceived. Knowing I could be silly and make "mama" jokes and just have a good time not editing myself, not trying to be philosophical or life-changing. Just trying to rap because I love rap. This is by far the most fun I've had rapping in years.

Heath: Bandcamp and Sphereofhiphop.com as well as a few blogs here and there. But Bandcamp is where I will really be pushing it. And I am pressing physical copies for the road.

Heath: Man, social media is great, but it has to be about more than that. If a person really cares, I think it's important to share that passion by physically talking with people. Emailing, texting, calling, sitting with them and showing them videos or having a listening party. Dude, just invite your friends over to play video games and have a listening party when the album drops. It's the perfect backdrop for a summer hangout. That's why I made it to release on July 4th.

Heath: Man, just thanks as always for the support. Come see me on the road so I can give you a hug in person and tell you guys how much you mean to me.

Heath McNease's new project, Straight Outta Console: The Nintendo Thumb Mixtape, releases July 4