Trinidad James celebrated the 10-year anniversary of his certified platinum single “All Gold Everything” at MJQ Concourse on Oct. 30. The single also led to songwriting credits on Bruno Mars‘ Diamond single “Uptown Funk.”
After performing two shows on back-to-back shows on different stages in the Atlanta nightclub, James spoke with rolling out about the song’s impact.
How has your life changed in the past decade?
That’s a very vague question, but the best answer I can give you is I think I’m just a better overall person. I already was very confident in the man that I was. before music. I think music just gave me knowledge of understanding how the world works, how the fantasy world works. Like I know how the real world works, and I come from the real world, but now I understand the world [as it] exists within all of it. Like I just said, I understand both worlds a lot better. And I feel perfect. I feel like a version of perfection, but it’s just all knowledge.
You had T.I., Jeeezy and 2 Chainz hop on the remix. Now, who would be your three dream features on the song?
Lil Uzi, Beyoncé and Drake.
What is the impact you think “All Gold Everything” had on hip-hop and Black culture?
I think I’m just a prophet. I’m just doing the Lord’s work. “All Gold Everything,” if you really just sit and read it is nothing but a spiritual hymn. I’m just telling you what’s going on in the culture ten years ago. If you really look at 2012, everything that I said, is happening in every club … in every street, I’m not saying something that just relates to me. I’m saying something that’s common to our culture. I don’t f— with no f— n—–, nobody does. I’m not saying anything that you never heard before, it’s just a lot of people are not confident enough to say it at the time. I think it’s just a spiritual experience. When you make songs with the right intentions, you get great results. That’s the best way to put it, because I didn’t have any like, rule book or any mentors.
What would you tell the 2012 version of yourself?
Keep putting that s— on. Keep putting it on. Everything in life has failed but my outfits. Anything else, I can always bounce back, but if my outfits stay on point, like my image. If you look at these last ten years, the only thing that’s changed is people. Corporate cares more about the image of our culture than the actual music coming out of it. If you make this thing about the image, I just don’t see myself as not being a part of the conversation. Because your favorite favorites like me for all the right reasons. How can you be somebody of something I’ve been doing way longer? Before this music s—, I was a stylist.
