Sam Gutterz’s sophomore EP, “Selling Beef 4 Clout,” dropped on September 7, 2024, and it’s already making waves. Written in late 2024 and early 2025, the project was recorded at multiple studios around his hometown, featuring instrumentals by BeatsbyCito and AnnoDomini. The title of the EP was inspired by the infamous Nicki Minaj-Megan Thee Stallion beef. Sam has always believed that industry beef is often a strategy to gain popularity and push records. However, he acknowledges the harsh reality that things can get real. “Nowadays, who doesn’t love a good drama?” he muses. Interestingly, while recording and promoting the project, the beef between Kendrick Lamar and Drake emerged, which Sam found to be a funny coincidence. The songs and their titles reflect real-life situations, with a deeper focus on putting your best foot forward when facing today’s challenges. Sam aims for his music to be relatable, drawing from real-life outcomes, consequences, experiences, and expectations. That’s the essence of “Selling Beef 4 Clout”—keeping it real.
Sam’s musical journey began when he was a 16-year-old exploring his creativity. He’s always been big on lyricism and conscious rap. From recording with a computer mic on his home computer to setting up his own home studio, and now recording at professional studios, the quality of his sound has evolved tenfold. “You’ll tell when listening to my old music from 10 years ago,” he says. Sam believes he’s developed a conscious mainstream sound and will continue to refine it as he progresses in his music career.
The message Sam hopes listeners take away from his music is that there’s more than what’s in front of you. “Not everything is laid out for the taking. You gotta get yours with effort and putting in the work,” he emphasizes.
One of the standout tracks on the new EP is “Haterz.” The choice of the instrumental was thanks to his sister’s husband, who referred him to Anno Domini’s Beat Package. Although Sam has written lyrics without an instrumental, he finds a unique vibe when writing to one, especially for this song. He wrote to Anno Domini’s “Mobsters” instrumental. The verses were inspired by a studio session his group, TwoZero1, had this past summer. One of the writers, Ralfi Polo, delivered a verse that left Sam astounded. Reflecting on that moment, Sam caught a stride in writing between the verse and hooks, creating seamlessly with the instrumental. After the recording, mixing, and mastering were completed, his engineer, Franke, congratulated him on laying down a dope song.
Sam’s biggest musical influences include Tupac, Wu-Tang Clan, AZ, Schoolboy Q, 50 Cent, and Jim Jones. These artists have shaped his sound, giving it a gritty, conscious, lyrical, mainstream vibe. An old-school hip-hop enthusiast with some appreciation for the new school, Sam is very picky with instrumental selection.One of the biggest challenges Sam Gutterz has faced in his music career is managing the budget for creating. If the budget were bigger, he could do more, but as a regular joe with a full-time job who creates for the love of it, it’s a costly engagement. However, he’s been able to overcome this challenge by being patient and keeping those paychecks coming.
There was a time when Sam used to smoke weed to get inspired, but he hasn’t smoked in 3-4 years. Nowadays, just living life inspires him—past experiences, day-to-day experiences, and future ambitions.
Success, to Sam, means changing his surroundings for the better, not leaving them but amplifying the current situation to a brighter outlook with the people who have supported him through the struggles. He wants to change the world, Chico, and everything in it. Impacting his audience positively—that’s what success looks like to Sam.
His creative process isn’t particularly exciting. He likes to sit in a quiet room, going through instrumentals until he hears the right sound. Once that’s selected, he reflects and pinpoints the subject matter he wants to write about. Once the opening line comes in, he’s cooking with grease. At the studio, during the recording session, he likes to catch up with the engineer for a bit, have a beer or two to set the tone.
Balancing staying true to his artistic vision while appealing to a wider audience involves being real with himself and realizing that his situation is relatable. He’s not the only one going through these experiences. For better or worse, there’s an audience that can relate.
Sam believes hip hop today lacks a progressive sound and the desire for more. People nowadays want to hear lyrics that take them away from reality. Women in hip hop often equate to “sex sells,” while men equate to “drugs and money.” He thinks we’re lacking self-progression and the promotion of standing for change in negative situations.
He handles criticism and feedback well. He loves criticism, but asks that it be constructive, not watered down, so he can build on it to become a better artist. Lately, he’s been receiving great feedback on his latest release, both through social media and in the streets.
His goals for the next few years include getting some funding and securing a management deal so he doesn’t have to depend solely on his pockets to pay for studio sessions or completing projects. Right now, it’s all him. If he can get some funding in the next few years, he’ll be able to create and promote much more than he currently can.
A memorable moment in his career was opening for R&B singer Dave Cirino in the heart of New York in the early 2010s, thanks to a plug his sister had. This was during the time he had his in-home studio setup and had a song done using the Juelz Santana “My Love” instrumental. It’s a funny time in his music journey as he wasn’t fully prepared for the task but got the job done. If he had that opportunity now, the feedback would’ve been grand.
His advice to aspiring hip hop artists is: don’t rush artistry. Be on your own time. Most times, a song isn’t done in just one session; it can take multiple sessions to get the right sound. Trust your ability to create and think outside the box. Be you.
Selling Beef 4 Clout on Spotify:
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