Polo G Just Wants Peace of Mind

Polo G's success in rap came fast but his road to riches didn’t come without some bumps along the way.

The 25-year-old Chicago rapper showed that he had the talent to take the game by storm when he first emerged onto the music scene in 2019. His debut studio album, Die a Legend, came laced with songs like “Pop Out” and “Finer Things” and debuted at No. 6 on the Billboard Hot 200 charts. He followed that with The Goat a year later which debuted at No. 2, and Hall of Fame the year after that in 2021 which gave him his first No. 1 album. All three albums have gone double platinum. But now it’s been three years since the release of Hall of Fame. And rap fans can be finicky and impatient. Can Hood Poet continue his platinum streak with Hood Poet? Polo G seems ready to find out.

“Music, especially today, is more of ‘What have you done for me lately?’ kind of thing,” Polo G told Complex. “You have to be in these people’s faces and always have to remind them. With so much time that has gone by, I feel like for the people who forgot or for the people who think I’m not who I once was, it’s time to show them what I’m really about.”

Hood Poet features Polo’s latest journal entries put to wax as the Chicago artist vents about addiction, street violation, and the other things he’s gone through in his life. He raps through his struggles with drug addiction on “Detox,” and later honors the loved ones he’s lost to the streets on “Angels in The Sky.” But Hood Poet isn’t only filled with Polo’s trials and tribulations. The album reaches a different octave on tracks like “We Uh Shoot” where Polo trades bars with fellow Chicago rapper Lil Durk or “Bad Kids” where he flows in and out of the pocket with GloRilla. While Hood Poet is similar to Polo’s other albums in how it balances somber melodic tracks with upbeat club songs, the rapper has become more precise with his bars in the years since Hall of Fame, and that growth can be heard throughout the project. He also impressively holds his own with Future on “Survival of the Fittest,” a slick track that pairs braggadocious bars with a disarming piano instrumental.

When talking about working with Future, Polo is reminded of how effortlessly he puts verses together in the booth, a skill that reminded him of another legendary Chicago rapper. “[Future] did [the verses] so fast, that was probably one of the craziest processes that I’ve ever seen from another artist, between him and Juice WRLD,” he said. “It seemed like he was writing it in his head, stepping back and listening to the beat for a little while, then he went up and did the song in like 10 minutes.”

Even with these impressive verses and features, the stakes have never been higher for Polo G. After coming out the gate so hot, the long break and lack of output might have taken their toll on his relevance in the game. But at this point in his life and career, he’s not as concerned about the numbers anymore. Success to Polo is more centered around maintaining peace of mind.

“This shit gets hectic a lot of the times,” he said. “Just being able to have peace of mind and enjoy the fruits of my labor. I wouldn’t even say a personal milestone or career accolade. That’s not really what I’m primarily in this shit for. I really make music from my soul, so I get a lot of shit off my chest.”

We talked to Polo G about his latest studio album, Hood Poet, the state of Chicago rap, and why he feels like he still has more to prove in rap.

How would you describe the journey to reach this point of finally releasing Hood Poet?
There were a lot of bumps in the road. There was a lot of shit that transpired leading up to this moment, but I kept my head up and just worked all the way through it. Me being the perfectionist that I am, I tried to make this feel like my best piece of work. It’s been three years since I dropped an album, so I wanted to make sure that this was something that could stick with the people.

How long have you been working on this album?
I’ve been working on this album since 2021.

What have you learned about yourself during this time spent working on this album?
It’s more like things that I had to learn throughout this process, like patience, seeing things through, and not panicking. Feeling like everything is going wrong, and in a lot of those situations you just have to learn to be calm.

Why would you describe Hood Poet as a “Music documentary?”
Because it’s talking about my life and a lot of pivotal moments of my life. And these [moments] date way back, from before rap when I first started. It’s definitely a mixture of some head-bangers in there too.

Where did you record most of this?
Damn near the whole thing was recorded in L.A. I recorded a few songs in New York, too. I really was moving around because I recorded in Miami, too, but most of it was in L.A. I’ve been living out there for six years, so most of my recordings is there. I plan on recording my next project in Chicago. I feel like there ain’t no place like home. I’ve seen what type of product I can create moving back and forth between L.A. and Chicago, but I want to get one [album] just fully there and create every song there because I feel like I get a different type of energy when I’m back there. The energy just different compared to being around palm trees.

You talked to Gillie and Wallo about being forced to take this three year break between albums, and how you feel like you still need to prove yourself to your fans again. Why do you feel that way?
Music, especially today, is more of “What have you done for me lately?” kind of thing. You have to be in these people’s faces and always have to remind them. With so much time that has gone by, I feel like for the people who forgot or for the people who think I’m not who I once was, it’s time to show them what I’m really about.

Do you feel the restlessness in fans' comments that have been continuously asking for new music?
It’s definitely something that encourages me and helps me push forward to make sure I put something out for my fans. I’m probably one of the few artists that have a deep connection with my fanbase. I’ve dropped certain songs specifically for them just because they asked for them. I’m really in-tune with my fanbase.

What’s your favorite track on the album right now?
Probably my intro because it’s a different approach I took compared to my other intros. I [also] really like the songs with me and Hunxho, we meshed well on that track. And I like “Thorns” a lot, the fans always ask me for that song because they got a snippet from Southside. He produced a lot of the songs on the album.

How intentional have you been curating the visuals for this album, especially since you’re describing it as a “Music documentary?”
For almost every video I shoot, I always link up with the cameraman and tell them where my ideas are. I always have a vision for how I want the message to be relayed, so I always try to make sure it lines up with how I want it.

Have you ever thought about directing music videos or getting into filmmaking?
I wouldn’t want to be the hands-on director, but I definitely want to be a part of film, I want to get into acting. I’ve just been embracing the art from every aspect and giving it my all. When you’re putting out a video, you want it to be the best version of it. I just try to put my best foot forward. I’m a big 2Pac fan, so I see the route he took and it makes me think like, “Damn, could I act though forreal?” Especially if I take a role similar to something I’ve seen before. Something that would be second nature to me.

What would your ideal first role be?
I’d [want to be in] a Power-type show or BMF or some shit like that. The Chi, the hood shows. The shit would be easy for me to be in.

You linked up with Future again on “Survival of the Fittest.” What was that session like?
The songs that we made, one that’s been out and this one, we did them in the same session. [Future] did them so fast, that was probably one of the craziest processes that I’ve ever seen from another artist, between him and Juice WRLD. It seemed like he was writing it in his head, stepping back and listening to the beat for a little while, then he went up and did the song in like 10 minutes.

How would Juice WRLD record?
Juice WRLD can [record a] whole song in 5 minutes, probably say he don’t like that, and do another version. He different. He like an alien or something. I’ve seen him record a song for a movie soundtrack, I think it was Sonic. He was freestyling it, but the shit was so raw that I could listen to this song on the regular and it’s about Sonic. He was one of a kind.

How do you listen to music? Do you make a lot of playlists? Do you listen to albums all the way through often or just pick specific songs to playback?
Listening to albums is like a new thing for me. Before I was deep into rap, I could skim through somebody's album, and if I only liked three songs, that’s a good album to me. I never used to listen to it through the actual sequence, that’s something that I just learned to start doing. Nowadays I’d listen to somebody's full project, but I barely listen to projects. I really be on YouTube so much, and I’ll just hear everybody's singles that they have coming out. I really moreso pay attention to underground artists and people on the rise because I feel like the hunger in them is different.

How would you describe the current state of Chicago rap?
On fire. We have a lot of new artists who’re turnt right now. I feel like we’re getting that feeling back from back then when you’d get a wave of artists. I feel like there hasn’t been a wave like this in like four or five years.

How much does a Polo G feature run for? I saw in an interview you did that you’ve negotiated one for $150,000 before.
It really ranges, it depends on if I fuck with you. A lot of times with up-and-coming artists I don’t even charge them for a feature if I just fuck with their music and I feel like they’re going somewhere, so it varies.

What’s the smartest thing you’ve ever done?
Buy a house because I feel like that’s one of the best investments that you could have. Us rappers, we go buy all this damn jewelry, and I’ve seen first hand my properties go up in value tremendously, so I feel like that’s the smartest investment I ever made.

How do you hope the album will be received?
It’s not really a hope thing. I know they’re going to fuck with it. I know they’re going to get what they need to get from it. They’re going to appreciate it because it’s good music. I didn’t take all this time working on it to just give them some bullshit. The type of artist I am, I don’t play when it comes to the quality of my music. I try to make sure I give them my best. I definitely feel like they’re going to fuck with it. I dug deep into a lot of these songs, and I feel like this is the best product I could have made. All of the shit that I went through, the time that it took, and feeling like I wanted to release it a few years ago, I feel like this is the perfect timing for it.

What does success look like for you at this point in your life and career? What do you want to be remembered for?
Success, for me, personally and career-wise, is just having the peace of mind. This shit gets hectic a lot of the times. Just being able to have peace of mind and enjoy the fruits of my labor. I wouldn’t even say a personal milestone or career accolade. That’s not really what I’m primarily in this shit for. I really make music from my soul, so I get a lot of shit off my chest. I just want to have a peace of mind over anything.