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SAINt JHN tells HipHopDX that his fans are just catching up to his music and are showing they may be ready for the highly-anticipated 'Collection Two.'

Then, Collection Two full collection SAINt (@SAINtJHN) September 14, 2020 Because JHN had no plans on releasing an album due to the COVID-19 pandemic, While The World Was Burning is a perfect set-up to where JHN wants to take his listeners. The album came together organically with Kanye West, Lil Uzi Vert, 6LACK and more reaching out to JHN to make music. He explained the process of making While The World Was Burning showed him he can make something happen without even trying, and that fuels him even more to make Collection Two a classic. I always think 10 years into the future, so Ive been thinking my whole life, he said. Every step he takes in the industry has to be a smart one if he wants to achieve success and JHN feels hes doing exactly that since the moves hes made he planned years ago have gotten him this far. DX spoke more with SAINt JHN about Collection Two, While The World Was Burning, the importance of timing, having the upper hand over his peers and more. HipHopDX: You just got a Grammy nomination for Roses (Imanbek Remix). Do you feel pressure to make a record bigger than that? SAINt JHN: Im sure you heard my catalog already, so you dont even need an answer to that question. You can answer it for yourself. By dynamic, I make so many different types of music. If you could figure out what my best song is, Id pay you. But I bet you, you couldnt. Do you know? HipHopDX: To be honest with you, my favorite song of yours is 94 Bentley. SAINt JHN: See, I love that. Lets say 94 Bentley. You wouldnt go tell somebody thats the best song Ive ever made. Right? Youd probably struggle to figure out whatever the best is. You know Im not trying to best something I did five years ago. You got to imagine Ive already done that. The goal wasnt to beat Roses, the goal was to make sure you heard it. I dont got to do that twice. I did that once. HipHopDX: You didnt necessarily have to put out While The World Was Burning following the wild success you got off Roses. You could have gone to work on Collection Two which people have been waiting on for some time now. What made this the right decision for you to put out While The World Was Burning? SAINt JHN: Honestly, I didnt set it out with this intention, so Im not really sure I could take even credit for how or why it happened. Some of it was a little bit outside of me. Some of it was just the momentum of what was happening. Im in my head when Im saying that. You dont completely know what I mean. Ive set out on this path so long ago that even the things that I didnt intend on doing get accomplished. I had no intention of making a collection this year, but Ive been on the next year after year, after year, tour after tour, after tour. Even without trying, the momentum of going forward pushed me to a place without anybody making me do it. When the phones rang before me, Kanye called me and somebody called Uzi for me and 6LACK picked up the phone. So that was the momentum of all the energy Ive had without me trying to plainly establish that I wanted to make another collection this year. It kind of made itself, and I got out the way. HipHopDX: Does that make you feel like you have the upper hand over other artists? You did something without even trying and it came together, in your eyes, perfectly? SAINt JHN: Nah, you know what made me feel like I have that? I felt like I had the upper hand the entire time because I own my masters. I own my publishing and I own all of my rights related to touring and merchandising. I felt like I was ahead of the curve because I was doing great business from the start and that relates to what youre saying because thats what made me feel like I had the upper hand from the jump. Thats what makes me, and allows me to feel like theres zero pressure. I control and own my art. I own this space and the territory that I live in. That gave me an incredible amount of peace and comfort knowing that when I talked to my mom on the phone, shes talking to an entrepreneur thats an artist. As it relates to other artists from a taste and talent point of view, we all do something different. Im just that nigga. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Saint (@saintjhn) HipHopDX: Whats the most important thing you learned about yourself while making While The World Was Burning throughout quarantine? SAINt JHN: I learned something I already knew. I knew I was ready and I got to see that in real-time because I was ahead of the curve with every collection Ive made like the Ghetto Lennys Love Songs. I was ahead with Collection One. I was ahead, which is why it took Roses five years for it to catch on. I was hoping, advocating and angling to be on time at this point in my life in general. Not today, not yesterday, this general time period of my life, I just wanted to be on time. I got that. Im on time. Im watching the reaction in real-time. Im watching the ripple effect and the sandstorm. Im watching While the World Was Burning. Im watching my name go up the wa Read more