Singer tells MTV News he was shocked that 'nothing negative' is being said about his solo project, Nostalgia, Ultra.
By Steven Roberts, with reporting by Matt Elias
Frank Ocean
Photo: MTV News
Over the weekend, photos leaked of the various members of Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All in the studio with some of music's finest. One photo featured the collective's main producers — de facto leader Tyler the Creator and one-half of MellowHype, Left Brain — working alongside the Neptunes. The other featured singer Frank Ocean working with Beyoncé.
Odd Future have taken the music industry by storm in recent weeks, thanks in large part to their rebellious and rambunctious antics. But the (relatively) lesser-known Ocean is making a name for himself outside the collective with the solo album Nostalgia, Ultra, released in February, which has been hailed for the crooner's thoughtfully refreshing take on love.
When MTV News caught up with Ocean, he said he was surprised by the positive feedback he's received.
"The first thing that was shocking to me — as a person that grew up with the Internet and knowing how vicious people can be, especially when they are anonymous — early on, there was no hate," Ocean marveled. "There was nothing negative."
Ocean said he found the lack of negative comments bizarre, even though he knew haters would come in time. Nostalgia, Ultra was a slow-burner, with only 50 to 75 downloads the first day, but it has since grown.
"Everything I was thinking about from the marketing prospective was as far as how to stoke the fire, because you don't expect a response, because who the f--- am I? I'm just another guy putting out another collection of music and telling you to download this."
He said the music was something he wanted to put out to get off his chest. He was also excited about the attention Odd Future, who are performing at the mtvU Woodie Awards on Wednesday night, were receiving.
"It's crazy in every way, and it's so well-deserved, because mother----ers are talented," he said proudly of his crew. "It's like you're in a gifted and talented class. You feel like the people around you are doing just great art and sh-- that's pushing limits."
As far as what he and Beyoncé were working on in the photo, Ocean chose not to say.
"We're definitely not going to talk about that," Ocean said. "I'll get in trouble."
What do you think of the hype surrounding Odd Future? Let us know in the comments!
The 2011 mtvU Woodie Awards will air live on MTV, MTV2 and mtvU tonight at midnight ET/PT from the South by Southwest Music Festival in Austin, Texas. For more information — and to vote for the winner of the "Breaking Woodie" award — check out Woodies.MTV.com.
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