Hero to Kingmaker: Catching up with Tre Capital

Tre Capital is a day one supporter of Kick The Concrete. Back in 2018, he invited us to be part of the journey for his album, "Hero," which was an exploration of human connection and confidence in the craft. At the time, he fulfilled a dream of working with G.O.O.D. Music producer Anthony Kilhoffer and he opened a show for the legendary Jay Electronica.

In his story, "Hero vs. Human," he shared how artists like Kendrick Lamar inspired him creatively and the passing of his little brother Xavier motivated him to live with purpose. He offered the invitation to fans to join in the movement.

"Being a Hero is just being the best human you can be on all levels. That means you have compassion for others, that means you have nobility," he said. "You’re not a know-it-all. You’re someone that really understands that all of this shit doesn’t have an instruction manual. Nobody has the perfect way of doing this. So everybody needs to pitch in their ideas, their best content, their best music, their best morals. Everything needs to just be, in my honest opinion, not for the interest of personal gain, but for the interest of doing what’s right. That’s difficult for people when you’re trying to be successful, when you’re trying to be someone that is appreciative and pushing shit even more. But at the end of the day, we need more people to be looking out for each other."

Now, Tre is preparing for one of the biggest moments of his career yet. He is featured on his father's album, "Kingmaker." This is Xzibit's first solo album since 2012's "Napalm" and anticipation is high for what the West Coast legend has prepared for his fans. Previously, Tre had a verse on "Throw It Like It's Free" on the digital deluxe version of the LP, but being on the original version is another level of achievement.

Being on such a special album called "Kingmaker" feels like a full-circle moment. Back on "Get Everything You Came For" from the fan favorite "Gundam Pt.II" EP, Tre raps "Don't you ever let another man kill your dreams/Staring at the mirror seeing the image of a king."

Kick The Concrete's Victoria Hernandez met up with Tre in Los Angeles to discuss the the placement on his dad's album, where he's at creatively now and what "Hero" still means to him.

"I didn't believe it, 'cause a lot of people would think, 'Oh, you're just going to be on there to be on there,' but it's like there's such a longer, complicated process with anything," Tre said about seeing his name on the "Kingmaker" tracklist. "The last record he did was 'Napalm' and that was in like 2012, so out of basically the last time he dropped, I have dropped my whole catalog. That just puts it into perspective. Everything I've ever put out is the span of him not dropping from his last shit."

Tre said that being in the studio with his dad motivated him to step his game up. His contribution is confident yet vulnerable.

"I just did my verse and I did a couple other records and I just was like, if any of them land, they'll land," he said. "If not, we had talked about us, he would give me one. So my focus was submit as much to the batch as possible and just see what happens."

Since "Hero," Tre Capital has released the albums "Liberty" and "Bridge" and the "STOMP" EP all under his D.LX (pronounced "deluxe") imprint. He takes pride in having ownership of his artistry and has carved his own lane outside of his father's shadow.

This year, he's released the "SLAP!" EP. The two songs showcase Tre's duality and continues his friendship with longtime collaborators Martin Sky and Nabeyin. Each of them produced a track.

"I've been trying to keep the streets fed," Tre said. "'Cause everyone's like, 'When are you gonna do an album? When are you gonna do an album?' So I kinda started leaking stuff from the hard drive."

He also dropped the single "Los Angeles Black Belts" with Blu produced by Grammy-nominated beatsmith Khrysis and "Technical Foul" with Seattle's star producer Sango. These two tracks are evidence of how Tre wants to be a bridge between generations and regions of music.

But don't get it twisted, Tre is Los Angeles through and through.

"I love LA," he said. "I really feel like being from here is the best place in the country, one of the best places, if not the best place in the country. I wouldn't trade it for anything."

In June, Tre is turning 30 and his new music reflects a deeper sense of reflection. His own music taste has evolved.

"I feel like the music has matured a lot," he said. "... I feel the same damn near, but I can tell that the subject matter and the things I want to listen to, I'm playing more oldies now. Playing a lot of vintage retro shit. I'm tapping into specific timelines and eras of artists more than a lot of newer stuff. I'm still tapped in, but I think my music is, the new stuff I'm working on right now is evolving. I'm trying to go back and listen to just whatever was inspiring me back then and trying to find the new pulse of that now."

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As he explores new sonic horizons and contemplates sampling video games in his music, "Hero" will always have a special place in Tre's heart. He released the "Gundam, Pt.II" EP, which showcased his love for anime and put him on the map as a fierce lyricist in 2015, but he views "Hero" as the moment that he stepped into ownership of his artistry.

"I felt like this was the beginning of me being like, okay I'm an entrepreneur now. Before in the past, I had like Gundam and things that inspired me, but I don't own or control those IPs, so it's like eventually I kinda had to be like, okay, it's about me," he said. "I know I'm influenced by these other things, but I feel like the 'Hero' album really helped me think of myself more than just like an artist. It helped me transcend to like, okay, I need to be a business owner. I gotta transition to something greater. So it's still prevalent today."

Besides the business aspect, Tre appreciates what he was able to do content-wise. The project shows a good amount of range between the assertive "West Coast Savior" and fiery "Blue Eyes White Dragon Flow" and more reflective "Been Through It" and "LOVE."

"It's one of my favorites in the catalog. I think it's got like everything, it's so balanced," he said. "I still play 'LOVE.' 'LOVE' is a really good one. 'Blue Eyes (White Dragon Flow') is my shit. 'Make Way.' It's one of the few projects that I can play, whether it's from me or someone else, like start to finish. And even though I made it, like some stuff I go back and listen to, I can't listen to it all the way, but 'Hero' I could go from start to finish, so it's super big. It was such a big project. In the timeline of everything, I think people can go there and be like, 'Oh, that's where he found his artistry.'"