YOKAI (Anthony Kannon Interview)

1. 01The Serpent Tongue

   How long ago did the idea for this album happen? And who reached out to who?

   Anthony Kannon

   Machacha originally reached out to me August 2025 while I was rolling out an album called ‘A to Z’. He pitched the idea of working on a few songs together. After the first couple, it snowballed into a full length project. Yokai was released exactly 12 months from our first contact

2. 02The Serpent Tongue

   Why the album name ‘YOKAI?’ Was there a specific reason behind that? Or just something you thought sounded dope!

   Anthony Kannon

   Yokai are a sort of Japanese-mythological parable. They are supernatural spirits that all represent a broader idea, or story. They can be good, evil, or neutral. The music I make portrays the balance between what’s considered ‘good’ or a ‘necessary evil’. It’s an extension of a concept I started with a previous album I released, Cautionary Tales.

3. 03The Serpent Tongue

   Was there a specific sound or concept you were going for on this album and do you feel you were able to achieve it?

   Anthony Kannon

   When we started to create this album, I was working with a lot of drumless, sample-based loops in terms production. I knew with this album, I wanted to create something more lively and vibrant as opposed to darker and heavy. Machacha is known for his hard hitting beats, and I wanted to be able to match his energy. We definitely achieved it!

4. 04The Serpent Tongue

   How important was it to have those two features on the album that you did? I understand -World Be Free is someone important to you and one hell of an MC but I’m curious, was it hearing Doza’s work with Machacha that made you feel he suited your album? Or something else entirely!

   Anthony Kannon

   The features were the cherry on top! Shoutout to World Be Free and Doza man. Free is an upstate legend out here, and somebody I know personally. He recently came to one of my shows in Syracuse and we chopped it up. Just from being a student of the game, I’m familiar with his earlier work with Machacha. It was only right to tag him into this. Doza is somebody that I got familiar with originally through twitter. I enjoyed listening to his music. The 17th cypher threw us both on a compilation series, and I believe that’s how we got acquainted. We were spitballing names as to who would sound great on the record, and doza was a no brainer. This was right after More Violince came out!

5. 05The Serpent Tongue

   I just have to ask real quick, how far back does your friendship go with the likes of Declan The Celebrity as I’ve seen you on most of his efforts!

   Anthony Kannon

   Me and Declan have known each other for a few years now I believe. He is somebody that I first became aware of because I randomly saw the tracklist to one of his albums. The art was super fire, and he had two features on the album from artists that I loved. Quickly checked him out and realized we had a lot of mutuals. We have stayed in contact since and continue working together to this day. We have a dope album that should come out soon

6. 06The Serpent Tongue

   What’s it like working with Machacha? And how does he differ or fare compared to other producers you’ve worked with in the past!

   Anthony Kannon

   I have been blessed to work with some incredible producers; different styles, different habits. Machacha was incredibly easy going. He has a stature and resumè that is unlike many I have worked with in the past. Naturally, making the album felt like playing a higher stakes game. The largest changes came from how he handled post production. Almost every beat received some sort of transformation in the final stages of mixing. It was surprising in the best way possible

7. 07The Serpent Tongue

   Was there any song on here that for any specific reason was harder to record for you? If so which one and why!

   Anthony Kannon

   East Coast Killa was probably the hardest one to record for me, just because of the energy required and how consistent the tempo is. I find it can be more difficult for me to slow the pace and ‘color within the lines’ than freely paint a blank canvas

8. 08The Serpent Tongue

   May I ask, is there any particular reason some track names are all caps and some are normal?

   Anthony Kannon

   There is no deeper meaning or anything; I just liked how it looked visually and wanted to emphasize to how certain songs display on socials / DSP’s

9. 09The Serpent Tongue

   What was the one lesson you learnt from the making of this album! One eye opener or experience or something you took away from this new record that you didn’t have before.

   Anthony Kannon

   This lesson is not unique to this album, but the value of repetition. The value of not rushing. The value of making sure that the people making the album are comfortable with the final version. Establishing a clear line of communication and laying out expectations prior to working together will always make for a smooth and healthy collaborative effort

10. 10The Serpent Tongue

    You’re stranded on a deserted island. You can only listen to TWO albums of any genre for the rest of your life, what are they and why!

    Anthony Kannon

    The answer of this would probably change depending on what week you ask me. For now, I will say Descendants of Cain by Ka, and Pieces of a Man by Gil Scott Heron

Written Q&A by Corban Skipwith · More interviews · Get interviewed