How Pudge and Ritchy Flo Put Together an Album Over the Course of Three Nights in Vegas

With nearly two decades in the hip-hop game, rapper Pudge is still creating fresh new concepts. As a favorite in Denton’s rap scene, Pudge is known for cranking out party records and turning up local bars with his poetic accounts of debauched nights, adventures with close friends and maintaining his lifestyle as he handles much attention from the ladies.

He discovered his love of hip-hop at 16 when he would make beats for his brother Blaine, who was also a rapper. Pudge and Blaine later formed the hip-hop collective Fab Deuce, along with artists Matt Ress-Giant, DJ Yeahdef, Ernie McCrackin and hip-hop duo XeGeSiS (Scott McBride and Ritchy Flo). Over the years in Denton’s live music and house show scene, Pudge discovered his ability to freestyle and spit fire rhymes.

Now, Pudge and Flo have reunited to create a new album, Three Nights In Vegas, which, as its title suggests, came together over the course of three nights in Las Vegas.

Three Nights In Vegas is part of a series. In 2012, Pudge released his solo rap debut, One Of Those Nights, a collection of DIY party anthems, which introduced Pudge as a fun-loving Dentonite who encapsulated the city’s eccentric, artsy spirit. This was followed in 2018 by Two Of Those Nights, which continued to build upon that energy.

Pudge says he and Flo had been toying with the idea of creating a “destination record” together over the course of 10 years.

“We wanted to capture the spirit of Vegas,” says Pudge, “so [the album] is real sin heavy. It’s a party record more than anything, but [Flo and I] figured Vegas was a cool city, and it would be … easy for us to come up with content pretty fast out there.”

“If you feel like you need to be creating something, then you’ve got to create it,” adds Flo, “because no one else will do it unless you do, or someone else will just take your whole idea, so you’ve got to get on it.”

During their weekend in Vegas, Pudge and Flo rented a three-story Airbnb. They brought a mic, a studio interface and a keyboard and got to work. Joining them on their trip was chef Tony Neglia, who had never recorded music before but contributed to various skits and interludes throughout the album.

A track called “Scumbag Millionaire” opens with a fictional version of Pudge talking to a mafia-like entrepreneur named Pablo Vegas, voiced by Neglia. Pablo Vegas gives Pudge the advice to “bet on his balls” and trust his instincts. Following the intro, Pudge and Flo channel their inner millionaire, as the spirit of Vegas possesses them.

“For so long, me and Ritchy have been rapping about being broke,” says Pudge. “So that’s always kind of been our exaggerated rap characters. We had Tony guide us because we wanted to do a song where we’re rapping about the opposite and talking about how plentiful and rich we are. We wanted to manifest that, if that makes sense.”

One of the first songs Pudge and Flo recorded was a moody track called “Shrooms On Freemont,” which they both say came together on the spot, when they were both completely sober.

“We didn’t actually do shrooms,” says Flo, “but the characters did.”

For most of the album, Pudge and Flo had a game plan, but “Shrooms On Freemont” came together the easiest, as the two went bar-for-bar over an ominous, piano-driven track.

On another song, “Tacoma Avenue,” the two maintain their momentum after riding a euphoric rush that they’ve drawn in through their Vegas surroundings.

“Songwriter/Cannabinoid bong lighter/turn the parking lot to a certified bonfire/Let’s have some more of nothing, I’m off strong cider,” raps Pudge on the opening of the song, blending the elements of his hometown into the party destination.

One of their favorite tracks they created together during their fateful March weekend was “So What (Ice Cream),” on which Pudge reels over weed and embraces his status as a “c-list celebrity.” He raps off several Denton staples, like Bonnie Brae Street and Lucky Strikes, making it known to the town that he’ll never forget where he came from.

Flo teases, “There’s a little visual element to the song.” He reveals that he and Pudge are “doing a whole documentary to [‘So What (Ice Cream)’], which is going to be dropping in a month or two, and that’ll kind of tie a lot of this together.”

At the time of our interview, Pudge was gearing up for his annual birthday celebration, Pudgeapalooza, which took place this past weekend at Harvest House in Denton, one of his frequent haunts. On the lineup were Pudge, Flo, Ben Buck, The Palmer Squares and other Denton musicians who form the community of artists Pudge has grown with over the years.

Pudge hardly ever makes an appearance in Dallas unless it’s for a show. More often, he can be found having cocktails at Andy’s in Denton’s Courthouse Square or supporting other local artists at venues like Rubber Gloves.

“It feels tighter knit around here,” Pudge says. “I know Dallas always has the stigma of like, no one can get along or anything, but I don’t really feel like Denton has ever had that issue. It’s on such a smaller scale that I get to play with different genres of bands, as opposed to only doing hip-hop shows. I learned at an early age to be able to entertain different genres of crowds just from the proximity [of the music in Denton].”