Marcus Mumford has been learning how to “chop up beats” with 88-Keys

If you thought Marcus Mumford grew up surrounded by the ethereal sound of gently noodling banjos and pastoral ballads, think again. In a new interview, the Mumford & Sons frontman spoke about his love of hip-hop.

He also revealed that he’s been learning to “chop up beats” with 88-Keys - the producer behind Jay-Z and Kanye West’s ‘No Church In The Wild,’ from their 2011 joint album ‘Watch the Throne’. The two of them are apparently working on a hip-hop project together.

“I went to that Kanye gig in London recently, and I grew up listening to Jurassic 5 and Nas,” Marcus Mumford told NME. “I’ve been getting into that again recently. I’ve been hanging out with an amazing guy called 88-Keys to learn how to chop-up beats. That’s really fun for me. I don’t really care about how we’re seen right now, because I think the story of this band will be a long one. People are always going to say stuff in the moment, but I hope that the arc of the band will be interesting.”

Could a trap remix of ‘Roll Away Your Stone’ be on the horizon? A rap battle sampling ‘Little Lion Man’? Who knows, but in the meantime listen to Mumford & Son’s new single ‘The Wolf’ below.