Yesterday, Wale caught a lot of people off guard when he released the remix to his song “Slight Work,” featuring French Montana, Diddy, and Mase. Yes, Pastor Mason Betha on the same track as his former boss Puff.

After the record made its debut, Mase called up Funkmaster Flex, the same person he phoned in 1999 to announce his retirement from rap, to talk about his return to music, how he got on the remix, those studio pictures floating around with him and Rick Ross, and how his faith has limited his musical output.

The rapper turned preacher, turned rapper again, told Flex that he keeps coming back to Hip Hop because he thinks he’s “meant to do it.”

On how the “Slight Work” remix came about
“[French Montana] called Wale one time and Wale was like, come to the studio. I was in Atlanta and then I just came through and they was just blowing so hard in the studio, smoking all loud, I couldn’t even get my verse out. They kept laughing at me. I came back the next day and was like, ‘I’m ready now.’”

On his relationship with Diddy
“To this day, I tell people I don’t have no issues with him. I think a lot of times we get put on the other side of each other, just because of history. He’s one of the biggest contributors who ever gave to the church. We’re probably cooler than I thought.”

On how he ended up in the studio with Rick Ross, Omarion, and producer Rico Love
“[Rico Love] just called and asked me to take a ride with him — I didn’t know who was gonna be in the studio. I got there and everybody was there, and they just said, ‘Take a flick.’ The next thing I know I got a Maybach chain, I got 20 beats from Kanye. The stories just keep getting crazier.”

On how his faith plays into his music and taking off limitations put on him
“I can only do music if I can do it the way I can do it. That’s what be making me stop. I don’t want to do music in a box, like everybody say what I can’t do, ‘he can’t say this.’ I’m taking all my limitations off. They gonna have to pray for me.”

Mase semi-left the pulpit back in 2004 when he released Welcome Back, but with a much cleaner image. After that, he briefly linked up with 50 Cent and G Unit in 2005.

Sources: MTV, Hip Hop DX