NEWS
Tony Yayo once again showed why G-Unit and Ja Rule will never reconcile. In an interview with DJ Vlad, Yayo and Vlad had a discussion about the greatest rapper of all time. Dr. Dre recently called Eminem the greatest to ever do it. Yayo co-signed Dre's opinion, adding that he had Em in his top five, but couldn't disagree with Dre's opinion. He talked about the value of statistics, mentioning that Eminem is still breaking records nearly a quarter of a century into his mainstream career. He uttered a familiar phrase: "men lie, women lie, numbers don't," suggesting a belief that commercial success is the greatest measure of a rapper's status in the industry.
The conversation between Vlad and Tony Yayo went from the greatest rapper of all time to Yayo creating his Mount Rushmore of Queens rappers. The two of them went through a list. They did not quite settle on a Mount Rushmore, but Vlad was quick to note that Ja Rule's name did not come up. Vlad argued that Ja should be in conversations over the Lost Boys. Especially if one of Yayo's own measures for success is how well one performs commercially. For a period, Ja Rule was among the most popular rappers around, along with DMX, OutKast, Eminem, and of course, 50 Cent.
"He was like the industry plant early, Ja Rule [...]," said Tony Yayo in the clip. "Ja Rule was a buster to me. I don't know him. He's from the other side of town. He's a buster to me, and he's still a buster. Irv [Gotti]'s a buster, Irv's brother's a buster, and they're all busters to me." When questioned about Ja's ability to sell records at his peak, Yayo responded by calling him a buster again. He disregarded his sales and reiterated that the Lost Boys deserve to be on that list instead of him.
Tony Yayo's response is not surprising. The 50 Cent-led G-unit camp and Ja Rule have had issues for over twenty years. 50, along with Eminem, contributed greatly to ending Ja's run as a commercially viable rapper, with a series of diss tracks that kneecapped his credibility. Em once again took aim at him on The Death of Slim Shady. With this interview, Yayo is the latest 50 Cent affiliate to remind fans that the participants in this long-running beef will probably never reach a truce.
NEWS
There is no question that Clipse’s Let God Sort Em Out made a serious impact and continues to hold weight. The project showed that hip hop is not limited by age and proved that a long-awaited return can still land in a major way regardless of the time away.
If you need a reminder, the Virginia duo’s fourth studio album debuted comfortably within the top five of the Hot 200. It secured the number four position and moved an impressive 118,000 units in its first week.
On top of that, it picked up a win at this year’s Grammys, earning Best Rap Performance for “Chains & Whips.” The album also received four additional nominations, including Best Music Video, Rap Album, and Album of the Year.
It is hard to believe the project will officially hit its one year mark this summer on July 11. Even so, Pusha T is making it clear that both supporters and critics should not be overlooking it anytime soon.
While performing at Coachella yesterday, King Push told the crowd that LGSEO still sits at the top, regardless of genre.
He said, “‘Let God Sort Em Out’ is still the album of the motherfckin year. Whole new year, still album of the year,” per Kurrco. “Album of the motherfcking year until we drop again. We don't care who dropping. It don't matter.”
That is a strong statement for obvious reasons, especially considering the recent claims surrounding Push himself.
Over the same weekend, hip hop social media lit up after several alleged reference tracks connected to Quentin Miller and Push began circulating. Three tracks surfaced in total, but one that drew the most attention was an alleged record titled “Real Gon’ Come.” It is said to come from the DAYTONA era, around 2017 to 2018.
The situation gained traction because fans remember the past tension between Drake and Pusha T before Drake’s clash with Kendrick Lamar. During that feud, Pusha accused Drake of using ghostwriters on tracks like “Infrared,” which appears on DAYTONA. On that song, he raps, “The bigger question is how the Russians did it /
It was written like Nas, but it came from Quentin.”
Reactions have been mixed. Some people argue it is not a major issue since Miller’s alleged contributions were limited to hooks. Others point out that the songs were never officially released, so they see no real problem. Meanwhile, critics view it as clear hypocrisy on Pusha T’s part, a perspective that DJ Akademiks has also supported.
