Hold on now, there is no beef here between Killer Mike and Lupe Fiasco! (that we know of) – BUT, Killer Mike did say, “When you have Lupe and the audience that he brings, a lot of times that audience can perceive [themselves] to be more than or elitist.” Do you agree?
Killer Mike was recently on the Green Lantern Invasion Radio Show and was talking about how there are two extremes in rap, and both can be damaging. He cited Waka Flocka Flame as the rowdy or ignorant rap style, and Lupe Fiasco as the intellectual style. Check out what he said about both styles below:
“Waka gets presented as ignorance, but he’s not,” said Killer Mike. “But the people who present him that way and who accept him that way, they take bless in that ignorance. Taking bliss and being ignorant meaning, you’re just going to stay ignorant. But Waka’s not ignorant. He’s progressively moving his family [and] his future forward. But if you only think the ignorance in the music that makes me feel good for three minutes is it, then you’re going to stay in that place where you at; that’s welfare, no healthcare…I mean we know who like the hood music, the hood.”
“On the other side, when you have Lupe and the audience that he brings, a lot of times that audience can perceive [themselves] to be more than or elitist,” explained Mike. “I watched the Roots work their audience back. I remember when the Roots audience used to shimmy up like, ‘We don’t do the Jay-Z.’ And the Roots and Jay worked together like, ‘Nah, ee all Black men, this all Hip-Hop.’ And then those two audiences fused together. With audiences like [Lupe’s] a lot of times you can protect yourself behind the ‘I don’t really deal with rap, but I listen to Lupe.”
Do you agree with Killer Mike? Make sure you pick up Killer Mike’s new album, R.A.P. Music, in stores now, ’cause it’s great. In the meantime, you can watch the interview with Killer Mike below: