Buffalo rapper Westside Gunn plans to retire from music next year, but before he does, he is set to deliver new music and extraordinary art to fans.
Westside Gunn is currently working on Pray for Paris 2 and developing his skills in the fashion industry, following in the footsteps of his friend and collaborator, the late Virgil Abloh.
A significant part of Westside Gunn’s artistic journey has been his close relationship with Abloh, the renowned designer who passed away on November 28, 2021, after a private battle with cancer.
In a recent interview, Westside Gunn spoke about his relationship with Virgil and how he changed his life.
“Virgil changed my life. He was the turning point for me. I’m going to be honest, and for many reasons,” the rapper told AllHipHop.com.
It was Virgil who invited Westside Gunn to Paris, despite the rapper’s hesitations due to his past as a hustler. The Fly God thought that if he applied for a passport, his checkered past could have returned to haunt him and landed him in prison.
“He was like, ‘Yo, come to Paris with me.’ And I was like, I don’t know about all that, man. The thing is, back in the day, I was a hustler…I thought if I went to the passport office, they were going to come out the backdoor like, ‘We’ve been waiting for your ass for six years. You stupid m###########,'” Westside Gunn explained.
Ultimately, Virgil helped Westside Gunn obtain a passport, and the two met in Paris for the first time, despite having only communicated via text.
Virgil went on to design the cover for the first Pray for Paris album, using Caravaggio’s David with the Head of Goliath.
As for the upcoming Pray for Paris 2, Westside Gunn revealed a fascinating tidbit.
“What people don’t know is, quiet as it’s kept, that Virgil was so ahead of his time that he had already designed s### for two to three years ahead of time. There’s still collections of s### that Virgil designed before he passed. What people don’t know about me, and Virgil, is he already designed four album covers for me. Pray for Paris was the first one. There’s still more that we got coming.”
Westside Gunn’s Pray for Paris 2 will be released soon, featuring more of Virgil’s iconic designs, showcasing the importance and closeness of their relationship before his untimely passing.
Read the full feature with Westside Gunn for AllHipHop.com by Rick Hazell here.
