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Lil yachty's delightfully absurd path to 'let's start here'.

Matthew Ramirez

LOS ANGELES, CA - OCTOBER 29: Lil Yachty performs on the Stage during day 2 of Camp Flog Gnaw Carnival 2017 at Exposition Park on October 29, 2017 in Los Angeles, California. Rich Fury/Getty Images hide caption

LOS ANGELES, CA - OCTOBER 29: Lil Yachty performs on the Stage during day 2 of Camp Flog Gnaw Carnival 2017 at Exposition Park on October 29, 2017 in Los Angeles, California.

Lil Yachty often worked better as an idea than a rapper. The late-decade morass of grifters like Lil Pump, amidst the self-serious reign of Future and Drake (eventual Yachty collaborators, for what it's worth), created a demand for something lighter, someone charismatic, a throwback to a time in the culture when characters like Biz Markie could score a hit or Kool Keith could sustain a career in one hyper-specific lane of rap fandom. Yachty fulfilled the role: His introduction to many was through a comedy skit soundtracked by his viral breakout "1 Night," which tapped into the song's deadpan delivery and was the perfect complement for its sleepy charm. The casual fan knows him best for a pair of collaborations in 2016: as one-half of the zeitgeist-defining single "Broccoli" with oddity D.R.A.M., or "iSpy," a top-five pop hit with backpack rapper Kyle. Yachty embodied the rapper as larger-than-life character — from his candy-colored braids to his winning smile — and while the songs themselves were interesting, you could be forgiven for wondering if there was anything substantial behind the fun, the grounds for the start of a long career.

As if to supplement his résumé, Yachty seemed to emerge as a multimedia star. Perhaps you remember him in a Target commercial; heard him during the credits for the Saved by the Bell reboot; spotted him on a cereal box; saw him co-starring in the ill-fated 2019 sequel to How High . TikTok microcelebrity followed. Then the sentences got more and more absurd: Chef Boyardee jingle with Donny Osmond; nine-minute video cosplaying as Oprah; lead actor in an UNO card game movie. Somewhere in a cross-section of pop-culture detritus and genuine hit-making talent is where Yachty resides. That he didn't fade away immediately is a testament to his charm as a cultural figure; Yachty satisfied a need, and in his refreshingly low-stakes appeal, you could imagine him as an MTV star in an alternate universe. Move the yardstick of cultural cachet from album sales to likes and he emerges as a generation-defining persona, if not musician.

Early success and exposure can threaten anyone's career, none so much as those connected to the precarious phenomenon of SoundCloud rap. Yachty's initial peak perhaps seeded his desire years later to sincerely pursue artistry with Let's Start Here , an album fit for his peculiar trajectory, because throughout the checks from Sprite and scolding Ebro interviews he never stopped releasing music, seemingly to satisfy no one other than himself and the generation of misfits that he seemed to be speaking for.

But to oversell him as a personality belittles his substantial catalog. Early mixtapes like Lil Boat and Summer Songs 2 , which prophetically brought rap tropes and pop sounds into harmony, were sustained by the teenage artist's commitment to selling the vibe of a track as he warbled its memorable hook. It was perhaps his insistence to demonstrate that he could rap, too, that most consistently pockmarked his output during this period. These misses were the necessary growing pains of a kid still finding his footing, and through time and persistence, a perceived weakness became a strength. Where his peers Lil Uzi Vert and Playboi Carti found new ways to express themselves in music, Yachty dug in his heels and became Quality Control's oddball representative, acquitting himself on guest appearances and graduating from punchline rapper to respectable vet culminating in the dense and rewarding Lil Boat 3 from 2020, Yachty's last official album.

Which is why the buzzy, viral "Poland" from the end of 2022 hit different — Yachty tapped back into the same lively tenor of his early breakthroughs. The vibrato was on ten, the beat menaced and hummed like a broken heater, he rapped about taking cough syrup in Poland, it was over in under two minutes and endlessly replayable. Yachty has already lived a full career arc in seven years — from the 2016 king of the teens, to budding superstar, to pitchman, to regional ambassador. But following "Poland" with self-aware attempts at similar virality would be a mistake, and you can't pivot your way to radio stardom after a hit like that, unless you're a marketing genius like Lil Nas X. How does he follow up his improbable second chance to grab the zeitgeist?

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Lil yachty, 'poland'.

Let's Start Here is Lil Yachty's reinvention, a born-again Artist's Statement with no rapping. It's billed as psychedelic rock but has a decidedly accessible sound — the sun-kissed warmth of an agreeable Tame Impala song, with bounce-house rhythms and woozy guitars in the mode of Magdalena Bay and Mac DeMarco (both of whom guest on the album) — something that's not quite challenging but satisfying nonetheless. Contrast with 2021's Michigan Boy Boat , where Yachty performed as tour guide through Michigan rap: His presence was auxiliary by function on that tape, as he ceded the floor to Babyface Ray, Sada Baby and Rio Da Yung OG; it was tantalizing curation, if not a work of his own personal artistry. It's tempting to cast Let's Start Here as another act of roleplay, but what holds this album together is Yachty's magnetic pull. Whether or not you're someone who voluntarily listens to the Urban Outfitters-approved slate of artists he's drawing upon, his star presence is what keeps you engaged here.

Yachty has been in the studio recording this album since 2021, and the effort is tangible. He didn't chase "Poland" with more goofy novelties, but he also didn't spit this record out in a month. Opener (and highlight) "The Black Seminole" alternates between Pink Floyd and Jimi Hendrix-lite references. It's definitely a gauntlet thrown even if halfway through you start to wonder where Yachty is. The album's production team mostly consists of Patrick Wemberly (formerly of Chairlift), Jacob Portrait (of Unknown Mortal Orchestra), Jeremiah Raisen (who's produced for Charli XCX, Sky Ferreira and Drake) and Yachty himself, who's established himself as a talented producer since his early days. (MGMT's Ben Goldwasser also contributed.) The group does a formidable job composing music that is dense and layered enough to register as formally unconventional, if not exactly boundary-pushing. Yachty frequently reaches for his "Poland"-inspired uber-vibrato, which adds a bewitching texture to the songs, placing him in the center of the track. Other moments that work: the spoken-word interlude "Failure," thanks to contemplative strumming from Alex G, and "The Ride," a warm slow-burn that coasts on a Jam City beat, giving the album a lustrous Night Slugs moment. "I've Officially Lost Vision" thrashes like Yves Tumor.

Yet the best songs on Let's Start Here push Yachty's knack for hooks and snaking melodies to the fore and rely less on studio fireworks — the laid-back groove of "Running Out of Time," the mournful post-punk of "Should I B?" and the slow burn of "Pretty," which features a bombastic turn from vocalist Foushee. That Yachty's vaunted indie collaborators were able to work in simpatico with him proves his left-of-center bonafides. It's a reminder that he's often lined his projects with successful non-rap songs, curios like "Love Me Forever" from Lil Boat 2 and "Worth It" from Nuthin' 2 Prove . That renders Let's Start Here a less startling turn than it may appear at first glance, and also underlines his recurring talent for making off-kilter pop music, a gift no matter the perceived genre.

At a listening event for the record, Yachty stated: "I created [this] because I really wanted to be taken seriously as an artist. Not just some SoundCloud rapper, not some mumble rapper. Not some guy that just made one hit," seemingly aware of the culture war within his own genre and his place along the spectrum of low- to highbrow. To be sure, whether conscious of it or not, this kind of mentality is dismissive of rap music as an artform, and also undermines the good music Yachty has made in the past. Holing up in the studio to make digestibly "weird" indie-rock with a cast of talented white people isn't intrinsically more artistic or valid than viral hits or a one-off like "Poland." But this statement scans less as self-loathing and more as a renewed confidence, a tribute to the album's collective vision. And people like Joe Budden have been saying "I don't think Yachty is hip-hop " since he started. So what if he wants to break rank now?

Lil Yachty entered the cultural stage at 18, and has grown up in public. It adds up that, now 25, he would internalize all the scrutiny he's received and wish to cement his artistry after a few thankless years rewriting the rules for young, emerging rappers. Let's Start Here may not be the transcendent psychedelic rock album that he seeks, but it is reflective of an era of genreless "vibes" music. Many young listeners likely embraced Yachty and Tame Impala simultaneously; it tracks he would want to bring these sounds together in a genuine attempt to reach a wider audience. Nothing about this album is cynical, but it is opportunistic, a creation in line with both a shameless mixed-media existence and his everchanging pop alchemy. The "genre" tag in streaming metadata means less than it ever has. Credit to Yachty for putting that knowledge to use.

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How Lil Yachty’s Incredible “1 Night” Music Video Came Together

Josh goldenberg and rahil ashruff of goldrush dish on their cold day on a boat with lil boat, making a video full of memes, and the puppy that didn’t make the cut..

The new video for Lil Yachty 's "1 Night" didn't necessarily break the internet, but it did perfectly distill it. Featuring an impressive number of memes, enumerable GIF-able moments, cute animals, and a cast of familiar faces plucked of Vine and Instagram, it seemingly arrived ready to go viral.

The video the brainchild of Josh " Glassface " Goldenberg and Rahil Ashruff , who together make up the production company Goldrush . Friends since high school, they've made similarly out-there videos for OG Maco, Rome Fortune, Tunji Ige, and Ab-Soul, with Ashruff acting as producer and Goldenberg handling the editing and FX.

Read Next: Lil Yachty flirts with harsh noise on “Something Ether”

Reached by phone on Tuesday, Goldenberg told The FADER that this project began with a tweet. "Yachty got in touch with us," he recalled. "He sent us a tweet saying he wanted to do a video with us, and then I think a month went by. After a month of not talking about it, I reached out to Coach and was like, 'We have to shoot this video ASAP.' Then I think it happened a week or two later. The whole process was pretty fast."

In all, it took one day of shooting—half spent on a boat, on a chilly early spring day; and the other half spent in front of a green screen with a wardrobe rack of nautical attire and accessories to play with—two weeks of editing, some heavy Google Image searching, and minimal back and forth with Yachty and co.

Below, Goldenberg and Ashruff describe their valiant attempts to make the most viral-ready video ever, explain how many memes is too many, and reveal that there was a puppy cast but cut from the final product.

How did you come up with the idea for the video?

Josh Goldenberg: We initially had a slightly different idea—basically, Rahil heard the song and he felt the video needed to have a karaoke vibe to it—and then saw how viral Yachty was, so I suggested we make very meme-able, GIF-able material. It seemed like shooting in front of a green screen, just getting shots of Yachty having fun, would be very shareable content for people to see.

Rahil Ashruff: The karaoke element is there—it's kind of ambiguous, but it's supposed to be kind of like a karaoke screen, but a futuristic one—but it's more about being a piece of digital media for people to share than being a full, fleshed out concept.

What did Yachty think?

Josh: He loved it. He had seen a few other videos we had done—OG Maco[’s “U Guessed It” ], Rome Fortune's "Four Seasons," that's one of his favorite videos. So once he saw the treatment, he was really into it. I don't think he had any changes, really.

[The video for Jay Z’s] “Big Pimpin’” was one reference I sent to them. We were initially going to have Yachty drinking champagne and pouring champagne for the girls on the boat, but Coach was like, “He's 18 years old.”

Where did you get the boat?

Rahil: It's hard to rent a boat in New York! What I learned is that boats don't really go out until April 1, and we shot the video before April, so that was tough.

Josh: The boat captain called us when we were on the way to shooting and was like, “Is there anyway we can shoot tomorrow? The water is super choppy, we might tip over.” But Rahil had a flight the next day, so we only had one day and we had to shoot it.

Rahil: That was the first time we met Yachty face to face. He was freezing—oh my god, it was so cold.

Josh: My actual very first interaction, when I met him on the shoot, he was like, "Yo, I remember when I reached out to you guys when I was in high school." And I was like, "Wasn't that like two months ago."

There are a lot of familiar faces in this video—

Rahil: Shabazz is the person who put us in touch with all these girls, so she should get the credit for helping us out with the talent.

Josh: There's Vine people, like Lean and Cuisine , but then there's also SoHo fashion kids and there's definitely a lot of internet people in it. Yachty is friends with a lot of those people, but I think it was also definitely expressed that we were trying to make something that would kind of go viral and that people would want to share. Incorporating a lot of cameos, you are going to get a lot of people in the video who are going to share clips of the video, so it definitely made sense.

Staring down the green screen, how do you decide where to start? What to add?

Josh: It was pretty daunting, because there were so many moments. But once I got into it, it took me two weeks to edit and add all the visual stuff. I did it in layers: I did a cut in just pure green screen with no background, then I created some different layers to put into the backgrounds, then I did an additional overlay—I kept adding layers to it as I went, and it just kind of came together.

Rahil: [We did] a lot of Google image searching to find the right images.

Josh: Honestly, I'm not super tuned into memes so I asked a lot of people about what they thought would be funny in this video. The only thing Yachty specifically asked me to add was—there's a shot of this guy doing like a super fast dab. He's a bigger guy, he has red sunglasses on and a polo shirt, and he does a hyper fast dab. He texted me specifically to add that shot: "Just make sure to include him doing that super fast dab." And I was like, "Alright, I got you." But aside from that, they basically just let us do whatever.

Was there anything you added, and then decided it was too much?

Josh: We went through certain memes that didn't make it into the final cut. We had a Barack Obama one that I thought was hilarious, for when he says, Baby, I got shit to do , and it was [set to a picture of] Obama on the phone. They weren't into it. I made a Jesus meme, for when he says, You'll be calling out to Christ, but that didn't seem right. I'm not even going to talk about the Cosby one.

Rahil: There was some slight hesitation with the Jay Z one, but I think we all loved it. And then when Yachty saw it, he loved it too.

Josh: And it's all in good fun. Yachty is a positive artist, so even including stuff like that, I think people perceive it in the right way. He's not trying to say anything negative towards anybody, he's just kind of including Jay Z in the video, not calling him out or anything.

Where did you find that Kitten?

Rahil: The kitten, that's Craigslist; you can find anything on Craigslist. It was adorable, we gave it to Yachty.

Josh: The idea was, obviously kitten videos are the most watched thing on YouTube, so by incorporating an adorable kitten—we also had a puppy that didn't really get much play in this video—but just incorporating cute animals, we wanted to hit every possible aspect. Fire on all cylinders.

So the goal was to make the most shareable video maybe ever.

Josh: I don't know if we want to expressly state that, but it pretty much was. Entertaining and re-playable video is probably a better way to put it, because saying you want to make a "shareable" video doesn't sound very organic.

Rahil: We definitely put a lot of thought into this, but the goal was just entertainment overall.

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How Lil Yachty Became Michigan Boy Boat

Before the release of ‘Michigan Boy Boat,’ Lil Yachty sits for an interview about how his collabs with Michigan artists energized him to grow as a rapper.

Lil Yachty has been spending a lot of time in Michigan lately.

Midway through one low-budget music video for a song called “Flintana,” he shows up in a parking lot with a crew of up-and-coming rappers from Flint: RMC Mike, YN Jay, and Louie Ray. At the beginning of the clip, there’s a disclaimer that says, “This song was made the night before, therefore nobody knew the lyrics,” and everything about it has the raw, spontaneous feeling of a collaboration that came to life on a whim at 2 a.m. In other words, it’s in a completely different universe from the glossy sheen of a song like “Oprah’s Bank Account.”

As Yachty lowers himself on the concrete and does push-ups at the end of Mike’s verse, you can’t help but wonder how the hell he ended up in a random Flint parking lot with a bunch of underground rappers in the first place. But he does such a good job matching the spirit of the song, context doesn’t really matter here. It’s all energy. After a few quick bars about pussy and a mouth full of gold, Yachty circles back with a couple Snoh Aalegra and Kevin Federline references to punctuate his second verse. And when he’s not rapping, he laughs along with punchlines from Mike, Jay, and Ray, hyping up his collaborators. “They have fun,” he says now. “They talk about all kinds of crazy shit.”

Later, there’s a Lil Yachty sighting at a Detroit studio with Rio Da Yung OG , and he materializes on two more songs with YN Jay. As the year progresses, Yachty’s Michigan collaborations keep popping up online, and each time he tries out self-described “unorthodox” flows, pushing himself to wild new lyrical territory. On all of them, he sounds more energized than we’ve heard him in years. Before long, it’s clear Yachty has become an honorary member of the Michigan rap scene, home to some of the most exciting ( and quotable ) new artists on the planet.

“They’re mad fucking lyrical in a weird way,” he points out. “The schemes and the cadences and the flows are so unorthodox.”

Yachty says these collaborations have taught him “how to have fun with it” again. He’s having so much fun, in fact, that he decided to make a whole mixtape and call it Michigan Boy Boat . The project will arrive on April 23, and judging by the tags on the announcement Instagram post , it will feature everyone from Veeze to Babyface Ray to Sada Baby to Icewear Vezzo. As Yachty puts it, the project is an opportunity to show love to the scene he’s grown to care about so much.

As the release date nears, the 23-year-old rapper hopped on the phone with Complex to talk about Michigan Boy Boat, three other projects he’s working on, a night in the studio with Freddie Gibbs, and more. The interview, lightly edited for clarity, is below.

Photo by Gunner Stahl  

How did you first get plugged in with the Michigan rap scene? I’ve always loved Detroit rap. I used to work with Pablo Skywalkin back in 2016. And I always loved Tee Grizzley. “First Day Out” was such an insane song, and I thought he was so lyrical. So I was working with him, and then my best friend Mitch started putting me on to other rappers locally who were on the rise, and I just loved their beats and their rapping schemes. I thought they were so dope. So that’s how I got into it originally.

A lot of people were surprised to see you show up in so many music videos with underground rappers in Flint and Detroit last year. How did the collaborations start happening? I was reaching out to them, bro. I was just coming to them. I wasn’t afraid to show love, and I wanted to work with all of them. So I would just hit them up.

What is it about their music that made you want to work with them? They don’t care. They want to have fun. And it’s funny . They’re mad fucking lyrical in a weird way. The schemes and the cadences and the flows are so unorthodox. And the style of Michigan beats just forced me into this really weird scheme. You’ll see when this mixtape comes out. I just rap really unorthodox on it. A lot of people won’t like it. A lot of people think it’s offbeat.

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Do you think these beats have pushed you to grow as a rapper? Yeah, I learned new schemes and cadences. And I learned to have fun with it. They have fun. They talk about all kinds of crazy shit.

Michigan Boy Boat is on the way. What made you want to do a full tape with songs like this? I just wanted to show love. That’s it. I just wanted to show love to all of those guys and their talent. And I feel like I rap my best on those types of beats.

You sound really energized lately. I remember a few months ago, you jumped in Cardo’s room on Clubhouse and told everyone how excited you were about a verse you had just written. Yeah. That verse was so fucking crazy. I was sitting on the toilet.

Overall, it seems like you’re having a lot of fun making music right now. Oh, yeah. And I’m about to drop so much shit, it doesn’t make any sense. I’m definitely having fun.

A couple months ago, you dropped “Hit Bout It” with Kodak Black, which was a crazy moment. What was that experience like? We didn’t record it in person, but I did take a trip out there to shoot the video. When I recorded the song, I was on my Detroit shit. What happened was, I posted a snippet on my Instagram. And he was originally supposed to do a verse for “Pardon Me.” You know, because he was just pardoned by Donald Trump. Then he was like, “Man, I ain’t going to lie. I really want to get on this.” I was super excited, and we made it happen.

In the behind-the-scenes video, it looked like you guys have a tight bond together. What’s your relationship like, and how did that all go down? I don’t know how or why. It just kinda happened. I hit him when he was in jail, and I wanted to show support and that I was fucking with him. And he would call me every now and then. We’d chop it up and just talk. I think he really supported that and respected that. And when he got out, it was just love.

Speaking of collaborations, you were just tweeting about Freddie Gibbs assembling the Avengers for his next album. Yeah, I was with him last night. I put him on some Detroit shit. [Laughs.]

How did you guys link up? After I tweeted that, he DM’d me, like, “Let’s link.” And I was out here and I pulled right the fuck up.

What was that session like? I was super excited. He’s really fire. He’s like a legend. He was super cool. He’s like a gangster. He was super dope, and he’s older. The session was really chill. I didn’t stay long, unfortunately, because I had to go to a session with Mac DeMarco, so I did the song and left. But it was dope as fuck. He’s funny as shit.

You recently tweeted , “I be sittin back watching y’all assumptions on situations and y’all be so off. The internet just be making up shit.” Do you think people have misconceptions about you at this point? What do people get wrong? Yeah, [some people] think I’m gay as fuck. But I have a beautiful girlfriend. And before her, I had plenty of bitches. You know? So that’s a misconception. But I don’t give a fuck.

You’ve been writing songs for other artists a little lately, like “Act Up” for City Girls, which I think opened some people’s minds to how talented you really are. Is that part of the appeal? I love gaining my respect.

As a songwriter for other artists, you have to put yourself in someone else’s point of view, and you’ve pulled it off really well so far. Why do you think it’s come naturally for you? Honestly, I was just bored, bro. One day I was in the studio, bored as fuck. And I was like, “Let me see if I can do this.” I did it.

Is that something you want to do more? I’ve done it a few times. I’ve done it. I stopped speaking on it.

I see. I was going to ask if you’d explore that more and ever write songs for pop artists or anything. Yeah, I’ve done some shit. I don’t want to get into it, but I’ve done some shit.

“Just listen to the f*cking bars because I promise I’m rapping my f*cking a** off.”

I know you’ve been in the studio with Taz Taylor and the Internet Money guys. Can you talk about that? We’re doing an album. I’m about to go see Taz right now. He’s a fucking king. He’s a fucking GOAT. I have respect for him, 100%.

What have the sessions been like so far? I’ve been in LA three days, and we’ve already made 24 songs. We’re working hard, bro. It’s fun. It’s melodic. It’s fully melodic.

Oh, shit. So a totally different sound from this next Michigan Boy Boat project… Yeah, I got projects, man. I’ve got my project with Internet Money. I’m doing my project with Lil Tecca. I got my project with Working On Dying. And then I’ll start my album fourth quarter of the year.

So there’s lots of shit going on. I’m dropping a shit ton this year.

What made you want to make a bunch of different projects that show all your different styles, instead of just holding off and doing one big album? It didn’t start off that way. It honestly started off with me just fucking with all these guys that I fuck with. And they all love me for different things. Taz, he wanted to bring out my melodic side. You know, with Working On Dying, it’s just all types of heat.

Before you go, I wanted to ask about cryptocurrency. You created your YachtyCoin and then made an NFT. And I know you were an early investor in Dogecoin and SafeMoon and all this shit. How did you get into all of this? Well, my manager put me onto the whole YachtyCoin thing. This year and last year, I just took it and ran with it.

There are stories of people who invested early making ridiculous amounts of money. I know you were early, too. Have you seen crazy profits already? Oh, yeah. Ohhhh yeah . Mm-hmm.

What should people know before they press play on Michigan Boy Boat when it drops? Just listen to the fucking bars because I promise I’m rapping my fucking ass off.

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Joe budden and lil yachty’s discussion is more important than you think and here’s why.

By Ashley Pickens

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By now, we’re all keen to the Lil Yachty – Joe Budden drama that’s been transpiring ever since the latter shared his opinion on the 19-year-old’s debut album cover and expressed his disdain toward what he’s doing to hip-hop. Yachty’s father, photographer Shannon McCollum, even ripped Budden one after he came for his son.

But on Tuesday’s show of “ Everyday Struggle ” with DJ Akademiks and the Rage & The Machine  rapper, Budden struggled to hold back his personal opinions of Yachty’s existence—literally. After Yachty confirms he’s “happy everyday, life is moving fast, I can’t be slowed down,” Budden seems to dissect his response, and every other one following, as a psychologist picking their patient’s brain and offering a diagnosis. “Maybe he has been media trained?” Joe says.

Lil Yachty Shows His Debonair Side In “Honor” With DJ Cassidy & Grace

Budden presses the issue of Yachty being “happy everyday” even further by telling him “how humans are” with their fickle emotions, claiming it’s impossible to be one thing all of the time. And of course, social media had a field day with Budden’s annoyance at Lil Boat’s happiness.

Yachty : “I’m just enjoying life, happy, bless-…” Joe Budden : pic.twitter.com/kqaShPjghf — Jay Breeze (@DeLaBreezus) May 3, 2017

Teenage boy: “I’m grateful for all my blessings and happy I don’t have to struggle anymore.” Joe Budden: pic.twitter.com/T0DxQuj6Bv — Welcome To Your Tape (@divaTy) May 3, 2017

Yachty : I’m just happy to be alive Joe budden: HAPPINESS AINT REAL HIP HOP pic.twitter.com/9KkIK3I0f5 — xavier (@xavierwss) May 3, 2017

if you say “i’m happy” 3 times in the mirror joe budden shows up like this and starts yelling at you pic.twitter.com/8Ebv6FoNBH — ? (@sIowloves) May 3, 2017

@cthagod Lmao smmfh… I can see it — Joe Budden (@JoeBudden) May 3, 2017

*Joe budden gets phone call from wife* “Joe…idk how to tell you this….your son..our…..son…….he’s happy joe, he’s happy “ Joe: pic.twitter.com/qiqSojGxSx — christobach (@chrisdavidbanks) May 3, 2017

A heated exchange transpired, as both rappers tried to defend their viewpoint. But everything isn’t what it seems. Budden broke the harsh energy by dapping up Lil Boat in respect to breaking barriers with his deals with Target and Nautica.

Charlamagne Tha God To Lil Yachty: “You Are The Poster Child For Wack Rappers”

As the interview continued on, the heart of why Budden was so determined to  – what it appeared to be – throwing shade at Yachty, slowly unveiled itself. Along with that, the great divide between the “old heads” and the “young cats” came to surface as well.

Budden began to reveal a seemingly more rational side of himself, as Yachty expressed that he was unaware of whether or not he was in a 360 deal. Toward the end of the interview, in which Budden enters the emotional fury conducive to his character – which he attributes to his passion for hip-hop – one can vaguely hear him admitting that he was Yachty in his heyday.

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Joe Budden : “You’re going to have a problem with ‘just having fun’ in 5 years… I want you to be aware of your business, know if you’re in a 360 or not, appreciate the culture that changed your life – taking you from college dorm rooms eating f***ing oodles and noodles. I want you, who’s well-spoken and articulates himself well…” Lil Yachty : “My ni**a, chill.” Joe Budden : “I was him.”

And now, enters in the Pro-Joe Twitter.

Joe Budden yelling at Lil Yacthy is funny as hell but what he’s saying is 100? truth — Bokenza 💦🌠 (@infimiz_one) May 3, 2017

@JoeBudden is one of those people y’all love to hate 🙄 I’ve always been a fan, he’s real — Lauren Sparano (@lsparano19) May 3, 2017

@LostWizard92 @JoeBudden @lilyachty The labels pick for him, tour dates, photo shoots etc. Budden been in the game and knows what it’s about. Money motivated. — spacco (@spacco21) May 3, 2017

That @JoeBudden & @lilyachty interview is one of the most important convos in hip hop, perhaps ever. — Jersey’s Own. (@JusThoughtZ) May 3, 2017

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Very important, indeed. Pro-Boat Twitter may have been blinded by Budden’s emotionally-charged rant-filled history and let his entire point in his “interest” with Yachty fly over their heads, just like Budden’s hat did when Yachty accused Budden of “f**king up.” But, Budden is like the OG to the YG’s of hip-hop trying to steer them in the right direction—or at least in the case of Yachty. Joe maintains “anybody who’s passionate in hip-hop has to be invested in them,” referring to Yachty and the newer generation of rappers in his category.

Budden goes on to bring up a discord between the younger and older generations of hip-hop that have transpired throughout the near-five decades that the culture has thrived. When you pair that with the threat of major labels and 360 deals, it’s understandable why Budden is spewing with passion, as Yachty nonchalantly tells him to “chill” about a possible future Budden tries to warn Boat of—one which the Teenage Emotions rapper seems to be ignorant of.

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The rise and fall of Bobby Shmurda is probably one of the most prominent and relatable examples of said future. It seems Budden is just trying to warn Yachty about his label, Capital Records, “ …Cashing In & Then Bailing Out ,” like Epic Records seemingly did with the Brooklyn native.

According to the “Hot N****” rapper, “When I got locked up, I thought they were going to come for me.” But he was left with the harsh reality of being alone. Shmurda shared with the  New York Times  that he thought Epic Records would support him because he “felt that their union was more like a family affair instead of business relationship.” This is the reason for why Budden repeatedly expresses his despise for major labels, but props up subsidiaries like TDE and Yachty’s team, QC (Quality Control), who actually bring the talent to labels. Budden seems to want to educate Lil Boat to do with a 360 deal what Jay Z has done with Live Nation, while steering him away from what the “Bobby B****” spitter experienced.

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Iron sharpens iron, right?

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Lil Yachty’s Psychedelic Relaunch: ‘I Don’t Have To Be High To Make It Sound High’

By Andre Gee

I n 2016, a 19-year-old Lil Yachty emerged as a fresh-faced, red-haired maverick eagerly planting Generation Z’s flag in hip-hop . Songs like “Minnesota” intrigued many, but rap traditionalists denigrated him as a “mumble rapper” — an upstart who, they claimed, was insulting the essence of hip-hop one warbled vocal run at a time. That didn’t stop Yachty, though. In the years since, he’s kept trying new things , even as many other artists have gotten stuck retreading tired formulas. “Who cares?” he says now. “It’s going to go, or it’s not. You only have one life, bro. Just do shit.”

But he does offer a few details about the six-month recording process in Texas, New York, and elsewhere, which he says was “fun” at every juncture. At times, he played the work in progress for “heavy hitters” like Kendrick Lamar, J. Cole, A$AP Rocky, Drake, and Tyler, the Creator. “Everyone was ecstatic,” he says, “which made me feel good.”

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Do you think hip-hop could be more accepting of younger artists as they learn and grow? I don’t know. I don’t really care either. Who cares? I don’t need acceptance from nobody. People seek too much validation.

What was the initial catalyst for you to start this album? It was a phone call with Tyler that made me act on it. I always wanted to do it, but that was the battery.

What was the dynamic of that phone call? Were you like, “I want to explore something,” and he was like, “Go for it”? I don’t fully remember, but he was very motivating and inspiring. I didn’t tell him my ideas, but it was more so, “Whatever it is in your heart and in your mind that you want to do, do it. And do it fully, don’t shortcut it. Don’t cut any corners.”

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You’ve referenced psychedelics in interviews. How big a factor was that in the recording process? None. Zero. I can’t record music on drugs. I have to be fully sober. But I’ve done it enough times to know what I want. I don’t have to be high to make it sound high.

You said growing up you listened to all types of music. Did you ever hear the stigma of “That’s white-people music”? Yeah, of course. I don’t give a fuck, bro. It’s so hard to affect me or offend me. I do what I want to do. You feel me? People say this album is white-people music. Who cares, man? What is white-people music?

You’ve said you made this in part because you “wanted to be taken seriously as an artist and not just a SoundCloud rapper, not just a mumble rapper.” What would you say to people who feel like SoundCloud rappers and mumble rappers deserve to be taken as seriously as any other artists? See, that’s the thing. I can’t speak for nobody else. I’m not some spokesman for the people. I’m not vouching for anyone else’s work ethic or creativity, only mine. I want to be taken seriously. I’m not no mumble rap. I’m not just some SoundCloud rapper. I’m not speaking on all SoundCloud rappers. I’m speaking on me, you feel me? I want to make that apparent. This is for me, because everybody don’t have that work ethic. Everyone ain’t going to put the hours in to understand a new genre and how to execute something the right way. 

“See, that’s the thing. I can’t speak for nobody else. I’m not speaking on all SoundCloud rappers. I’m speaking on me, you feel me? This is for me, because everybody don’t have that work ethic.”

You’ve said you had a period of trying to prove you can rap. How do you feel about those efforts now? I love it, man. They made me a man. They made me strong. They made me care more about the craft — because I do. They made me want to learn, be better, sharpen my sword.

Did it ever get to a point with that stigma where it was hard to navigate your career? I don’t think nothing’s hard in life. It just took work and effort, and I still feel like I got more work to put in when it comes to rap and how people perceive me. I care less, though.

How much does the dynamic that you’re talking about here have to do with the stigma against rappers when it comes to award shows and radio play and festivals?  For me, that’s zero. I don’t care about none of that shit. I just make all types of music. It has nothing to do with the fruits and labors that don’t come with being a rapper, none of that. I like to make all music. That’s all it is, totally. It ain’t got nothing to do with not getting the love or respect or not being invited to an award show.

Going forward with your creative process, do you feel like you’ll have that motivation with every album you make, to prove something to a certain audience? Not necessarily. I didn’t make this album to prove that I could. I also want to be taken seriously. But I didn’t make it like, “Oh, man, I need them to take me serious. Let me make this type of album.” I just wanted to make a great album, and I felt like personally, I could do it better this way than if I made a rap album. 

How are things going with your label, Concrete Boyz? That’s next for me. That’s all I care about right now. That’s where we are every day, in the studio getting established together. We got some special artists, and they’re fresh faces. I want to make sure when we drop this, it’s hot, because they’re fire and it’s fresh. You’re gonna hear some fresh sounds. That’s my next project, in the summertime. 

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Have you always been discerning about how much you put yourself out there? No. I got 1,000 interviews on the internet. I hate it. I was young. I didn’t know nothing. Back then, I was trying to be the spokesman for the new generation because no one else wanted to talk. I felt, “I’m going to stand up. I’m going to speak.” But [now] I don’t speak for nobody but me.

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