Day 113: "Grove St. Party" feat. Lil B – Sorry 4 Tha Wait, 2011
We spend a lot of time on here discussing Lil Wayne's greatness in terms of bars; at least so far there's been less discussion of Wayne's greatness in terms of his influence. Yet as vast as his catalogue is, Lil Wayne's reach is even vaster. Drake, Young Thug, Future, Nicki Minaj—these are just some of the high-profile artists who owe a direct creative debt to Wayne, never mind the people they have in turn influenced. Another artist less frequently named in the lineage of post-Wayne, artists, though, is Lil B, himself a dramatically influential figure. Just as Wayne did for the mid-00s, Lil B basically shaped what it meant to be a rapper online in the early 10s. He influenced artists like Frank Ocean, Earl Sweatshirt, A$AP Rocky, Mac Miller, Vince Staples, Chance the Rapper, and Lil Yachty, and his effects on the sound of contemporary rap range even further. If Wayne is responsible for Auto-Tune's creep into the world of high rap artistry, B can surely lay claim to the rise of more ambient production and, given his penchant for hooks that were just someone's name repeated over and over, a whole wing of Migos-esque songwriting as well. Plus, B more or less invented using memes to market yourself, he popularized the word "swag," he made up the cooking dance, and he espoused a philosophy of "based" positivity that influenced many of the aforementioned artists as much as if not more than his actual music.
Lil B is the subject of a video piece that I worked on and that Noisey released today called Lil B: Believe in Earth. The video dives into some of B's influence and explores what it means to be based, and I would strongly urge everyone to watch it both because it is good and also so that I can keep my job. One thing the piece does not go into too deeply is who influenced Lil B (although he does shout out Mac Dre and the Jacka). There's nothing, in particular, about Lil Wayne, who is perhaps B's biggest influence.
Lil B has consistently claimed—from 2009 up to present day—is the best rapper alive. He's also a big fan of Mack Maine, and he even said Rebirth was based. In 2010, he tweeted "lil wayne deserves to be worshiped," and the same year he compared Wayne to Mick Jagger. In particular, he's indebted to early Wayne—he's a fan of 500 Degreez and even once tweeted about SQ1. He also put Lil Wayne in a list of the Based God's chosen artists that included Antony and the Johnsons(!). Then there's this tweet:
But Lil B isn't just a fan of Wayne in theory, he also puts his love of Wayne—and everything classic New Orleans—into practice, channeling bounce music and recording odes to New Orleans slang and culture. Much like Lil Wayne, Lil B isn't necessarily given the credit he deserves as a real rap scholar, but his knowledge, particularly of regional rap subcultures, is immense. That knowledge extends to a broader level: It's no accident that Lil B, the most independent rapper of the internet generation, borrows the Pen & Pixel aesthetic for his album covers. He sees himself in the lineage of the independent artists and labels who used the real Pen & Pixel, particularly No Limit Records and Cash Money. And like Lil Wayne, B realized that flooding the internet with music was the best way to build his fame and establish his rap bona fides.
In 2011, that marketing had reached its apex, and Lil B was one of the most closely watched artists in rap, at least on the internet. He was the thrilling up-and-coming talent. Meanwhile, Lil Wayne was newly out of jail. When news broke that the two were collaborating on a track—Lil B tweeted "Lil Wayne Feat Lil B COMING SOON #BASED AMAZING HISTORY HAS BEEN MADE!!!! WESTCOAST SWAG SWAG #BASEDGOD! SHOUTS OUT YM CASH MONEY - Lil B"—it seemed only right, the passing of a mantle of sorts.
A few weeks later, the highly anticipated (at least by me and the two or three Lil B fans I hung out with) track finally dropped. It remains the sole released collaboration between the two artists, and it remains, as it was on the day it came out, both a legendary, rare moment of rap history and, musically, a bit of a disappointment. It's a freestyle over Waka Flocka Flame's "Grove Street Party" (timelessly good but, at that point, probably at the nadir of its relevance), and Lil Wayne tackles it with his usual effortless charm. There are a few good moments—"no champagne but you know my flag rosé / swagger on steroids / Canseco, Jose" and "come to your funeral kill everybody but the preacher" come to mind—but nothing too memorable until you get to B's verse, which yielded one of the most #rare and legendary Lil B lyrics: "65 hoes on my dick bitch it's Christmas." Lil B also says, "bruh off top I'm a wolfpack hitta / man my life just a painting and I paint you a picture," which is glorious.
To be honest, though, it's not the best B verse either. My favorite thing about this song is just Lil B's sheer excitement at being involved. You can hear him tripping over his words because he can't believe he's in the room with Lil Wayne and Mack Maine. Why nobody thought maybe B should have taken another crack at a verse after recording this is beyond me, but I appreciate the decision for the simple fact that it highlights Lil B's love of rap and in particular Cash Money. Who among us would not be geeking out if Lil Wayne brought us into the studio? It's honestly insulting to Wayne there aren't more verses alongside him where the other person loses their shit rather than trying to keep up. And if anyone was going to channel what everyone should be thinking when they're in a room with Lil Wayne, of course it was going to be the Based God. Let us cherish this rare collaboration, a legendary moment for rap. Watch Lil B: Believe in Earth here.
Follow Kyle Kramer on Twitter.
from noisey http://ift.tt/2jCxYg7
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