Recently, rap super vet KRS-One
and multi-platinum sensation Nelly locked horns once again in a second round of
lyrical warfare. Here, Nelly discusses beef that remains by-and-large untouched
on his latest album, Nellyville.
AHH: You once said, regarding haters, you want to know why they are against
you. What do you say about somebody like KRS-One for example?
N: To him, it�s different because he is one of the elders of this game who
moved up and paved the way for a lot of guys, not just me. But to say that and
look at how he is going about it, it kind of slaps you in the face to be like,
�I straight up was like respecting what you was doing and trying to put down
but here you being a blatant hypocrite about a whole situation.� And when I
say hypocrite, all you have to do is look at the first album [Criminal Minded]
� pick up the first album. Just pick it up, listen to it and look at it. You
know, KRS, he got the guns and all that. I�m like, �what kind of message
were you trying to send?�
So, it was cool for you [KRS-One] to do it then, but not cool to do it now?
After you used to for what you could use it for and then you get to a point
where you want to turn your back on the people who are doing it. I guess he
thought he was going to get into it with somebody who wasn�t going to do their
homework. You got plenty of bones that�s pushed back in that closet.
He called me a commercial rapper�He�s the Sprite man as we all know. He did
Sprite commercials and all that. Now let me get this right, you don�t like the
people who are buying my album, but you will make money for the man whose kids
are buying my album. It doesn�t make sense. So, it�s okay for you to sell
soda, but it�s not okay for me to sell records?
It doesn�t make sense and I guess he thought he was getting into it with
somebody who really wasn�t going to break down the scenario, dirty. You
can�t be serious. You first came out with �Boogie Down Productions will
always get paid [lyrics from �Criminal Minded],� you know? These are your
lines. �You have to have style and learn to be original and everybody�s
gonna wanna diss you. [lyrics from BDP�s �My Philosophy�]� Wow [KRS],
you are absolutely right! If I am commercial rap isn�t Puffy commercial rap [
1998�s "Step Into A World" remix]? Why are you doing a remix with
the shiny suit man? WHY? It�s okay for you to do whatever you wanna do but
when somebody does what they wanna do, they considered �oh well,� I got to
come down on him, because HE said so. Or just because the people that are
backing him, but do you know you are backing a hypocrite? If you know you are
backing a hypocrite, then so be it.
I think it�s terrible. If the Sugar Hill Gang ain�t complaining about what I
am doing, how do you have the right to complain? They just kicking it. So you
come and you change their rules? You going to come in and change their rules?
You arrogant than a muthafu**a, you know what I�m saying? They made it
possible for you and you going to come in and change their rules? If they
ain�t got no problems with me then, PEACE. I�ve met them, they have no
problem with what I am doing.
AHH: What did The Sugar Hill Gang say to you?
N: Keep doing what you are doing. I don�t know what he is basing this from.
Who better than somebody that has had huge pop success � and I am going say
� pop just because of popular music. I am an easy target for him and for his
backers. �He is an easy target, I can get my people all riled up over this
guy. �He�s done songs with the N�Synch guys.� It�s not about the music
no more? I thought this was about the music. Was the song hot? A lot of people
thought the song was hot. So you telling me all those people were wrong? Its
like, �YO, who are you, fam?�
Who are you to say this? OK, you paved the way and people are grateful for that,
but the game is bigger than you. You are not bigger than the game. And that�s
where he gets it twisted, he acts like he is bigger than the game. What where
they looking at when Run DMC did walk this way? He was dissing Run DMC [at the
time] � they are pioneers! And they put this down! They put this down and you
want to criticize them? They founded the Limp Bizkit and Method Mans, the
Eve�s and Gwen Stefani, the Nellys and the N�Synch�s�
Everybody knows where this originated. If this was meant to be in one place, it
would still be in the Bronx. It would still be in New York City. It�s a youth
thing. The youth came up with it, the youth built it and the youth are the ones
that you can�t divide. You can�t make a 12-year-old or a 14-year-old divide
between KRS-one and Nelly.
AHH: It does seem to boil down to some type of generational gap.
N: That�s what I am saying, but to the people that are saying, �F**k
Nelly,� or �Nelly shouldn�t be dissing KRS-One,� what is your basis for
saying that? That�s all I ask. People heard the �Rock The Mic� remix and
thought I attacked him, no, he was doing underground sh*t [dissing me]. It just
so happens that whatever I do now is just news. When I did the �Rock The
Mic� remix, I�m just rippin� it like anybody else. Before I know it its,
�He�s attacking KRS-One!� I�m not attacking nobody, I�m defending
[myself]. Then you got people that want to tell you what you can and cannot do.
I just gotta let mufu**as know you do not own this culture. This is bigger than
any one person. The two best people to grab the microphone died and deal with
this culture is no longer here. So if this game can go on without Tupac and
Biggie, I know it can go on without KRS-One. You can�t be serious.
I�m like [KRS-One] just mouthin� now. You reaching. You trying to get on. He
does this sh*t every five years. He did this sh*t with Shan. He did this sh*t
with L [LL Cool J]. You do this sh*t. This is what you do. Don�t get me wrong
[KRS] is very respectable, but to know that he would go to this length like this
just shows what kind of person he is. You real cocky dog, like you own this
game. Like �can�t nobody touch me.� He acts like he can�t be touched.
You got it twisted. I try to keep it on a different note, because I could of did
a whole album dissin� [KRS-One] but then I would have let him win, because he
took me out of my character. Nah, I am going to do my album, and I�ll deal
with you later. I�ll catch you on a mixtape, but my album? Oh, no Nelly�s
gonna do his album his way. If he want to do whole albums, you can do whole
albums. That just goes to show you he ain�t got sh*t else to talk about.
AHH: Let�s switch gears. Do you and Eminem still have beef?
N: The thing with me and Eminem was a big mix up. We got on the phone and it was
a wrap. It was some bullsh*t he say/ she say sh*t. I was young in the game and
it�s the same thing with me. My temper is just like that. I been like that my
whole life. I was always the littlest nigga in the crew. I always ran with the
niggas that was 5 years/ 6 years older than me - way bigger, way taller. I just
got to this height. I�m about 5�9� and a half - 5�9� if I take these
Nikes off. The only way big niggas gonna let you run with them is if you can
hold your own. And I held my own and that�s what allowed me to do that. But my
temper is quick � its like �Nigga, don�t try to test me.� That�s what
that situation was and I had to calm down a lot in this game knowing that people
will attack you and people will take advantage. That could be a weak point for
me.
AHH: What about Pretty Willie? I thought it was interesting that he is from
St. Louis, sounds a lot like you and he is signed to the same label as you.
N: That just goes to show you about the record industry. They laugh, they love
you, they claim it�s a family thing, then they pull shit like that. I live and
I learn. I�m learning now how far I gotta reach out and touch muf***as.
Don�t get me wrong, I don�t knock �nary nigga for making an honest living.
I think every brother deserves a chance. But, if you want to take anything from
the Nelly situation, take the originality factor out of it. Try to do something
on your own. You [Pretty Willie] not trying to do you, you trying to do me. And
I�m not saying duke don�t have talent. I don�t hate on duke. I never had a
bad word to say about him. I have been asked this question plenty of times and
I�ve never had a bad word to say about him. And I wont say anything bad about
him. I am going to let him do him and me do me. But, I�m just saying
originality is the key.
Source: Allhiphop.com