Pusha T didn't mince words in a recent Apple Music interview with Ebro Darden. "The funniest thing about your name is my name," The Clipse lyricist previewed on June 18, making it very clear that he's not even a little bit here for the way Travis Scott maneuvers in the world of rap. "I just thought it was a little disrespectful," Push told me, describing an uninvited visit by Scott to a Clipse session in Paris with Pharrell Williams. "We don't want you here, to be perfectly honest.
When Pusha T speaks, he doesn't typically chatter lightly. And this time, he came with receipts, not just the criticism of Scott for his Paris cameo wholesale but an unpeeling of the curtain of what he feels is a history of disloyal actions from Scott and what he saw as Scott taking advantage of the situation.
"Me, I don't like rappers that don't rap," Pusha said. "Like, I don't want to hear that. That sting is all the more potent when it's coming from one of rap's most revered lyricists. It isn't just about bars but about principles. And as for Pusha, coming to the studio only to float on down with the vibe sans lyrics? That's a no-go.
Pusha tore into Scott's involvement in this generation's three-way rap beef, wagging a finger at Scott for hyping up the infamous "Like That" song, namely for his support in dropping it at Rolling Loud. This track transplanted itself on the Kendrick Lamar vs. Drake battlefield. "I don't want nobody who doesn't rap to egg nothing on," he said. "You don't rap. Mind your own business, rapper .
Another sore spot was Scott's knack for inserting himself into beefs that aren't even his. Pusha turned heads when he said Drake took shots at Kanye West, Scott's mentor, on "Sicko Mode" while Scott was still on the track. The message? Please choose a side and stay on it.
If there was any doubt, Pusha wiped it away in a recent GQ interview. He related the tale of Scott playing his Utopia LP for them in Paris but nicely omitting the Drake diss on "Meltdown." "That lack of loyalty. Travis has that," he said. "To me, it rea just like … he's a w#####. He's a w####." Push didn't have to complete the word, but the meaning was loud and clear.
"He doesn't have no picks, no loyalty to nobody," Pusha said. He'll jump all over whatever he thinks is hot or hang onto whatever he thinks is hot. But those are the games you can play with those people … We are not in your mix. Keep your mix over there."
It's not for Pusha T; it's simply a matter of who's penciling what or headlining festivals, but it's one of integrity. And he's establishing a bright dividing line in the hallowed space of rap beef.
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