Donald Glover, acting as Childish Gambino, is raising eyebrows in hip-hop circles after singing the praises and practically taylor-making how to fix rap music at its current state. Engaging in a candid dialogue with her, Gambino railed against the current atmosphere of hip-hop – directly calling out rap beef between Kendrick Lamar and Drake.
On that note he adds, “It’s still fun. Hip-hop is supposed to be this versatile thing where you just get together and have fun so I always find it weird when people turn into some kind of moral high ground type shit, beefing with each other all the time-what is that for? It’s akin to watching wrestling, he said the drama is entertaining but it seems so hollow and negative. The analogy is a recurring theme throughout this record, as Gambino describes how his frustration with these beefs. is that while they are intriguing the nit and gritty of it steers away what he feels hip-a-hop should be all about creativity, positivity.
Childish Gambino commented on the rap beef between Kendrick and Drake and pointed out the lack of “fun” in the current generation.
“Even this year, the most fun we’ve had was from a fight. Was from a song from a fight, from a rap beef. Which I enjoyed every minute of… It’s very… PIC.TWITTER.COM/FDRGOOZSFY
— RapTV (@Rap) JUNE 27, 2024
There was plenty of positive as well, for Gambino. It also elucidated larger problems in the hip-hop industry, as he mentioned how white artists appeared to operate under a separate rule-book from their black peers: “You see examples like Iggy Azalea and G-Eazy, people who are prospering but not resonating with some young black listeners they’re ‘noble negroes‘ whose listlessness carries an uptick,” he observed. Gambino felt this inconsistency is indicative of hip hop “needing to be elevated” and that a turn for the better in styles was warranted.
The bad blood between Kendrick Lamar and Drake is symptomatic of the negativity Gambino rails against. The legendary rap beef has served as a hot topic of discussion in hip-hop circles and Gambino only adds to the fire with his remarks. Drake responded by claiming that despite being an instant success, Gambino’s Billboard No. 1 charting “This Is America” was overrated because it began as a diss track against him – Drake firing back highlights the periphery of bad blood between him and his counterpart, as well as various other issues Gambino has brought up about hip-hop.
Through all the drama at least a little silver lining exists. A little over a week ago, Kendrick’s label honcho Top Dawg declared the beef officially done a cultural victory in that it was really just a music conflict and nothing more. It is this resolution that mirrors Gambino’s vision for a new, artistic approach to hip-hop as the genre heads in an optimistic direction.
This is a necessary wake-up-call for the industry and Childish Gambino, whose comments on hip-hop in its present state are prevalent throughout as well. Gambino calls for a future that emphasizes creativity and positivity in his attempt to redefine hip-hop as something bigger than just conflicts and superficial drama. It might inspire artists to craft more artistically composed contributions, and so enrich The Ghettos. Gambino cleverly captured as much: “we need hip hop to be fun again. and it needs a place for all that other stuff too.”
