A$AP Rocky is one of the most talented hip-hop artists out right now and has been since he first came on the scene with Live Love A$AP in 2011. He stays out of the public eye most of the time and just focuses on his art, but now he lets us in on what’s been running through his mind including his musical chemistry and relationship with Tyler, The Creator, preserving A$AP Yams legacy, not being around most of these rappers and new music.
Rocky illuminated the late A$AP Yams vision to Genius for the group’s Cozy Tapes Vol. 1:
“Yams’ vision was just what we doing right now. Me being so eclectic, it shouldn’t be my vision because I have my own vision. It’s all about us moving as a group collectively to where it reveals and it shows everybody’s individual personality. I don’t want ASAP to look like a bunch of mini-mes because I came out first, and that’s the Yammy vision, just to be ourselves and keep it moving.”
Rocky then goes in on not messing around with rap artists because of virtually how fake people can be when it comes to industry stuff:
“Like Tyler, The Creator, that’s my nigga. ScHoolboy Q, French Montana, Danny Brown—they’re my bros right there. But I don’t really fuck with a lot of these rap niggas man, because they… I’m not even gonna get into that, but what I will say is, I got darkness in my heart but I’m not just gonna let that take over and be the thing that reflects who I am as a person. I gotta be Yams to an extent now. I’ve gotta be the one who shakes hands and kisses babies and shit, and keeps relationships poppin’.”
The A$AP frontman then went on the make it clear he values his close friends and collaborators; one in particular Tyler, The Creator and their most recent collab “Telephone Calls” where he tells his rap comrade to step his flow up:
“Yeah, I said that because that’s the truth. It was funny how the song happened. We (Lil Yachty, Lil Uzi Vert, and Yung Gleesh) all was just at the house. […] It was probably like 7 p.m. and Tyler walks in the house like [imitating Tyler] ‘What the fuck, dude? What’s everyone passed out for? Did you guys have a party or some shit?’ I started playing music. Mind you, Tyler don’t smoke or nothing. I got this nigga around all my ghetto friends, shooters an’ shit. This nigga’s on the Segway like, ‘Who’s that guy with the red hair? He sounds like Andre 3000!’ I said, ‘That’s Lil Yachty.’ He said, ‘Lil what?’”
Check out the full interview with Genius here.
