Update (November 30, 2018): Jay-Z collaborated with Meek Mill on a track for the Philly rapper's new album, Championships, that left many rap fans debating whether Hov was taking shots at his old friend Kanye West.
The song, "What's Free," contained lines such as: "No red hat, don’t Michael and Prince me and Ye./They separate you when you got Michael and Prince’s DNA." and "I ain’t one of these house n****s you bought./My house like a resort, my house bigger than yours./My spo — c’mon, man — my route better, of course."
Many argued Jay's words referenced Kanye's infamous meeting with President Trump and his seeming support for the president's conservative agenda. Hov, in a rare move, took to Twitter to set the record straight, as this interpretation of the lyrics became more and more popular, Pitchfork reports.
The line clearly meant don’t pit me against my brothers no matter what our differences are (red hat) now go pick up Meek album . Drake and Meek on there together .
— Mr. Carter (@S_C_) November 30, 2018
"The line clearly meant don't pit me against my brother no matter what our differences are (red hat) now go pick up Meek album. Drake and Meek on there together," the rapper wrote. Drake and Meek feuded after Meek accused the Canadian rapper of using ghostwriters. They have since made up.
Kanye replied to his friend's tweet with one of his own, suggesting a new collaboration between the two men could be on the table. "Throne 2," the Chicago rapper wrote, referencing the pair's previous joint project, Watch the Throne.
Throne 2 ????????♂️
— ye (@kanyewest) November 30, 2018
Jay has made his opposition to the president and his policies clear; as the BBC reports, the rapper once called Trump "a joke." In recent months, Kanye has walked back his support of the president to some degree, tweeting in October, "My eyes are now wide open and now realize I’ve been used to spread messages I don’t believe in."
My eyes are now wide open and now realize I’ve been used to spread messages I don’t believe in. I am distancing myself from politics and completely focusing on being creative !!!
— ye (@kanyewest) October 30, 2018
Original: Philly rapper Meek Mill just released his long-awaited new album, Championships, and one particular track has the folks talking.
In "What's Free," featuring Jay-Z and Rick Ross, Hov delivers a couple of verses seemingly directed at Kanye West. The two musicians, who've been close friends for years, appear to have been at odds for the past couple of years, particularly in light of Kanye's nauseating support of Donald Trump. The fifth song on the 18-track album includes a verse from Jay that compares him and West to legendary superstars Michael Jackson and Prince.
“No red hat, don’t Michael and Prince me and Ye. They separate you when you got Michael and Prince’s DNA. I ain’t one of these house n****s you bought. My house like a resort, my house bigger than yours. My spo—c’mon, man—my route better, of course,” Jay-Z raps.
He later added lyrics that touched upon West’s relationship with Trump.
“My hair free, carefree. N****s ain’t near free. Enjoy your chains, what’s your employer name? With the hairpiece?” he said.
Fans took to Twitter to share their reactions:
One of ya'll rappity rap dudes decipher this for me. Is it a jab?? Or is he saying dont pit 2 greats against each other like they would Mijac and Prince? Or they legitimately don't like each other like Mijac and Prince didn't fuck with each other??
— Don Cornelius (@big_ounze) November 30, 2018
Hov on this “what’s free” record!!!! Str8 headshots at Kanye!!!! #CHAMPIONSHIPS
pic.twitter.com/FeyOkcrvtk— OG Zack Morris (@EarlFresher) November 30, 2018
If anything he is telling YE they are manipulating him against his own people, like a house N*gger, and Jay is saying they can't do him like that because he sees what they are trying to do. .
— Robert Littal (@BSO) November 30, 2018
That Hov verse is gonna take at least ten spins to unpack. pic.twitter.com/c3zFzZ7dpi
— ™️ (@TomMurphyNews) November 30, 2018
Days before the release of Championships, Mill shared with Vulture his thoughts about West’s October meeting with Trump.
"I don’t think [Kanye] addressed anything that had to do with what was tough on justice reform. He wasn’t prepared for it, and he shouldn’t have done it. I had phone calls with Kanye for hours,” he stated.
The 31-year-old also said West tried convincing him also to do “things like that” and that his conversations with the "Jesus Walks" rapper's wife, Kim Kardashian West, were promising, but he couldn’t reason with the couple.
“He was trying to get me to go to things like that. His conversations with Kim Kardashian West, he says, were more promising — She knew a lot more information than I thought she would know, [but] I just couldn’t reason with them,” he continued.
The album's release serves as yet another victory for Meek Mill, who was released from prison earlier this year. The Dreams and Nightmares artist was sentenced to two to four years in prison due to a parole violation last year. Many celebrities, including Jay-Z, came to his defense to address the ruling. After serving five months, the artist celebrated his prison release in April.
"I'd like to thank God, my family, my friends, my attorneys, my team at Roc Nation including Jay-Z, Desiree Perez, my good friend Michael Rubin, my fans, The Pennsylvania Supreme Court and all my public advocates for their love, support and encouragement during this difficult time," he shared in a statement.
Check out the track below:
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