Top Dawg Entertainment is home to some of Hip Hop’s most prolific and decorated acts. Kendrick Lamar, Schoolboy Q, Ab-Soul, SZA, Jay Rock have all released critically-acclaimed albums with multiple Grammy wins and nominations between them. Even second-generation artists like SiR and Isaiah Rashad have become stars in their own right, but as prestigious as the label is, they aren’t immune to having off years.
The last full-length project we got from the camp came from SiR’s Chasing Summer in 2019. Other than that, the label has been pretty quiet on new music releases. Fans are awaiting any news of K Dot’s forthcoming album, and SZA had listeners in a frenzy on Twitter when she released the visuals to her new song “Hit Different” featuring Ty Dolla $ign in September.
People began wondering if there were problems within the camp as rumors started circulating on the blogs that artists wanted out and more. However, there was one artist in particular who feels he held down the fort while the label was going through whatever it was they were going through.
REASON, who signed with the label in 2018, tells HipHopDX that TDE still has a pulse in 2020 because of him while also admitting the crew was going through a weird time.
“I almost feel like I hold that place right now as the glue, and I’m always going to give that honesty. I’m not saying it like I’m crowning myself, but niggas wouldn’t had no music from TDE this year if it wasn’t for me,” REASON said confidently. “New Beginnings is the first TDE drop, and I gave niggas the Q verse, I gave niggas two ‘Soul’ verses, I tried to get diverse and gave you an Isaiah verse with JID.”
“I did that because even though the label’s going through a weird time, that we’re coming out of now, I still believe in this shit, and I’m still holding that flag,” he added.
When asked to compare what NBA team he would compare TDE to and which player he would be on the team, REASON picked the Golden State Warriors and likened himself to their small forward, Andrew Wiggins. Everyone knows how great they are, but certain situations were unavoidable, and the team had to shake off the kinks to return to form.
“But I feel like Andrew Wiggins in a sense that when Steph wasn’t playing and when Klay wasn’t playing, I was still out there dropping 30. And a lot of people didn’t want to see that. But regardless of any of that, I focus on the game and keep trying to drop 30. And to give some foreshadowing to it, I feel like the Warriors are going to be the best team in the league next year, and I feel the same way about us.”
Check back with HipHopDX for our full interview with REASON. In the meantime check out his Instagram page and follow him @reasontde and stream his latest album.
Well… the problem with TDE is not merely evolving around Kendrick and Dave Free new ventures… It’s about a fort of talended artists who cannot evolve in their career as they should be because Top Dawg and Punch are managing the label like fuckers! In which label artists are dropping an album every mothafuckin 4/5 years?! For instance Ab-Soul who is a super talented lyricist dropped in 2016… WTF?? The same goes for Isaiah Rashad and Jay Rock who have to wait 4 years b/w each album! How an artist can developp is craft properly in this kind of management??! FOH! And I bet that’s one of the main reason Dave Free left…
Well… the problem with TDE is not merely evolving around Kendrick and Dave Free new ventures… It’s about a fort of talended artists who cannot evolve in their career as they should be because Top Dawg and Punch are managing the label like fuckers! In which label artists are dropping an album every mothafuckin 4/5 years?! For instance Ab-Soul who is a super talented lyricist dropped in 2016… WTF?? The same goes for Isaiah Rashad and Jay Rock who have to wait 4 years b/w each album! How an artist can developp his craft properly with this kind of management??! FOH! And I bet that’s one of the main reason Dave Free left…
I agree, I think it’s a shame that the artists especially Ab, Zay (my fav), and Rock have long gaps bw dropping albums. Not sure if it’s by design or financial reasons. It definitely does make you wonder what’s going on behind the scenes.
The only one who’s had release issues that’s been public has been SZA. SZA makes sense. It’s R&B they play by different rules. They held her album back even though she wanted to drop it and look what happened when they did. Succes. Critically and commercially. Who else is fighting to drop an album (that’s done) and isn’t being allowed to?
Dropping 30? Bruh, no one knows you. The only time you get talked about is the two times you name dropped other artists in your song. This dude a bench player
So…..Like Andrew Wiggins basically…So he’s kind of right..No where near the BEST on the team, but a solid role player…I like a confident artist. What you want him to say? “Im trash, don’t listen to my music? Lol”
Great article
Prolific? Talented? Waiting for TDE music? How are they so prolific and talented when half of the people on that label never even dropped a full project or any classic songs for that matter?
Kendrick is the only semi decent artist on that label and he left and started his own label. No one is checking for anyone else Kendrick was the obvious bread winner. You think wack Sza and Schoolboy Q will carry that label to heights higher then Kendrick took it? No. These cats have been done for years.
I agree, cept bout the schoolboy q part…he’s dropped all good albums…
In the bizarro world, yes.
shut the fuck up clown
Has this guy seen golden state lately?
why would you liken yourself to Andrew Wiggens, and when did Wiggens ever drop 30 as a Warrior? that has never happened.
Lol he Danny Green then, sorry bout ur luck bruh
Griselda is the best active rap group and it’s not even close
Griselda is definitely hot right now with 3 quality albums dropping in the last 6 weeks, but TDE has been doing this for a long time. Over a decade to be exact.
i start my online bussiness with USA contries………???.????????.???
The warriors had 4 all stars, this crew only has 2 and Reason ain’t one of them. They also dont dominate like the warriors because, even though I dont like him, Drake and OVO outsell everybody. His crew doesn’t even have the most or best shooters, so there goes that. Maybe if you want to compare TDE to last season’s trash ass warriors (trash due to injury, they will come back next season) then you have a point because that was 1 man carrying the squad while everyone else brought the team down to a terrible record. What a clown.
who cares about outselling? you a sellout type? that’s what you’re about?
guess I see how you landed on this opinion, then.
That’s a clown statement. I’m just saying that TDE is nowhere near the Warriors. In any way you try to relate the 2, the Warriors are better at basketball than TDE is at music. Being Wiggins isnt something to be happy about, that team was trash this year. 19/20 the only version of the warriors you can compare TDE to (and he did so Smh at myself but it isnt something to be proud of). In terms of talent, nah, tde is weak. In terms of success, nah, other artists and labels have that too. I dont like Drake, I stated that already but he is bigger and the label is bigger. Actual shooters, none over there at that label so you cant compare to the warriors that way. Reason may be a good rapper, but he’s nothing special, nothing you wont find on a few street corners in pretty much any urban city.
You sound foolish Reason has one of the best rap albums out right now. TDE has a stacked roster of artist thats all good in their own right. Yes K.Dot is the front runner but you can’t discount the quality content the whole camp has been putting out consistently for years.
“All good in their own right” is code for “they mad weak but someone somewhere likes them”. Reason’s album is not one of the best. Also his cloutchasing in the lead up to the album release just added to my dislike for this dude.
Isaiah Rashad, Ab-Soul, and Reason have been far more interesting to me than Kendrick. For years now.
Reason is dope. I’d rather see another Reason album than another DAMN. Yizzzawn.