JAY-Z “fought” to keep Fridayy on DJ Khaled’s “GOD DID,” despite the producer almost removing his hook from the song entirely.
The rising singer spoke about starring on the Grammy-nominated track in an interview with Angela Yee’s Way Up, and revealed that had it not been for Hov putting his foot down, his vocals likely would have been scrapped.
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“JAY-Z’s cooler than a lot of little n-ggas,” Fridayy said. “You know how little n-ggas be in the game on some cocky shit? JAY-Z really like a cool n-gga. When I’m next to him, I don’t feel like he a celebrity. [He comes across like] a regular person, saying regular jokes.”
He continued, “I remember during the [Grammys] performance, we’re taking a picture and he’s like, ‘You know I fought for you right?’ I’m like, ‘What you mean?’ He’s like, ‘They was trying to take you off the record.’ Dead-ass serious.
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“But Khaled been told me JAY-Z fought for you. But hearing it from him, he was like, ‘Bro, when I heard your voice it just sounded hungry.’ And then he gon’ tell me, ‘When you make it, don’t forget about me.'”
Watch his interview below:
“GOD DID” has proven to be a blessing for Fridayy, who recently celebrated its success by buying his mom a new house. In the music video for his song “Momma,” the Philadelphia native can be seen signing the paperwork for the property and then visiting it in person, which brought a huge smile to his mother’s face.
“Out of Errything I accomplished this year, don’t nothin hit like this one,” he wrote on Instagram. “MOM I LOVE YOU, This what I dreamed of doin for you since I was a kid. I watched you go through the most and never complained.”
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“Chasin this dream I never really thought bout what it’d do for me but what it could do for you & the fam. This why I go so hard. This just a small portion of what you deserve. Love you ‘MOMMA.’”
“GOD DID !” DJ Khaled fittingly wrote in his comments section, while O.T. Genasis added: “God bless you.”
Also featuring Lil Wayne, Rick Ross, John Legend and a show-stealing, four-minute verse from JAY-Z, “GOD DID” peaked at No. 17 on the Billboard Hot 100 following its release last summer and has since been certified gold.
The star-studded posse cut was also nominated for three awards at this year’s Grammys, including Song of the Year, Best Rap Song and Best Rap Performance. However, it went home empty-handed after losing out to Kendrick Lamar’s “The Heart Part 5” in the aforementioned rap categories and Bonnie Raitt’s “Just Like That” in the Song of the Year race.
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Still, Khaled and co. had the last laugh by closing out the Grammys ceremony by delivering an epic, Last Supper-inspired performance of the song, which JAY-Z called a huge moment for Hip Hop.
“For the culture, for Hip Hop, we got to do that,” he said in an interview with TIDAL. “This ain’t your traditional song. … It’s not your traditional structure of what you think a song that would be nominated for Song of the Year would sound like. It’s not what you expect. And for the culture and for Hip Hop, we got to do that.”
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He continued: “We owe that. This thing that changed our lives. We got to do that. A four-minute verse performed at the Grammys. We owe it to the culture, and it ain’t even a burden. It’s a blessing. It’s easy and fun.”
