John Legend Compares Rick Ross To Isaac Hayes, Says He’s “Very Soulful”

    Maybach Music Group head honcho Rick Ross has likely faced numerous comparisons in his music career, but the latest comparison, made by crooner John Legend, is surely a first for the rapper. During a recent appearance on the Russ Parr Morning Show, Legend compared Ross to the late soul icon Isaac Hayes.

    Legend backed his comparison by stating that Ross is very similar to “a soul artist” thanks to the way in which he uses his voice on records.

    “I feel like Rick Ross is kinda like a soul artist in a way because the way he uses music is very soulful. I was listening to his album yesterday and he just knows how to pick the right music to put around his voice. He has a very soulful voice. He’s almost like an Isaac Hayes of Hip Hop or something,” Legend explained.

    As an artist experienced in songwriting, Legend also touched on the struggles songwriters typically face in their careers, which he says they don’t have “much control over.”

    “The thing about being a songwriter is you’re working for someone else,” said the singer. “They’re your client and you gotta hope that they pick your song. You gotta hope that they make it a single. You gotta hope all these things. And you don’t have as much control over your destiny.”

    John Legend is currently at work on his next studio album, Love In The Future.

    RELATED: Rick Ross & John Legend Shortlisted For 2013 Academy Awards

    127 thoughts on “John Legend Compares Rick Ross To Isaac Hayes, Says He’s “Very Soulful”

    1. Watch all the bitch niggas on this site will run up to hate on Ross. Rozay got cosigns from more niggas than yall favorite rappers. Jay, Nas, Ye, Cash Money, & John Legend all cosigned Ross. Your favorite rappers are out there startin fake beefs while Ross releasing classics and shit.

      Bawse!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

      1. Dont forget Ross got co-signs from the Miami Dade Police

        How else do you explain not even getting a ticket after drunkenly crashing his whip into a building while in possession of a loaded unregistered firearm.

      2. Fake beefs you say? You mean like when Ross dissed 50 Cent out of no where just to get attention? LOL

    2. HHDX forgot to add the picture of Legend smoking crack before he made this comment.

      i love legend but a deep voice does not make you a soul artist.

    3. How is Rick Ross even souful? He sounds awful when he tries to rap; he can’t even sing.. I definitely respect John Legend but what was he smoking to think like that?

    4. Rick Ross doesn’t sound soulful. He’s sounds like a dying man or bear trying to gasp for breath.

      1. And you probably sound like a retarded field worker who struggles to pronounce words properly.

      2. And you sound like dickriders sucking of Officer Rapey’s titties. The truth is that Ross isn’t soulful but rapping like he’s dying.

    5. John Legend is fucking vomit and Rick Ross is worse; to compare him to Isaac Hayes is goddamn ludicrous. Two ignorant niggas sitting in a tree…

    6. This is what media constantly does.

      JL basically says: Rick Ross RESEMBLES the way Isaac is soulfoul the music he raps over is soulfoul.

      Media: JL Compared Rick Ross to Isaac

      Dumb Hip-Hop Fans: NIGGA GTFOH!!! I HATE YOU!!! Isaac Hayes is 20x better than fat ass Officer Ricky!!!! WAAAAAH!!

      1. That’s on point. People don’t get in-depth in the article, they look at the title and type their fingers off in the comments section to criticize or type something everyone has seen a million times.

      2. Either way, he’s still comparing Ross to Issac Hayes, which is stupid and blasphemous.

    7. 1. Miami State of Mind (Produced by Cool & Dre)
      2. Shades of the Sun (Produced by The Runners)
      3. Gone feat. Kendrick Lamar & Wale (Produced by Cool & Dre)
      4. Slow Down (Produced by Cool & Dre)
      5. Lord Knows, Pt. 2 feat. Drake (Produced by Just Blaze)
      6. Never Forgot feat. Scarface (Produced by Jake One)
      7. Chasing Smoke Clouds (Produced by Timbaland, co. Jerome “J-Roc” Harmon)
      8. Maybach Music V feat. James Fauntleroy (Produced by No I.D.)
      9. Louis Vuitton (Produced by Cool & Dre)
      10. Trouble feat. Mary J. Blige (Produced by J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League)
      11. Take Me Away feat. Nas (Produced by J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League)
      12. Inglourious Basterds feat. Game, Kanye West & Lil Wayne (Produced by Kanye West, add. Mike Dean, add. Jeff Bhasker)
      13. More Money feat. 2 Chainz & Meek Mill (Produced by Mike WiLL Made It, co. Marz)
      14. Gun Smoke, Gun Smoke feat. The Notorious B.I.G. (Produced by Cool & Dre)

      Deluxe Edition
      15. Sleep Now feat. Gunplay (Produced by Cool & Dre)
      16. Everyday Struggle feat. Pusha T (Produced by Cool & Dre)
      17. Last Time feat. Rockie Fresh & Stalley (Produced by The Runners)
      18. Gunshots (In the Distance) (Produced by Cool & Dre)

      1. This is the first time I saw justice league mentioned on hiphopdx all year. R.I.P J.L.
        They fuckin suck as bad as ross anyway. F.a.g.g.o.t league.

      2. 19. Lost Jewellry Ft. Gunplay
        20. Seize the Money Ft. Lil Wayne & Tone Loc
        21. I Filmed Your Momma Last Night For 50 Ft. French Montana
        22. Crashing Into Buildings (When Haitians Bust Their Guns in The Air) Ft. His Girlfriend
        23. The Art of Date Rape Ft. Meek Mill
        24. He’s No Drake Ft. Wale
        25. God Forgives Fries Don’t ft. DJ Khaled
        26. Grease on My Fingers (Wingstop Anthem)

      3. Don’t forget:

        27. They Shootin’, Ah Made You Look feat Them Haitian boys
        28. 9 Piece (Straight chicken nuggets) feat Lil Wayne
        29. I’m not Soulful, I just like Soul Food feat John Legend

    8. John Legend slobbin all over that knob I see. He wants to get on that new album, Maybach Music part 11

    9. I think he said.. The Issac Hayes of Hip Hop… damn.. reaching as usual… he meant the voice. I don’t like the man or his music..but get the quote right at least.

      follow at noles506

    10. Legend should cut off his own tongue for saying such foolishness. i expect better of him.

    11. Isaac Hayes is rolling in his grave right now thanks to this bullshit. Rick Ross is the farthest thing from Isaac. Ross doesn’t have an inch of soul in his fat body. Isaac made timeless R&B/soul music while Ross makes shitty trap and R&B-influenced rap music that’ll be forgotten in 6 months.

    12. thats like saying uncle phil is the next oprah winfrey they are both fat and black but that is all… ps. one and one is fictional one is real

    13. Oh I get it…both black and bald with deep voices…I guess I could compare myself to Issac Hayes too…

    14. Issac Hayes is nothing like Rick Ross. He did not work as a correctional officer or raped a drugged female. He did not have to lie about who he is.

      1. Apparently that anonymous guy cares or else I wouldn’t be pronouncing the name. Anyway, I would compare Issac Hayes to Ruben Studdard to an extend in the voice. All I compare Ross to is a dying bear.

    15. I told the bitch I was Issac Hayes… she aint even know it. I hit her with that ‘John Shaft’… she aint even know it.

    16. LMFAO THIS IS GETTING OUT OF HAND! COSIGN AFTER COSIGN AFTER COSIGN…FROM NIKE TO REEBOK TO OBAMA TO JAYZ TO KANYE TO JOHN LEGEND TO DRAKE…..NEED I SAY MORE? ALL TIME GREATS RECOGNIZE NIGGAS THAT ARE CUT FROM THE SAME CLOTH AS THEM…I AGREE WITH U WANNABE HIPHOP ELITISTS..HE IS NOT THE NOTORIOUS BIG OF OUR GENERATION..HE IS MUCH BIGGER THAN THAT..I AINT SEE NO CHRISTOPHER SEALING DEALS WITH CLOTHING EMPIRES AND GETTING AS MUCH AS COSIGN THAN ROSS..I DONT SEE NO CHRISTOPHER MOVING UNITS AND KILOS AT THE SAME DAMN TIME LIKE ROSS..AND LAST AND FOREMOST CHRISTOPHER DIDNT EVEN HAVE HIS OWN LABEL!, HE WAS JUST PUFFYS LIL BITCH! ROSS CREATED MMG AND ITS WAY MORE SUCCESSFUL THAN BAD BOY TODAY LOL..HOW IRONIC IS THAT

      1. When did Nike co-sign Ross? When did Obama even acknowledge that fat niggas existence in a positive way?

        You realize Reebok dropped his ass right. Thats pretty much a reverse co-sign.

        What clothing empire did Rick Ross seal a deal with?

        How many platinum selling artists are on MMG? How many platinum albums does his label really have?

      2. There are no plantimum albums on Ross’s or MMG’s roster. Rick Ross went gold at best and his best sales came a long time ago so he might not even get to that level with mastermind. Wale’s MMG debut went gold but will also drop hard with his next album. No other album on MMG, including Meek Mill’s and those self made compilations went gold.

      3. Hustlin was 2006, I’m the Boss was 2010,

        I’m On One wasnt Ross’s song.

        Looks like his career is over to me

        Answer my questions bitch.

        When did Obama even mention that frauds name? When did Nike co-sign Ross? What clothing empire is Ross doing deals with?

      4. “I’m On One” only went plat because of Drake. Ross is just lucky he is butt buddies with DJ Khaled so he included him on another hit record Drake made.

      5. Ay dumb ass…I went DIAMOND!!! Over 5 million copies of my double-album sold (which means over 10 mil sold). Let’s see your Top Cop top that.

      6. What I meant by lets not get started on biggie mean that he has huge accomplishmens guarenteed to embarass any biggie hater.

      7. RICK ROSS IS APPEARING EVERYWHERE AND HE GETS TOUR MONEY!! THATS NOT WHAT I CALL HIS CAREER BEING OVER!!

        RICK ROSS APPEARED IN A NIKE COMMERCIAL, HIS CLOTHING LINES ARE EVERYWHERE, MEANING HE SIGNED DEALS, AND I TALKED TO OBAMA AND HE TOLD ME HE WAS A HUGE FAN OF RICK ROSS!! NOW HES A GENERAL RAP FAN IN GENERAL, UNLIKE ME WHO HAS GREAT MUSICAL TASTE IN LIL WAYNE AND RICK ROSS BUT NOT EMINEM AND JAY Z, BUT HAVING OBAMAS ENDORSEMENT IS STILL A HUGE ACCOMPLISHMENT!!

      8. YESSIR, EVERYTHING YOU SAID IS BULLSHIT LIES. THERE’S NO NIKE COMMERCIAL WITH ROSS, HE DOESN’T HAVE ANY CLOTHING LINES AND HE’S NOT SIGNING ANY DEAL. YOU NEVER MET OBAMA AND YOU NEVER MET HIM. I ACTUALLY MET HIM AND HE SAID HE HATES RICK ROSS AND KNOWS HE’S A FAKE. OBAMA NEVER ENDORSED ANYONE.

      9. SEARCH THE NIKE COMMERCIAL ON YOUTUBE WITH RICK ROSS, THERE’S CLOTHINH ATTRIBUTED TO RICK ROSS AND MAYBACH SO HE GETS A CUT, AND I TALKED TO OBAMA YESTERDAY!!

      10. a 9 second appearance in 20 second Nike commercial hardly counts for shit. and that was before the rape line. no respectable brand is going to touch him now

      11. THAT APPEARANCE IN THE NIKE COMMERCIAL SHOWS THAT NIkE ENDORSES HIM, I HAVENT HEARD ANYTHING ABOUT NIKE DISOWNING ROSS!! AS FOR REEBOK, FUCK REEBOK!! ROSS IS FAR BETTER OFF WITHOUT THEM!! I TALKED TO BAMA YESTERDAY WHO TOLD ME HE WAS A HUGE FAN OF RICK ROSS AND HIS CLOTHING LINES ARE EVERYWHERE!!!

      12. YESSIR, EVERYTHING YOU SAY IS BULLSHIT. NIKE DOES NOT ENDORSE ROSS, HE DOES NOT HAVE CLOTHING LINES EVERYWHERE, AND YOU NEVER TALKED TO NOR MET OBAMA, WHO ISN’T A RICK ROSS FAN.

    17. “There are no plantimum albums on Ross’s or MMG’s roster”

      I’d say that’s more the consumer’s fault than MMG’s. Ross brings the features and the expensive production to every album. It’s not his fault people would rather steal his shit than make him platinum.

      1. People made Jeezy platinum. People are about to make Kendrick platinum. No excuses for Ross

      2. Just goes to show you can have all the features in the world and the best production but if you’re a mediocre rapper with a history of being a fraud and a liar the people wont support you.

    18. john legend you fuckin faggot. stop lying nigga!! def jam put you up to this to patch up the fiasco ross was bound to stumble upon. fuck these fake ass musicians, i should smack fire outta this bitch for daring to compare some fat wannabe drug kingpin rapper to isaac hayes. blasphemy.

      1. I know. Issac Hayes didn’t do any of that shit. His most creepy moments wasn’t even in real life but as Chef who was one of my favorite characters in south park.

    19. BTW, I VISITED RICK ROSS A MONTH AGO AT A CONCERT AND HE TOLD ME HE’S SIGNING JA RULE TO HIS LABEL!!

      1. MAKES SENSE SINCE JA RULE IS A TENNIS PLAYING JEHOVAS WITNESS.

        FAKES GOTTA STICK TOGETHER

      2. THEY DO HAVE A LOT IN COMMON. RICK ROSS USED TO WORK IN A PRISON AND JA RULE HAS SPEND THE LAST TWO YEARS IN ONE

    20. “People made Jeezy platinum. People are about to make Kendrick platinum. No excuses for Ross”

      I’ll give you Jeezy, but Kendrick is a completely different demographic.

    21. Rick Ross is the epitome of soul. Don’t hate Port of Pork Chops. Embrace him. Let his music molly your eardrums.

    22. “but if you’re a mediocre rapper with a history of being a fraud and a liar the people wont support you”

      He’s sold 5 million albums. I’d say people are supporting him just fine.

    23. I’d see your point if he was selling 200,000 every album. He almost always sells 500,000 +, so in this day and age that’s pretty good. Not great, but respectable.

    24. Honestly if you listen to his album which is titled God Forgives I Don’t, then you will see exactly what Legend is talking about. Stop being haters

      1. Listen to the album, nothing like Isaac Hayes. The album is garbage and is nothing like Mr. Hayes. Stop being a Ross dickrider.

      2. Titles doesn’t mean shit when it comes to the sound of the music. The album is still weak bullshit.

      3. Watch all the bitch niggas on this site will run up to hate on Ross. Rozay got cosigns from more niggas than yall favorite rappers. Jay, Nas, Ye, Cash Money, & John Legend all cosigned Ross. Your favorite rappers are out there startin fake beefs while Ross releasing classics and shit.

        Bawse!!!!!!!!!

      4. Ricky worked as a CO for ONE year. Youve never seen thug niggas who hold down day-jobs? He has many real Miami thugs that he still runs around with to vouch for him

        Sure, some of his rhymes are fabricated, but who the fucks arent? Rap is full of hyperboles and bragging. Tell me a rapper that hasnt made up shit in his rhymes, and Ill call you a liar

      5. Both of you are fucking idiots. Ross is a phony who lies too damn much and has the industry kissing his ass. He doesn’t hang around any real thugs and no real thugs vouch for him.

      6. Fake beefs you say? You mean like when Ross dissed 50 Cent out of no where just to get attention? LOL. Also, Ross doesn’t make classics, just shit.

    25. Rick Ross haters are by far the worst

      They like to bring up the fact that hes fat (which means nothing), and the fact that he was a CO when he was NINETEEN while conveniently overlooking the fact that he blew up in 06 (when he was 30), so while they like to say he is the fakest rapper ever, and he never sold dope, they themselves have to no proof for that claim. Really? You were alongside him for 11 years, and you know for a FACT that he didnt slang? Doubt that, specially when real niggaz from Miami vouch for him. Theres so many real niggaz that have vouched for Ross over the years, outside the rap game

      Not to mention, Ross is from Carol City, the meanest part of Miami. He ran with the Boobie Boys (the gang that ran Miamis drug scene) and Ross was KENNETH BOOBIE WILLIAMS’ FUCKING PROTEGE for godsakes

      Also, Meek is BY FAR the realest nigga in rap (this is not up for a debate). Do you think hed not only work with Ross, but be Ross’ right hand man if he thought for one second Ross was a fake? Also, Chief Keef is a real nigga (how long is his rap sheet, specially for a 17 y/o), and hes worked with Ross

      Bawse!!!!!!!!!!

      1. Give it up, stanley. Your idol, Ross, is a phony who had a good life. He was still a C.O., locking niggas up. After that, he lived with his mama and never ran the streets ever. Carol City is the fucking suburbs of Miami, not the meanest streets. No real niggas anywhere vouched for Ross ever. He never ran with the Boobie Boys and he never hanged with Kenneth Williams. Meek is the fakest nigga in the game; he’s a bitch who pretends to be gangster to impress everyone. Chief Keef ain’t no real nigga, either; he fucking cried when he was at juvie. Just accept the fact that Ross is a fake.

      2. Even Meek Mills momma will tell you he was never selling no drugs. he was inside playing video games all day

        And Ross has police connections. Who else would walk away without even a ticket or a fine after drunkenly crashing into a building while carrying a loaded unregistered gun.

    26. The Rick Ross haters are definitely my favorite. Yes he was a CO your point. from what I was taught is CO’s get it the most but who cares if he was a dealer or not it can’t change the fact that he’s a brand and one of the hottest brands in music. 4/5 albums are gold 4 number 1s and I agree with John legend a 100% he is more of a soul artist, when Ross raps you definitely feel the emotion no matter what the content and thats the epitomy of soul music. At the end of the day it’s always going to be Ross haters though and I don’t know why out of the people to hate on in the rap game people just live getting at Ross and it only makes me respect him more. The comparisons with young cheesy need to stop Ross has doubled his net worth and yes jeezy has sold more albums Jeezy actually has platinum albums but since the recession jeezy career has gone downward. Ross has built a formidable record label something jeezy tried to do with USDA but was unsuccessful. Ross is my dude and I know it’s always going to be loyal MUSIC fans like me thats going to respect him just because his character and accomplishments. ps Reebok is going to renew the contract.

      1. You’re a fucking idiot. Everything you say is bullshit. Ross is a wack rapper who makes forgettable music. He’s not a brand or the hottest rapper out now; he’s an overhyped shitty artist whose albums can’t even go platinum. Jeezy makes better music than Ross and is still going strong. Ross is not a soulful artist; he’s the opposite. His music has no emotion that you can feel. His label is a failure; the biggest success was Wale’s album going gold, but that’s it.
        Loyal music fans think Ross is a piece of shit artist and you’re not a loyaal music fan, just a dumb Ross stan. Reebok ain’t renewing that contract.

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