Tee Grizzley had no idea he was personally named by Nipsey Hussle as a Detroit artist he wanted to collaborate with – until the Marathon rapper had passed.
The “First Day Out” creator and Skilla Baby stopped by HipHopDX recently for an in-depth conversation about everything from Eminem’s 8 Mile to their new project, toxic lyrics, Taylor Swift and more – including the late Nipsey.
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When discussing the latter, DX brought up how Tee was named alongside fellow Detroit natives Payroll Giovanni and Big Sean as collaborators Nipsey was eyeing.
“It’s crazy ’cause I ain’t know Nipsey fucked with me until after he passed,” he said. “Then I seen that interview I’m like damn, I ain’t even know bro fucked with me like that for real.”
Tee Grizzley and Skilla Baby dropped their 12-track joint project Controversy at the end of last month. In a recent conversation with Detroit Metro Times, Skilla explained why they decided to link up for a mixtape.
“We worked together a couple of times,” he said. “We liked how we worked together, and we felt it made sense if we did a project together.” The project includes 12 records with no features, giving more room for the duo to trade bars in a more orderly fashion.
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As for the late Nipsey Hussle, he was recently crowned the best rapper of all time by NBA star Russell Westbrook — over the likes of JAY-Z and Eminem.
Participating in a social media bracket game with his wife, Nina Westbrook, over the weekend, Russ narrowed down an Elite Eight list of legendary rappers, with his late friend Nipsey being the last MC standing.
The former NBA MVP gave Neighborhood Nip the nod over Slim Shady, Nas, Lil Wayne and eventually Hov on his way to crowning him the G.O.A.T.
A California native, Westbrook is sure to upset fans of East Coast Hip Hop as he also went with Dr. Dre over Biggie, Lil Wayne over 50 Cent and Ice Cube over Redman.
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“I felt his pain when it got to Nip and Wayne I was just listening to them today,” one fan replied to Russ’ picks on Twitter, while another wrote: “They gonna boo him because he picked dr dre over biggie, cube over red man, wayne over 50 and nipsey over emínem, but he’s right!”
Westbrook has long been a fan of Nipsey Hussle, with both growing up in Los Angeles and being a similar age.
