Following the revelation that CyHi laced Travis Scott with “Sicko Mode” reference tracks, Russ chimed in on hip-hop’s ghostwriting epidemic.
Though Russ has amassed his fair share of critics over the years, the self-proclaimed king of SoundCloud has since won skeptics over with his no-nonsense take on the industry. Never been one to bite his tongue no matter the consequence, Russ has frequently espoused the independent route, maintaining that ownership of one’s own material is the surefire way to securing the bag. Given how deeply entrenched many rappers have become within the industry quagmire, his takes can occasionally ruffle feathers. But he wouldn’t be Russ if they didn’t.
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Following the already-known-but-recently-revealed revelation that Travis Scott‘s “Sicko Mode,” “Coffee Bean,” and more were not only penned by CyHi Tha Prynce, but also arranged on a flow level, many were quick to clown on the Astroworld artist. While some were quick to point out that Travis never professed to be a lyricist, others found it strange that he seemed so far removed from the songwriting aspect. In any case, ghostwriting controversies and hip-hop go hand-in-hand at this point, and Russ was quick to hint at the dark truths lurking beneath the surface.
“Shoutout to Starrah & CyHi,” wrote Russ, via Twitter. “Those are actually a lot of y’alls favorite artists.” Of course, there’s the slightest hint of petty to his statement, if the uproarious laughter emojis didn’t make that abundantly clear. Still, there’s something to be said about a game where penmanship is no longer respected by the mainstream masses. It’s no wonder Russ has previously sung the praises of Nicki Minaj, who has openly taken pride in writing her own material. Check out Russ Diemon’s message below, and sound off — do you think hip-hop has become too soft on ghostwriting?