All the talk about Waka Flocka Flame lately has been about him beefing with Gucci Manesince Gucci apparently kicked him out of Brick Squadand Flocka dissed Gucci on stage. Regardless of how Waka and Gucci might talk their beef down (which you can see Waka do in the video above at around the three minute mark), their feud always seems fueled by the changing hierarchy of Brick Squad.
The first time Waka and La Flare got into a feud back in 2010, it was right after the perception of Waka went from Gucci's weedcarrier to legitimate star and Gucci was going through a cold moment after owning the previous year. However, they patched things up shortly thereafter.
As of late, Waka's buzz has died down considerably since the release of Triple F Life: Friends, Fans & Family and his mixtapes haven't gotten much traction. On the other hand, laced with several iced out watches, Gucci has regained some momentum with popular releases like Trap God 2 and a role in Spring Breakers. In typical Gucci fashion, as soon as he got his buzz up he got himself arrested. Yet that doesn't negate the fact that Gucci has reasserted his place as the hottest member of Brick Squad.
Thus, right now is a ripe moment for another fallout between the two rappers.
Face it: When your album is a sequel, you're basically trying to convince people your new album is good by reminding them you once made a great album.
Meanwhile, Waka has been doing press lately to build anticipation for his upcoming third album, Flockaveli 2. Slated to drop October 5, it'll (hopefully) be released on the three-year anniversary of his debut album. In other words, the album is a reset button: A way for Waka to get back to where he once was.
It's unfortunate that the album sequel gimmick has become so prevalent in hip-hop, but it does serve a purpose: It often denotes a fleeting career. Although the tactic has worked for Jay-Z and Raekwon (who did follow-ups to undisputed classics), when guys like Lloyd Banks do it, you start to get the feeling it's just a cheap marketing ploy. Face it: When your album is a sequel, you're basically trying to convince people your new album is good by reminding them you once made a great album.
"My second album I went so far left, when I was already right," said Waka, while chating with Montreality in the video above. "I wanted to show people I could conquer another genre of people. And I did it."
It's the last part that's unconvincing. Yes, Waka did try and diversify his catalog, it just didn't work. Despite his massive press run for the album, Triple F Life sold slightly less than his debut in its first week and didn't generate any hits on the scale of "No Hands."
"So now it's time to go back to the essense of music of how I started and what I created," said Waka. "It's time to claim what the fuck I started."
It's true: Waka Flocka Flame changed the sound of hip-hop (Don't believe us? Ask Rick Ross...or Kanye...or Chief Keef). But after abandoning it and trying to go for the crossover, he's trying to get back to where he started.
We'll see if he can do it and manage to patch it up with Gucci. If and when he does light the streets up again, we're sure the time will be the right for another Gucci/Waka fallout and thus complete the trilogy of their feud.
[via NahRight]
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