Rick Ross stopped by Bakari Sellers’ podcast this week to promote his new book The Perfect Day to Boss Up: A Hustler’s Guide to Building Your Empire.
During their conservation, Sellers asked Ross what advice he’d give to hip-hop’s new generation on navigating controversy, particularly DaBaby amid the backlash following his homophobic comments at Rolling Loud Miami in July.
“You’re in a different position. You’ve got millions and millions of eyes on you and there are so many ways people can take one statement,” Ross said. “It’s just really all about understanding and keeping the priorities of why you’re here. You’re here for a reason. You’re here to make incredible music for incredible people. So, let’s keep that as the focus. Let’s keep our fans first and foremost. That’s what means the most and that’s why you’re here.”
Rozay isn’t the first hip-hop veteran who’s offered advice to DaBaby in the wake of his controversy. During an appearance on E!’s Nightly Pop in August, 50 Cent revealed he expects the North Carolina rapper to bounce back from adversity.
“He just transitioned from being in that pool that everyone’s in as a Rap artist. Like, they didn’t notify him that he’s turning into a superstar,” Fif explained. “There’s nobody that tells you, ‘Now, you’re held to these standards’ that are mainstream standards that you can’t say things and you can’t do these different things.”
“He didn’t have a publicist involved and this is why the response took so long,” he continued. “Even his apology, the first apology attempt at it, was what made it worse. You know what it is? When a person makes a general statement, ‘cause he made a general statement on stage, he’s not directing that to any individual, but what happens is he’s still new and he’s being attacked by individuals.”
On Thursday, it was announced that the formerly titled Feed the Streetz Tour—co-headlined by Rick Ross and featuring “special guests” Boosie Badazz, Lil Kim, Fabolous, and Trina—has added Gucci Mane and rebranded itself as the Legendz of the Streetz Tour. A press release uses recent Verzuz match-ups as a talking point, reading, “For the first time in history and fresh off Verzuz, Rick Ross, 2 Chainz, Jeezy, Gucci Mane and Fabolous, alongside the aforementioned ‘legendz’—will embark on a nationwide tour together; positioning the tour to be one of the most iconic and memorable events in hip-hop history.”
Check out the Legendz of the Streetz dates and cinema-ready poster below:
