Image via Complex Original
It's a well-established fact that rappers are invested in their own self-promotion. Whether these skewed perceptions hold up in real life is another matter. As Jay Z once said it, "My new name is just the facts/While the rest of y'all just adjust the facts."
This tendency to self-aggrandize often leads to rappers conferring classic status on their own albums. Makes sense. If you want someone to buy (or at least download and tweet about) your record, you might as well claim it as great. This thing happens all the time—just check out a recent history of rappers calling their albums classic.
Written by Sydney Yeo (@yeobites)
RELATED: The 50 Biggest Hip-Hop Cliches
A$AP Rocky, Live.Love.A$AP (2011)
What he said: "My mixtape [Live.Love.A$AP] is better than a lot of people's albums.... My mixtape is a classic. It's only right to put it out at retail." —In an interview with Billboard
Looks like Rocky took the advice of a wise businessman: "If you're good at something, never do it for free."
Wale, Ambition (2011)
What he said: "The defining moment of my career.... I have every intention of making this a classic album." —Discussing the making of his album with Complex
"They gon' love me for my intentions."
Rick Ross, God Forgives, I Don't (2012)
What he said: "Classic, untouchable, boss, success, revenge.... I gave 'em one of those feelings that it was a motion picture, a masterpiece, five-star." —Describing God Forgives, I Don't in five words to MTV
No Wingstop shout out, though.
Big Sean, Hall of Fame (2013)
What he said: "Classic...but I don't want to hype it up too much or anything.... People hear 'classic' and they expect like Jesus Christ to be on there rapping. What I mean by 'classic' is it's a pure body of work; there's quality songs."—Describing the album to Rolling Stone
The patented stutter-step around calling your album a classic, sorta.
Pusha T, My Name Is My Name (2013)
What he said: "I think the streets are going to have a classic hip-hop album. My Name Is My Name is definitely the hardest album that's going to come out this year, for sure."—Speaking with Power 98
It's so hard being a classic.
ScHoolboy Q, Oxymoron (2014)
What he said: "Oxymoron is way different from my previous projects. It's crazy.... It's an album that needed to be put out, to be heard, so I took my time with it, got all the right rappers. This shit was hard. I'd call it a classic. I know what I like, and I know that shit is hard as fuck. It's just an album that needed to be heard."—Assessing his new album with Complex
You can add "tbh" to almost all of these sentences. Just something to think about.
YG, My Krazy Life (2014)
What they said: "It's easy to make a classic album. Yeah, it just take time...I feel like if you give a n**ga stories and all that on your album and it's really like—no matter if it blow. Like Jay Z first album's a classic, but it didn't sell a lot…If you giving stories and it's realistic like people feel it...That's a classic."-Hot 97 via Hop Hop DX
YG also compared himself to hip-hop greats in an interview with Vibe, saying, "All my shit is real n**ga shit. I'm bringing what Snoop and Dre was bringing to the game...Everybody tells me that. Me and Mustard, we got a lot to do with West Coast being what it is today."
Iggy Azalea, The New Classic (2014)
What she said: "I think this is our classic and these sounds are classic for our generation. I think that in 10 years people will wish that they had this moment."—Speaking with The Boombox
Find out which generation you're a part of on April 18th.
Nicki Minaj, The Pinkprint (TBD)
What she said: "I'm just working on the album. Nothing is gonna take precedence over that. Nothing matters to me more than creating a classic album right now." —Speaking on DJ Drama's Shade 45 radio show
To be fair, she's just talking about her desire. Commendable honesty of purpose, really.