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Ranking Every Lil Yachty Album, From Worst to Best

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In the unpredictable rap landscape, few artists have shifted their musical personas as consistently as Lil Yachty. From his breakout platinum single “One Night,” he has navigated an unconventional path, characterized by daring explorations and stark transformations in his musical style. His discography, though varied, reflects a restless creativity that’s not afraid of challenge or change.

His debut album, Teenage Emotions , emerged as an enigmatic puzzle, an eclectic mix of tracks that straddled both the familiar territories of trap and the uncharted waters of ’80s synth pop. Yachty’s subsequent albums, Lil Boat 2 and Nuthin’ 2 Prove , unveiled a grittier sound, with the Quality Control artist straddling between his charming goofiness and a newfound aggressiveness.

By the time Lil Boat 3 arrived, Yachty’s musical maturity was apparent, as he skillfully maneuvered between his signature braggadocio and unexpected depths of darkness. Yet, even this evolution paled in comparison to the audacious shift the Mableton-born rapper unveiled with Let’s Start Here . Swapping his mumble rap hat for a psychedelic soul guise, Yachty presented an audacious project that underscored his artistic versatility and penchant for risk-taking.

So let’s get into it. From his 2017 debut album, Teenage Emotions , to his latest release, 2023’s psychedelic-rock experiment Let’s Start Here , we rank every Lil Yachty album, from worst to best.

Nuthin’ 2 Prove

Ranking Lil Yachty First Week Album Sales Nuthin

Released: October 19, 2018

Label: Quality Control, Capitol, Motown

Singles: “Who Want the Smoke?”

Features: Playboi Carti, Juice Wrld, Lil Baby, Young Nudy, Cardi B, Offset, Trippie Redd, Kevin Gates, and Gunna.

Nuthin’ 2 Prove feels like a contradiction in its execution, an album split between rap and melodic pop vibes, where Yachty seems to be in search of his distinctive voice. The first half brims with a menacing production that underpins a series of boasts and threats, hinting at an unfinished evolution from Lil Boat 2 . “Who Want the Smoke?” stands out, but mainly for the guest verses from Cardi B and Offset. The album’s second half fares better, with the Quality Control rapper reverting to his signature goofy-vulgar observations and appealingly straightforward sentiments. Despite its inconsistencies, the album suggests Yachty’s willingness to explore different styles in his quest to continually push the boundaries of what rap looks like.

Ranking Lil Yachty First Week Album Sales Lil Boat 2

Released: March 9, 2018

Singles: N/A

Features: Quavo, Offset, Lil Baby, 2 Chainz, Trippie Redd, Lil Pump, YoungBoy Never Broke Again and Tee Grizzley.

Following the commercial disappointment of Teenage Emotions , Lil Boat 2 sees Yachty take a more aggressive stance. This album seems to be Yachty’s attempt to assert his position in the rap game, delivering a more raw and rap-focused sound. His technical skills as a rapper are evident, and he manages to hold his own amidst guest appearances from heavyweights like Quavo, Offset, Tee Grizzley, and 2 Chainz. However, lyrically, he falls short of delivering a memorable punch. The softer, melodic cuts like “She Ready” and “Love Me Forever” offer glimpses of the endearing goofiness that originally defined Yachty’s charm. The album, while showcasing his adaptability, also underscores the need for Yachty to refine his lyrical abilities and embrace his unique identity.

Teenage Emotions

Top 10 Best Takeoff Guest Verses Of All Time Lil Yachty

Released: May 26, 2017

Singles: “Harley”, “Peek a Boo”, “Bring It Back”, “X Men”

Features: Migos, YG, Kamaiyah, Stefflon Don, Diplo, Grace, and Sonyae Elise.

Riding high from the platinum success of “One Night,” Lil Yachty’s debut album, Teenage Emotions , is a rollercoaster ride through the rapper’s psyche. He pushes the boundaries of his mirthful persona, sometimes stumbling into territories that evade binary characterizations. There are courageous, though uneven, ventures into ’80s synth pop with tracks like “Bring It Back” and “Better”. Despite the album’s 70-minute expanse, Yachty’s boasts often rest on nondescript trap beats, signifying a period of exploration rather than concrete artistic definition. The freshman album offers an intriguing, if raw, glimpse into the enigma that is Lil Yachty.

Ranking Lil Yachty First Week Album Sales Lil Boat 3

Released: May 29, 2020

Singles: “Oprah’s Bank Account”, “Split/Whole Time”, “Coffin”

Features: Tierra Whack, ASAP Rocky, Tyler, the Creator, Future, Draft Day, DaBaby, Drake, Lil Keed, Young Thug, and Lil Durk.

As the grand finale of Yachty’s mixtape trilogy, Lil Boat 3 embodies an evolution in the rapper’s musicality. He steps out from behind the generic trap production and Auto-Tuned vocals of his past work, putting his lyrical prowess front and center. Yachty shines solo, yet isn’t afraid to share the spotlight with fellow rappers like Tyler, The Creator and A$AP Rocky. The album navigates through Yachty’s signature goofy braggadocio to moments of experimental darkness, offering a refreshing dynamism. Though bogged down by redundant tracks, Lil Boat 3 signals a promising growth in Yachty’s creative direction.

Let’s Start Here

Biggest Hip Hop Album First Week Sales Of 2023 Lil Yachty

Released: January 27, 2023

Label: Concrete, Quality Control, Motown

Features: N/A

In an audacious left turn, Let’s Start Here sees Yachty trading in his mumble rap credentials for a psychedelic soul odyssey. This project takes listeners on an unexpected trip through jazzy guitars, boisterous drums, and otherworldly synths, fearlessly traversing from the grandiose heights of “The Black Seminole” to the smooth rhythms of “The Ride” and beyond. Despite its ambitious genre-crossing, Yachty’s bold personality threads the album together into a cohesive whole. This novel experimentation paints the artist not just as a veteran Quality Control rapper, but as a versatile artist unafraid of vulnerability and eager to challenge the boundaries of his own creativity.

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How Lil Yachty Ended Up at His Excellent New Psychedelic Album Let's Start Here

Lil Yachty attends Wicked Featuring 21 Savage at Forbes Arena at Morehouse College on October 19 2022 in Atlanta Georgia.

The evening before Lil Yachty released his fifth studio album,  Let’s Start Here,  he  gathered an IMAX theater’s worth of his fans and famous friends at the Liberty Science Center in Jersey City and made something clear: He wanted to be taken seriously. Not just as a “Soundcloud rapper, not some mumble rapper, not some guy that just made one hit,” he told the crowd before pressing play on his album. “I wanted to be taken serious because music is everything to me.” 

There’s a spotty history of rappers making dramatic stylistic pivots, a history Yachty now joins with  Let’s Start Here,  a funk-flecked psychedelic rock album. But unlike other notable rap-to-rock faceplants—Kid Cudi’s  Speedin’ Bullet 2 Heaven  comes to mind, as does Lil Wayne’s  Rebirth —the record avoids hackneyed pastiche and gratuitous playacting and cash-grabbing crossover singles; instead, Yachty sounds unbridled and free, a rapper creatively liberated from the strictures of mainstream hip-hop. Long an oddball who’s delighted in defying traditional rap ethos and expectations,  Let’s Start Here  is a maximalist and multi-genre undertaking that rewrites the narrative of Yachty’s curious career trajectory. 

Admittedly, it’d be easy to write off the album as Tame Impala karaoke, a gimmicky record from a guy who heard Yves Tumor once and thought: Let’s do  that . But set aside your Yachty skepticism and probe the album’s surface a touch deeper. While the arrangements tend toward the obvious, the record remains an intricate, unraveling swell of sumptuous live instruments and reverb-drenched textures made more impressive by the fact that Yachty co-produced every song. Fielding support from an all-star cast of characters, including production work from former Chairlift member Patrick Wimberly, Unknown Mortal Orchestra’s Jacob Portrait, Justin Raisen, Nick Hakim, and Magdalena Bay, and vocals from Daniel Caesar, Diana Gordon,  Foushée , Justine Skye, and Teezo Touchdown, Yachty surrounds himself with a group of disparately talented collaborators. You can hear the acute attention to detail and wide-scale ambition in the spaced-out denouement on “We Saw the Sun!” or on the blistering terror of “I’ve Officially Lost Vision!!!!” or during the cool romanticism of “Say Something.” Though occasionally overindulgent,  Let’s Start Here  is a spectacular statement from hip-hop’s prevailing weirdo. It’s not shocking that Yachty took another hard left—but how exactly did he end up  here ?

In 2016, as the forefather of “bubblegum trap” ascended into mainstream consciousness, an achievement like  Let’s Start Here  would’ve seemed inconceivable. The then 18-year-old Yachty gained national attention when a pair of his songs, “One Night” and “Minnesota,” went viral. Though clearly indebted to hip-hop trailblazers Lil B, Chief Keef, and Young Thug, his work instantly stood apart from the gritted-teeth toughness of his Atlanta trap contemporaries. Yachty flaunted a childlike awe and cartoonish demeanor that communicated a swaggering, unbothered cool. His singsong flows and campy melodies contained a winking humor to them, a subversive playfulness that endeared him to a generation of very online kids who saw themselves in Yachty’s goofy, eccentric persona. He starred in Sprite  commercials alongside LeBron James, performed live shows at the  Museum of Modern Art , and modeled in Kanye West’s  Life of Pablo  listening event at Madison Square Garden. Relishing in his cultural influence, he declared to the  New York Times  that he was not a rapper but an  artist. “And I’m more than an artist,” he added. “I’m a brand.”

 As Sheldon Pearce pointed out in his Pitchfork  review of Yachty’s 2016 mixtape,  Lil Boat , “There isn’t a single thing Lil Yachty’s doing that someone else isn’t doing better, and in richer details.” He wasn’t wrong. While Yachty’s songs were charming and catchy (and, sometimes, convincing), his music was often tangential to his brand. What was the point of rapping as sharply as the Migos or singing as intensely as Trippie Redd when you’d inked deals with Nautica and Target, possessed a sixth-sense for going viral, and had incoming collaborations with Katy Perry and Carly Rae Jepsen? What mattered more was his presentation: the candy-red hair and beaded braids, the spectacular smile that showed rows of rainbow-bedazzled grills, the wobbly, weak falsetto that defaulted to a chintzy nursery rhyme cadence. He didn’t need technical ability or historical reverence to become a celebrity; he was a meme brought to life, the personification of hip-hop’s growing generational divide, a sudden star who, like so many other Soundcloud acts, seemed destined to crash and burn after a fleeting moment in the sun.

 One problem: the music wasn’t very good. Yachty’s debut album, 2017’s  Teenage Emotions, was a glitter-bomb of pop-rap explorations that floundered with shaky hooks and schmaltzy swings at crossover hits. Worse, his novelty began to fade, those sparkly, cheerful, and puerile bubblegum trap songs aging like day-old french fries. Even when he hued closer to hard-nosed rap on 2018’s  Lil Boat 2  and  Nuthin’ 2 Prove,  you could feel Yachty desperate to recapture the magic that once came so easily to him. But rap years are like dog years, and by 2020, Yachty no longer seemed so radically weird. He was an established rapper making mid mainstream rap. The only question now was whether we’d already seen the best of him.

If his next moves were any indication—writing the  theme song to the  Saved by the Bell  sitcom revival and announcing his involvement in an upcoming  movie based on the card game Uno—then the answer was yes. But in April 2021, Yachty dropped  Michigan Boat Boy,  a mixtape that saw him swapping conventional trap for Detroit and Flint’s fast-paced beats and plain-spoken flows. Never fully of a piece with his Atlanta colleagues, Yachty found a cohort of kindred spirits in Michigan, a troop of rappers whose humor, imagination, and debauchery matched his own. From the  looks of it, leaders in the scene like Babyface Ray, Rio Da Yung OG, and YN Jay embraced Yachty with open arms, and  Michigan Boat Boy  thrives off that communion. 

 Then “ Poland ” happened. When Yachty uploaded the minute-and-a-half long track to Soundcloud a few months back, he received an unlikely and much needed jolt. Building off the rage rap production he played with on the  Birthday Mix 6  EP, “Poland” finds Yachty’s warbling about carrying pharmaceutical-grade cough syrup across international borders, a conceit that captured the imagination of TikTok and beyond. Recorded as a joke and released only after a leaked version went viral, the song has since amassed over a hundred-millions streams across all platforms. With his co-production flourishes (and adlibs) splattered across Drake and 21 Savage’s  Her Loss,  fans had reason to believe that Yachty’s creative potential had finally clicked into focus.

 But  Let’s Start Here  sounds nothing like “Poland”—in fact, the song doesn’t even appear on the project. Instead, amid a tapestry of scabrous guitars, searing bass, and vibrant drums, Yachty sounds right at home on this psych-rock spectacle of an album. He rarely raps, but his singing often relies on the virtues of his rapping: those greased-vowel deliveries and unrushed cadences, the autotune-sheathed vibrato. “Pretty,” for instance, is decidedly  not  a rap song—but what is it, then? It’s indebted to trap as much as it is ’90s R&B and MGMT, its drugged-out drums and warm keys able to house an indeterminate amount of ideas.

Yachty didn’t need to abandon hip-hop to find himself as an artist, but his experimental impulses helped him craft his first great album. Perhaps this is his lone dalliance in psych rock—maybe a return to trap is imminent. Or, maybe, he’ll make another 180, or venture deeper into the dystopia of corporate sponsorships. Who’s to say? For now, it’s invigorating to see Yachty shake loose the baggage of his teenage virality and emerge more fully into his adult artistic identity. His guise as a boundary-pushing rockstar isn’t a new archetype, but it’s an archetype he’s infused with his glittery idiosyncrasies. And look what he’s done: he’s once again morphed into a star the world didn’t see coming.

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Lil Yachty

Lil Yachty On His Big Rock Pivot: ‘F-ck Any of the Albums I Dropped Before This One’

With his adventurous, psychedelic new album, 'Let's Start Here,' he's left mumble rap behind — and finally created a project he's proud of.

By Lyndsey Havens

Lyndsey Havens

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Lil Yachty, presented by Doritos, will perform at Billboard Presents The Stage at SXSW on March 16 .

Lil Yachty: Photos From the Billboard Cover Shoot

Someone has sparked a blunt in the planetarium.

It may be a school night, but no one has come to the Liberty Science Center in Jersey City, N.J., to learn. Instead, the hundreds of fans packed into the domed theater on Jan. 26 have come to hear Lil Yachty’s latest album as he intended: straight through — and with an open mind. Or, as Yachty says with a mischievous smile: “I hope y’all took some sh-t.”

For the next 57 minutes and 16 seconds, graphics of exploding spaceships, green giraffes and a quiet road through Joshua Tree National Park accompany Yachty’s sonically divergent — and at this point, unreleased — fifth album, Let’s Start Here . For a psychedelic rock project that plays like one long song, the visual aids not only help attendees embrace the bizarre, but also function as a road map for Yachty’s far-out trip, signaling that there is, in fact, a tracklist.

It’s a night the artist has arguably been waiting for his whole career — to finally release an album he feels proud of. An album that was, he says, made “from scratch” with all live instrumentation. An album that opens with a nearly seven-minute opus, “the BLACK seminole.,” that he claims he had to fight most of his collaborative team to keep as one, not two songs. An album that, unlike his others, has few features and is instead rich with co-writers like Mac DeMarco, Nick Hakim, Alex G and members of MGMT, Unknown Mortal Orchestra and Chairlift. An album he believes will finally earn him the respect and recognition he has always sought.

Sitting in a Brooklyn studio in East Williamsburg not far from where he made most of Let’s Start Here in neighboring Greenpoint, it’s clear he has been waiting to talk about this project in depth for some time. Yachty is an open book, willing to answer anything — and share any opinion. (Especially on the slice of pizza he has been brought, which he declares “tastes like ass.”) Perhaps his most controversial take at the moment? “F-ck any of the albums I dropped before this one.”

His desire to move on from his past is understandable. When Yachty entered the industry in his mid-teens with his 2016 major-label debut, the Lil Boat mixtape, featuring the breakout hit “One Night,” he found that along with fame came sailing the internet’s choppy waters. Skeptics often took him to task for not knowing — or caring, maybe — about rap’s roots, and he never shied away from sharing hot takes on Twitter. With his willingness and ability to straddle pop and hip-hop, Yachty produced music he once called “bubble-gum trap” (he has since denounced that phrase) that polarized audiences and critics. Meanwhile, his nonchalant delivery got him labeled as a mumble rapper — another identifier he was never fond of because it felt dismissive of his talent.

“There’s a lot of kids who haven’t heard any of my references,” he continues. “They don’t know anything about Bon Iver or Pink Floyd or Black Sabbath or James Brown. I wanted to show people a different side of me — and that I can do anything, most importantly.”

Let’s Start Here is proof. Growing up in Atlanta, the artist born Miles McCollum was heavily influenced by his father, a photographer who introduced him to all kinds of sounds. Yachty, once easily identifiable by his bright red braids, found early success by posting songs like “One Night” to SoundCloud, catching the attention of Kevin “Coach K” Lee, co-founder/COO of Quality Control Music, now home to Migos, Lil Baby and City Girls. In 2015, Coach K began managing Yachty, who in summer 2016 signed a joint-venture deal with Motown, Capitol Records and Quality Control.

“Yachty was me when I was 18 years old, when I signed him. He was actually me,” says Coach K today. (In 2021, Adam Kluger, whose clients include Bhad Bhabie, began co-managing Yachty.) “All the eclectic, different things, we shared that with each other. He had been wanting to make this album from the first day we signed him. But you know — coming as a hip-hop artist, you have to play the game.”

Yachty played it well. To date, he has charted 17 songs on the Billboard Hot 100 , including two top 10 hits for his features on DRAM’s melodic 2016 smash “Broccoli” and Kyle’s 2017 pop-rap track “iSpy.” His third-highest-charting entry arrived unexpectedly last year: the 93-second “Poland,” a track Yachty recorded in about 10 minutes where his warbly vocals more closely resemble singing than rapping. ( Let’s Start Here collaborator SADPONY saw “Poland” as a temperature check that proved “people are going to like this Yachty.”)

Beginning with 2016’s Lil Boat mixtape, all eight of Yachty’s major-label-released albums and mixtapes have charted on the Billboard 200 . Three have entered the top 10, including Let’s Start Here , which debuted and peaked at No. 9. And while Yachty has only scored one No. 1 album before ( Teenage Emotions topped Rap Album Sales), Let’s Start Here debuted atop three genre charts: Top Rock & Alternative Albums , Top Rock Albums and Top Alternative Albums .

“It feels good to know that people in that world received this so well,” says Motown Records vp of A&R Gelareh Rouzbehani. “I think it’s a testament to Yachty going in and saying, ‘F-ck what everyone thinks. I’m going to create something that I’ve always wanted to make — and let us hope the world f-cking loves it.’ ”

Yet despite Let’s Start Here ’s many high-profile supporters, some longtime detractors and fans alike were quick to criticize certain aspects of it, from its art — Yachty quote-tweeted one remark , succinctly replying, “shut up” — to the music itself. Once again, he found himself facing another tidal wave of discourse. But this time, he was ready to ride it. “This release,” Kluger says, “gave him a lot of confidence.”

“I was always kind of nervous to put out music, but now I’m on some other sh-t,” Yachty says. “It was a lot of self-assessing and being very real about not being happy with where I was musically, knowing I’m better than where I am. Because the sh-t I was making did not add up to the sh-t I listened to.

“I just wanted more,” he continues. “I want to be remembered. I want to be respected.”

Last spring, Lil Yachty gathered his family, collaborators and team at famed Texas studio complex Sonic Ranch.

“I remember I got there at night and drove down because this place is like 30 miles outside El Paso,” Coach K says. “I walked in the room and just saw all these instruments and sh-t, and the vibe was just so ill. And I just started smiling. All the producers were in the room, his assistant, his dad. Yachty comes in, puts the album on. We got to the second song, and I told everybody, ‘Stop the music.’ I walked over to him and just said, ‘Man, give me a hug.’ I was like, ‘Yachty, I am so proud of you.’ He came into the game bold, but [to make] this album, you have to be very bold. And to know that he finally did it, it was overwhelming.”

SADPONY (aka Jeremiah Raisen) — who executive-produced Let’s Start Here and, in doing so, spent nearly eight straight months with Yachty — says the time at Sonic Ranch was the perfect way to cap off the months of tunnel vision required while making the album in Brooklyn. “That was new alone,” says Yachty. “I’ve recorded every album in Atlanta at [Quality Control]. That was the first time I recorded away from home. First time I recorded with a new engineer,” Miles B.A. Robinson, a Saddle Creek artist.

Yachty couldn’t wait to put it out, and says he turned it in “a long time ago. I think it was just label sh-t and trying to figure out the right time to release it.” For Coach K, it was imperative to have the physical product ready on release date, given that Yachty had made “an experience” of an album. And lately, most pressing plants have an average turnaround time of six to eight months.

Fans, however, were impatient. On Christmas, one month before Let’s Start Here would arrive, the album leaked online. It was dubbed Sonic Ranch . “Everyone was home with their families, so no one could pull it off the internet,” recalls Yachty. “That was really depressing and frustrating.”

Then, weeks later, the album art, tracklist and release date also leaked. “My label made a mistake and sent preorders to Amazon too early, and [the site] posted it,” Yachty says. “So I wasn’t able to do the actual rollout for my album that I wanted to. Nothing was a secret anymore. It was all out. I had a whole plan that I had to cancel.” He says the biggest loss was various videos he made to introduce and contextualize the project, all of which “were really weird … [But] I wasn’t introducing it anymore. People already knew.” Only one, called “Department of Mental Tranquility,” made it out, just days before the album.

Yachty says he wasn’t necessarily seeking a mental escape before making Let’s Start Here , but confesses that acid gave him one anyway. “I guess maybe the music went along with it,” he says. The album title changed four or five times, he says, from Momentary Bliss (“It was meant to take you away from reality … where you’re truly listening”) to 180 Degrees (“Because it’s the complete opposite of anything I’ve ever done, but people were like, ‘It’s too on the nose’ ”) to, ultimately, Let’s Start Here — the best way, he decided, to succinctly summarize where he was as an artist: a seven-year veteran, but at 25 years old, still eager to begin a new chapter.

Taking inspiration from Dark Side , Yachty relied on three women’s voices throughout the album, enlisting Fousheé, Justine Skye and Diana Gordon. Otherwise, guest vocals are spare. Daniel Caesar features on album closer “Reach the Sunshine.,” while the late Bob Ross (of The Joy of Painting fame) has a historic posthumous feature on “We Saw the Sun!”

Rouzbehani tells Billboard that Ross’ estate declined Yachty’s request at first: “I think a big concern of theirs was that Yachty is known as a rapper, and Bob Ross and his brand are very clean. They didn’t want to associate with anything explicit.” But Yachty was adamant, and Rouzbehani played the track for Ross’ team and also sent the entire album’s lyrics to set the group at ease. “With a lot of back-and-forth, we got the call,” she says. “Yachty is the first artist that has gotten a Bob Ross clearance in history.”

From the start, Coach K believed Let’s Start Here would open lots of doors for Yachty — and ultimately, other artists, too. Questlove may have said it best, posting the album art on Instagram with a lengthy caption that read in part: “this lp might be the most surprising transition of any music career I’ve witnessed in a min, especially under the umbrella of hip hop … Sh-t like this (envelope pushing) got me hyped about music’s future.”

Recently, Lil Yachty held auditions for an all-women touring band. “It was an experience for like Simon Cowell or Randy [Jackson],” he says, offering a simple explanation for the choice: “In my life, women are superheroes.”

And according to Yachty, pulling off his show will take superhuman strength: “Because the show has to match the album. It has to be big.” As eager as he was to release Let’s Start Here , he’s even more antsy to perform it live — but planning a tour, he says, required gauging the reaction to it. “This is so new for me, and to be quite honest with you, the label [didn’t] know how [the album] would do,” he says. “Also, I haven’t dropped an album in like three years. So we don’t even know how to plan a tour right now because it has been so long and my music is so different.”

While Yachty’s last full-length studio album, Lil Boat 3 , arrived in 2020, he released the Michigan Boy Boat mixtape in 2021, a project as reverential of the state’s flourishing hip-hop scenes in Detroit and Flint as Let’s Start Here is of its psych-rock touchstones. And though he claims he doesn’t do much with his days, his recent accomplishments, both musical and beyond, suggest otherwise. He launched his own cryptocurrency, YachtyCoin, at the end of 2020; signed his first artist, Draft Day, to his Concrete Boyz label at the start of 2021; invested in the Jewish dating app Lox Club; and launched his own line of frozen pizza, Yachty’s Pizzeria, last September. (He has famously declared he has never eaten a vegetable; at his Jersey City listening event, there was an abundance of candy, doughnut holes and Frosted Brown Sugar Cinnamon Pop-Tarts.)

But there are only two things that seem to remotely excite him, first and foremost of which is being a father. As proud as he is of Let’s Start Here , he says it comes in second to having his now 1-year-old daughter — though he says with a laugh that she “doesn’t really give a f-ck” about his music yet. “I haven’t played [this album] for her, but her mom plays her my old stuff,” he continues. “The mother of my child is Dominican and Puerto Rican, so she loves Selena — she plays her a lot . [We watch] the Selena movie with Jennifer Lopez a sh-t ton and a lot of Disney movie sh-t, like Frozen , Lion King and that type of vibe.”

Aside from being a dad, he most cares about working with other artists. Recently, he flew eight of his biggest fans — most of whom he has kept in touch with for years — to Atlanta. He had them over, played Let’s Start Here , took them to dinner and bowling, introduced them to his mom and dad, and then showed them a documentary he made for the album. (He’s not sure if he’ll release it.) One of the fans is an aspiring rapper; naturally, the two made a song together.

Yachty wants to keep working with artists and producers outside of hip-hop, mentioning the Yeah Yeah Yeahs and even sharing his dream of writing a ballad for Elton John. (“I know I could write him a beautiful song.”) With South Korean music company HYBE’s recent purchase of Quality Control — a $300 million deal — Yachty’s realm of possibility is bigger than ever.

But he’s not ruling out his genre roots. Arguably, Let’s Start Here was made for the peers and heroes he played it for first — and was inspired by hip-hop’s chameleons. “I would love to do a project with Tyler [The Creator],” says Yachty. “He’s the reason I made this album. He’s the one who told me to do it, just go for it. He’s so confident and I have so much respect for him because he takes me seriously, and he always has.”

Penske Media Corp. is the largest shareholder of SXSW ; its brands are official media partners of SXSW.

This story originally appeared in the March 11, 2023, issue of Billboard.

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Lil Yachty on His Rock Album ‘Let’s Start Here,’ Rapping With J. Cole, and What’s Next

By Jem Aswad

Executive Editor, Music

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Lil Yachty

Nowhere in the rap star manual does it say that a guaranteed formula for success is to “make psychedelic rock album with almost no rapping.” Yet that is exactly what Lil Yachty did with “Let’s Start Here,” his fifth full album but first rock project, after years as a top rapper with hits like “One Night,” “Minnesota,” “Oprah’s Bank Account” and guest spots on Kyle’s smash “iSpy,” Dram’s “Broccoli,” Calvin Harris’ “Faking It” and others.

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Are these the first dates you’re playing behind this new album?

At the album listening session, people did not seem to know what to think.

No! I didn’t know what people would expect, but I knew they wouldn’t expect that. I’ll be honest with you, I’ve never been more confident with a body of work, so my chest was out. I didn’t think anyone would be like, “Oh, this sucks.” I genuinely felt like even if you didn’t like it, if you’re a music head, you’d have some kind of respect for the body of work itself, and for an artist to pivot and make something in such a complete, utter, opposite direction from what came before.

You said the people you played the album for included Drake, Kendrick Lamar and Tyler, the Creator — all of whom have made moves something like that in the past.

I’ll tell you, Tyler was a big reason for this album. He’ll call me at like eight o’clock in the morning — for no reason — and we’ll talk for hours. I was such a fan of [Tyler’s Grammy-winning 2019 album] “Igor,” his character and his way of creating a world — the color palettes, the videos, the billboards, the fonts. It’s all together. And I was like “How do you do that?” Because I was trying to figure out how to make a pop-funk-psychedelic-rock album cohesive, without it sounding like someone’s playlist. Then I started working on the visuals, and what I wanted to do was extremely expensive. To be quite honest, I don’t think my label believed in it enough to give me the budget that I truly needed for the visuals to bring this album to life, so I just made two videos.

Tyler and Drake both called me before my first show — I didn’t even tell them the show was happening but they both called me. That means something to me, because those people are my idols. I remember the day Kanye tweeted [Tyler’s 2011 single] “Yonkers,” I was in eighth grade. So them checking on me means a lot.

Is it a lonely feeling, sticking your neck out creatively like that?

Yeah, at first it was, but another thing Tyler taught me was not to be afraid of that. I was so scared before those first shows, like, “What if they don’t wanna hear it?” Tyler would always say, “Fuck it, make them feel you.”

Like, on the first show of this tour, I told the [sound crew], “Play psychedelic music before I go on, don’t play hip-hop” — but right before I went on they played a Playboi Carti song and I heard the crowd turning up and I was like, “Oh no, they’re gonna hate me!” And when I came out, I have in-ears [onstage monitors] and I have them set so you can’t really hear the crowd, it’s like dead silence. But I just kept going, and then my rap set comes and they go fucking crazy and that gives me confidence, and when I did the big rock outro on “Black Seminole,” they all started clapping. And for me it was the biggest “Oh, thank God,” because I couldn’t tell if they were fucking with it.

Is it exciting being in such a risky place creatively?

You were a teenager.

Exactly, But I still wanted respect, you know? I cared! My career was never solidified, I felt like folks were writing me off, so when I was making “Let’s Start Here,” I was at a point in my career where I did not have a hit rap record — it was like, “Man, this could really go left!” But I didn’t start thinking about that till I got deep into it. When I started, I was just like, “Man, I really love this stuff. Why don’t I hear anything like this now? No one makes psychedelic songs anymore.” I do psychedelics and I knew I wanted to make a psychedelic album. I love long songs, I love to just get deep into them — that’s why I love [Pink Floyd’s 1973 classic] “Dark Side of the Moon.”

I was on psychedelics when I first heard it and I would listen and just be like maaan. Like, bro, how can music make me feel like this? How can music make my brain just go to a new dimension? And how did you do that in 1973? I was like, can I do this? And obviously my answer was no. I mean, no offense, but how many rappers successfully made a rock album?

Almost none.

That’s what I’m saying. I think one of them was Kid Cudi’s rock album — I love it but a lot of people hated it. It’s not a full rock album, but it has a strong rock element to it.

Where did the rock influences come from, your parents?

My dad played a lot of Coldplay, a lot of Radiohead, John Mayer, Lenny Kravitz, a lot of John Coltrane, and I’m named after Miles Davis. My family loved James Brown, my dad loved Pharrell. He actually didn’t play Pink Floyd to me, but I’m glad I heard it as an adult.

I tried to make “Let’s Start Here” five years ago — “Lil Boat 2” was supposed to be “Let’s Start Here” with teenage emotions, but I was too young. I got too nervous to experiment on my rap record, and I didn’t have much experience or knowledge in alternative music. I met [“Let’s Start Again” collaborator] Jeremiah Raisan and tried again with the next album, but I chickened out and made another rap album. But when I had that conversation with Tyler, I was like “I’ve gotta do this, let me get that guy back.”

You had a hit with “Poland” — why isn’t it on the album?

That’s what I battled with, but at some point, you have to trust yourself. In the middle of making the album, “Poland” was a huge Internet hit and people were like, “You gotta put it on the album.” But I was like, it doesn’t fit! Just because it’s a hit record doesn’t mean it makes sense anywhere on this record. I was so focused on making my Black “Dark Side of the Moon.” And there is a small rap verse on the album, at the end of “Drive Me Crazy.”

You’ve said you recorded a hip-hop album after you finished “Let’s Start Here,” what’s it like?

What do you want to do next?

I get off tour around Christmas, and in January I’m starting a new album. I don’t know what it is yet, I don’t want to say “alternative.” I have rap album, but I just decided I’m gonna keep dropping songs [from it] until my next [non-rap] album is done.

Do you know who you want to work with on the next album?

So many people, obviously I want to do it on mostly with the band I made the record with, [writers/producers] Justin and Jeremiah Raisen, Jake Portrait and Patrick Wimberly. But I want to work with Donald Glover, I really want to work with Florence from Florence and the Machine. Sampha, Frank [Ocean], Buddy Ross, who worked with Frank. Chris Martin, Bon Iver, Solange, Mike Dean.

I’ve just been exploring, doing things that people wouldn’t expect. Even if I’m not the best at something, let’s just try, let’s explore, let’s create new things.

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Lil Yachty Ready to Get Going With New Album ‘Let’s Start Here’

By Jon Blistein

Jon Blistein

Lil Yachty appears ready to release his first new album in three years later this month. 

On social media Tuesday, Jan. 17, the rapper shared what was ostensibly the weird-as-hell cover art for his next LP — a surreal image of a group of besuited adults sporting some deranged smiles — along with the title and release date: Let’s Start Here out Jan. 27. 

Lil Yachty then cryptically added, “Chapter 2,” before thanking fans “for the patience.”

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“I met Andrew from MGMT, and I’ve been talking to a bunch of people. I met Kevin Parker [of Tame Impala], I’ve been talking to him. It’s just inspiring,” he said. “I got a bunch of side projects I’m going to drop before my next album. But what I’m trying to do on my next album, I’m trying to really take it there sonically.”

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Fans Think Lil Yachty Unfollowed Drake Amid Drama Over Leaked Collaboration

Lil Yachty and Drake have been good friends for a long time, but fans believe a discrepancy over a song may have sparked a rift between both artists.

It all began earlier this week when Akademiks told his followers that Drake plans to release the song "S.O.D (Super Soak)." The media personality also claimed Drizzy will drop a music video for the track and reportedly played a clip of the visuals during his live stream. According to Ak, the song will arrive with one major update — Lil Boat won't be on it. Fans believe the news upset Yachty enough to unfollow The Boy on Instagram.

The alleged update shocked fans as well. Lil Yachty reportedly brought the song to Drake and intended to put it on the Concrete Boys' recent album. Their collaboration contains a sample of "Goodness Gracious" by Mr. HotSpot, who unfortunately prevented them from releasing it due to the explicit language in the song. Mr. HotSpot eventually told the duo they could use his song if they cleaned up their verses.

Before the sample was cleared, Yachty decided to leak the song to streamer Kai Cenat. At first, Soulja Boy thought it was Drake's way of responding to his X rant about him , but he cleared things up with Drizzy and claimed it wasn't supposed to drop at all.

Fans realized Yachty unfollowed Drake after news about the updated song went viral. It's not clear if he'll address the situation online. Yachty recently claimed he was done with social media after he confirmed Karrahbooo's departure from Concrete Boys . After fans called him out, Yachty returned to Instagram to re-follow Drake, and this time it was no accident. Check out the receipts below.

Fans Think Lil Yachty Unfollowed Drake Amid Drama Over Leaked Collaboration

Lil Yachty

Irreverent rapper/singer whose output has ranged from bubblegum trap to psychedelic rock.

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Karrahbooo Fan Claims That Lil Yachty Bullied Her Out Of Concrete Boys

Lil Yachty In Concert - New York, NY

Karrahbooo shocked fans when she decided to leave Concrete Boys in July. The rapper was dubbed the first lady of Lil Yachty 's rap collective. There was widespread speculation as to what caused the split, but both Karrahbooo and Yachty kept quiet. Maybe the split was as amicable as they both said it was. A post by one of Karrahbooo's fans, however, suggested otherwise. The fan, who goes by Twitter name Moon, claimed that she spoke with the rapper and learned there was much more to the split than we thought.

The fan posted a photo alongside Karrahbooo, and claimed the rapper came in to the restaurant where she worked. Things got juicy, though, when the fan claimed that Karrahbooo opened up about the true reason why she left Concrete Boys. "I asked her why she left," the fan noted. "She immediately corrected me and said I didn't leave they kicked me out." Karrahbooo reportedly went on to lay the blame at the feet of Lil Yachty, who founded the group. "[She said] they were really mean to her and bullying her a lot. She doesn't talk about it."

Read More: Lil Yachty Re-Follows Drake On Instagram Following Intense Fan Speculation

Karrahbooo Was Allegedly Kicked Out Of The Group

The fan then did some reading between the lines, and inferred that there was some possible jealously on the part of Lil Yachty. "I believe it's because her name was the biggest behind Yachty," she wrote. "If we being real I only started listening to him again because of her... I told her she'll do just fine without them, f*ck 'em." This fan account is far cry from the diplomatic, albeit vague, statement that Lil Yachty made when Karrahbooo left Concrete Boys.

"I'mma say this sh*t one time," he said on Istagram Live. "We have split ways with Karrah as far as this Concrete sh*t. I have nothing bad to say, nothing negative to say about Karrah. I wish her the best in her career." Karrahbooo has yet to comment on her feelings toward Lil Yachty and the rest of the Concrete Boys. That being said, she previously bumped heads with Yachty during an episode of the Safe Space podcast. Karrahbooo tried to defend her use of the N-word and Yachty proceeded to shut her down in front of the host. "That won’t happen," he announced. "You shouldn’t say it." It sounds like there's more of the story to come.

Read More: Lil Yachty Catches Flack For Disrespecting His Friend Mitch During Key Glock Podcast

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  • Sorry Not Sorry - Single
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  • Sorry Not Sorry - Single · 2024
  • Hate Me - Single · 2024
  • NBAYOUNGBOAT (feat. YoungBoy Never Broke Again)
  • Lil Boat 2 · 2018
  • From the D to the A (feat. Lil Yachty)
  • From the D to the A (feat. Lil Yachty) - Single · 2017
  • Taylor Port Junkie (feat. Lil Yachty)
  • Been One · 2023
  • Pardon Me (feat. Future & Mike WiLL Made-It)
  • Lil Boat 3 · 2020
  • Broccoli (feat. Lil Yachty)
  • Broccoli (feat. Lil Yachty) - Single · 2016
  • Lets Get On Dey Ass
  • Lets Get On Dey Ass - Single · 2024
  • Menace (feat. Lil Yachty, Quavo & Offset)
  • Quality Control: Control the Streets, Vol. 1 · 2017

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Conversation around his album, 'Let's Start Here.'

The rapper on "G.I. Joe" and his album 'Michigan Boy Boat.'

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Vince and Ty get festive, exchange gifts, and spin 21 Savage.

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About lil yachty.

Lil Yachty makes it look easy. An Atlanta-raised rapper with a sleepy flow and a bright, almost childlike outlook, Yachty (born Miles Parks McCollum in 1997) rose to prominence in 2016 with a pair of mixtapes (Lil Boat and Summer Songs 2) that recast the booming caverns of 2010s rap as something soft, sweet, intuitive, and a little goofy—a sound Yachty once called “bubblegum trap.” Dozens of features and guest appearances followed, including cosigns from Kanye, Chance the Rapper, Calvin Harris, and Macklemore. In 2017, he released his first full-length album, Teenage Emotions. His second, 2018’s Lil Boat 2, took a harder, darker turn but retained the clarity that made his early music stand out. Like Lil Uzi Vert (or Young Thug before him), Yachty represents a turn away from the conventional metrics of rap, favoring slogans over bars, hooks over metaphors, fluidity over stricture, and vibe above all. (He famously—or infamously, depending on your stance toward tradition—once told Billboard that he couldn’t name five songs by either 2Pac or Biggie.) But he’s also emblematic of a broader shift from understanding rap music as an end in itself to seeing it as an extension of the person who made it, a facet of a bigger image or experience. No wonder he FaceTimes with fans, or started his career primarily as a presence on Instagram—for him, the project is social. Still, it wouldn’t make a difference if the music itself weren’t striking—and if he weren’t so casual about it too. Speaking to Beats 1’s Zane Lowe shortly before releasing Teenage Emotions, Yachty—guileless and ever-intuitive—said, “I didn’t know [my sound] was different. I didn’t know until it took off. Then I was like, ‘Well, I don’t sound like nobody else.’” He paused. “I don’t even know if that’s a good or a bad thing. But it’s a thing. It’s a thing.” Yachty’s only expanded his sonic appetite. In 2021, he paid homage to Detroit-area rap with Michigan Boy Boat, an album that saw him adopt the jittery soundscapes and deadpan bars of the region. He added to his repertoire once again with 2023’s Let’s Start Here., a psychedelic rock album that sees Yachty stretch his vocals and soundscapes in even more unpredictable directions. From there, he released Concrete Boys, the debut project from his Concrete imprint. Featuring dexterous flows and spurts of melody from his crew, the 2024 effort affirmed his knack for curation and aesthetics. He’s graduated to a well-tended status as an industry tastemaker and a spitter capable of trading bars with J. Cole. On the track “The Secret Recipe,” we find Lil Boat rapping about being the source of plenty of rap and fashion trends. It’s a fitting song title for a young veteran who’s made a career out of good taste.

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COMMENTS

  1. Lil Yachty discography

    Singles. 32. Mixtapes. 3. The discography of American rapper Lil Yachty consists of five studio albums, three mixtapes, one collaborative mixtape, ten extended plays, ten music videos, thirteen guest appearances and thirty-two singles (including eighteen singles as a featured artist).

  2. Lil Yachty

    Let's Start Here. is Lil Yachty's fifth studio album, it is a direct follow-up to his August 2021 mixtape BIRTHDAY MIX 6. The first mention of the album's existence dates back to a tweet ...

  3. Lil Yachty Lyrics, Songs, and Albums

    Popular Lil Yachty albums Sorry Not Sorry - Single. 2024 LY6* 2024 Strike (Holster) 2023 Let's Start Here. 2023 Lil Boat 3.5. 2020 Lil Boat 3. 2020 Show all albums by Lil Yachty ...

  4. Review: Lil Yachty's 'Let's Start Here'

    The rapper and musician's ambitious left-turn incorporates experimental rock and jazz with near-flawless execution, arriving at something that feels genuinely brand-new. Read the full review of his 2023 album, which features collaborations with MGMT, Tame Impala, and more.

  5. Let's Start Here

    Let's Start Here is the fifth studio album by American rapper Lil Yachty, released on January 27, 2023, through Motown Records and Quality Control Music.It is his first studio album since Lil Boat 3 (2020) and follows his 2021 mixtape Michigan Boy Boat.The album marks a departure from Lil Yachty's signature trap sound, being heavily influenced by psychedelic rock.

  6. Lil Yachty: Let's Start Here. Album Review

    February 1, 2023. Despite its intriguing concept, Lil Yachty's voyage into soul and psych-rock runs aground. At a surprise listening event last Thursday, Lil Yachty introduced his new album Let ...

  7. Ranking Every Lil Yachty Album, From Worst to Best

    Yachty's subsequent albums, Lil Boat 2 and Nuthin' 2 Prove , unveiled a grittier sound, with the Quality Control artist straddling between his charming goofiness and a newfound aggressiveness. By the time Lil Boat 3 arrived, Yachty's musical maturity was apparent, as he skillfully maneuvered between his signature braggadocio and ...

  8. Lil Yachty's New Album 'Let's Start Here' Release Date, Cover ...

    Lil Yachty has revealed the artwork and release date for his forthcoming album, "Let's Start Here," set to debut Jan. 27 on Quality Control Music and Motown Records. Ever the provocateur ...

  9. Lil Yachty / James Blake: Bad Cameo Album Review

    Yachty begs, in full "Poland" voice, with Blake echoing his prayer in the background. You might recall a similar plea on the 2022 song ("Hope you love me, baby, I hope you mean it").

  10. Lil Yachty Albums, Songs

    The Lost Files. 2016 • Lil Yachty & Digital Nas. 31. user score. (69) Hey Honey Let's Spend Wintertime On a Boat. 2015 • Lil Yachty & Wintertime. 62. user score.

  11. Lil Yachty

    Lil Boat 3 was released on May 29, 2020 and debuted at number 14 on the US Billboard 200. [43] A deluxe version of the album titled Lil Boat 3.5 was released on November 27. [44] On October 19, 2020, Lil Yachty announced his intention to release a mixtape before the end of 2020. [45] Michigan Boy Boat was released on April 23, 2021.

  12. How Lil Yachty Ended Up at His Excellent New Psychedelic Album

    Yachty's debut album, 2017's Teenage Emotions, was a glitter-bomb of pop-rap explorations that floundered with shaky hooks and schmaltzy swings at crossover hits. Worse, his novelty began to ...

  13. Lil Yachty's Rock Album 'Let's Start Here': Inside the Pivot

    While Yachty's last full-length studio album, Lil Boat 3, arrived in 2020, he released the Michigan Boy Boat mixtape in 2021, a project as reverential of the state's flourishing hip-hop scenes ...

  14. Lil Yachty on His Rock Album 'Let's Start Here ...

    Yet that is exactly what Lil Yachty did with "Let's Start Here," his fifth full album but first rock project, after years as a top rapper with hits like "One Night," "Minnesota ...

  15. Lil Yachty Announces New Album 'Let's Start Here,' Release Date

    Lil Yachty appears ready to release his first new album in three years later this month.. On social media Tuesday, Jan. 17, the rapper shared what was ostensibly the weird-as-hell cover art for ...

  16. Lil Yachty

    Click here for new Lil Yachty music. Stream the latest album and watch the newest visualizers. Sign up for official updates.

  17. ‎Let's Start Here.

    The first song on Lil Yachty's Let's Start Here. is nearly seven minutes long and features breathy singing from Yachty, a freewheeling guitar solo, and a mostly instrumental second half that calls to mind TV depictions of astral projecting. "the BLACK seminole." is an extremely fulfilling listen, but is this the same guy who just a few months earlier delivered the beautifully off ...

  18. Lil Yachty

    Teenage Emotions is Atlanta rapper Lil Yachty's debut album, released on May 26, 2017. Yachty first announced the album on his personal Twitter in January, and the release date, cover art, and ...

  19. Lil Yachty

    Lil Yachty Shares New Album Lil Boat 3.5: Listen. By Matthew Ismael Ruiz. November 27, 2020. News. Lil Yachty Series Public Figures Coming to HBO Max. By Madison Bloom. October 29, 2020.

  20. Lil Yachty Albums: songs, discography, biography, and listening guide

    Lil Yachty discography and songs: Music profile for Lil Yachty, born 23 August 1997. Genres: Trap, Southern Hip Hop, Pop Rap. Albums include Let's Start Here., Coloring Book, and Nectar.

  21. Fans Think Lil Yachty Unfollowed Drake Amid Drama Over Leaked ...

    The alleged update shocked fans as well. Lil Yachty reportedly brought the song to Drake and intended to put it on the Concrete Boys' recent album. Their collaboration contains a sample of ...

  22. Lil Yachty Songs, Albums, Reviews, Bio & More ...

    Explore Lil Yachty's discography including top tracks, albums, and reviews. Learn all about Lil Yachty on AllMusic.

  23. Karrahbooo Fan Claims That Lil Yachty Bullied Her Out Of ...

    Karrahbooo has yet to comment on her feelings toward Lil Yachty and the rest of the Concrete Boys. ... especially when it comes to the coverage of new albums and singles. His favorite artists are ...

  24. ‎Lil Yachty

    Lil Yachty makes it look easy. An Atlanta-raised rapper with a sleepy flow and a bright, almost childlike outlook, Yachty (born Miles Parks McCollum in 1997) rose to prominence in 2016 with a pair of mixtapes (Lil Boat and Summer Songs 2) that recast the booming caverns of 2010s rap as something soft, sweet, intuitive, and a little goofy—a sound Yachty once called "bubblegum trap."

  25. Lil Yachty music, videos, stats, and photos

    Born In. Mableton, Cobb County, Georgia, United States. Miles Parks McCollum (born August 23, 1997), better known as his stage name Lil Yachty, is an American hip hop recording artist from Atlanta, Georgia. Yachty gained recognition for his hit debut singles One Night and Minnesota from his debut mixtape Lil Boat in 2016.

  26. Drake

    Ain't no way he loved you, he ain't light your wrist It ain't no way he loved you, you strugglin' with bills Hit me randomly, we ain't speak prior in weeks That lil' shit you had goin' on, must ...