Busta Rhymes talks about the most emotional moments of his career
Busta Rhymes has been around since the early 1990s and stood in cyphers with the likes of Ol’ Dirty Bastard and Biggie Smalls. However, he has come a long way since then, and after nearly 30 years in the industry, he is reaping the rewards of all the hard work he has put in over the years.
When he first officially crossed into the mainstream in 1997 with his anthem ‘Put Your Hands Where My Eyes Could See’, Busta (real name Trevor Smith) would have thought it impossible that three decades later, he would still be relevant. However, he has exceeded his own expectations.
From working with sunglasses company Ray-Ban for an advertising campaign to having contemporary artists such as Offset and Lil Simz give new life to his old music, he is growing and enjoying seeing new talent and exciting companies embrace him and his art.
In an interview with Variety magazine about his career and his current sense of pride, Smith told readers, “It’s a blessing and a gift and indescribable in words to explain how rewarding of a feeling it is to know these songs are actually being revamped by generations way after the song’s [release].”
Explaining his love of the continued sampling, Smith continued, “You don’t make the songs at the time knowing or even thinking that they’re going to do anything outside of the timeframe that you made them. I never thought that the record would still be hot after 1997. I didn’t think it was gonna still be hot in ’98, I didn’t think it was gonna be hot in ’99, let alone to get to 2024.”
Due to the legendary music, he has released over the years, including hits such as ‘I Know What You Want’, ‘Pass The Courvoisier pt II’, and ‘Touch It,’ it was recently announced that the Brooklyn icon will receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame this year.
In response to the news, Busta Rhymes revealed he is grateful to even be alive to see it and explained how so many icons go unnoticed, explaining, “Some artists have never gotten the opportunity to have experienced seeing themselves receiving these accolades. There are incredible icons in this world that have never gotten a Grammy, they’ve never gotten an MTV Award. They’ve never gotten a Hollywood star. They’ve never been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. And they could’ve lived to be 90 years old and still never got it.”
When asked about how he responded to the news concerning the star, Smith exclaimed, “I’m not gonna lie, it was probably one of the most prestigious moments, one of the most emotional moments, one of the most dream come true moments. It’s really one of the things you never think you’ll ever get.”
You can hear Busta’s breakout hit ‘Put Your Hands Where My Eyes Could See’ below.