How Drake and Lil Wayne inspired Busta Rhymes: “You aspire to do that”
Busta Rhymes, by the year 2011, was already a rap legend, having been around for a long time and being responsible for a bunch of classic singles and albums.
But that year of 2011 came with an unexpected twist: he signed with YMCMB, the partnership between Ronald “Slim” Williams and Bryan “Birdman” Williams’ label, Young Money Entertainment, and Lil Wayne’s Cash Money Records, which was itself responsible for launching the careers of people like Drake and Nicki Minaj. Busta Rhymes’ suddenly showing up on the YMCMB roster was unexpected, but the vibes, from Busta’s own perspective, were positive.
“This whole experience that’s getting ready to happen,” Busta said in a video announcing the news, “is probably going to be one of the most defining moments in hip-hop, and probably just entertainment overall. I think this alliance with the conglomerate and YMCMB and me and Bird and Wayne, the whole family, is something that’s been a long time coming, because we just always had a respect level and a genuine, organic friendship for a very long time.”
Busta Rhymes was certainly bigging up his new status as a member of YMCMB, but, in the end, the working relationship was short-lived and didn’t bear much fruit. A couple of years later, he left the project, but he insisted it was only because of creative differences and that there had been no negativity surrounding his departure. Still, after promising a defining moment for not only hip hop but “entertainment overall,” his departure after just two years was something of an anti-climax. Still, the whole experience did reveal how close Busta Rhymes actually was to some of his younger contemporaries.
Speaking to Rolling Stone in 2013, Busta gushed of the YMCMB family, “I’m inspired by the Weezy and the Drake talent. Part of the reason I’ve been able to do this for so long is because of the excitement you continue to feel since day one, other motherfuckers being dope. Like, you feel you could be just as dope or better. You aspire to do that; you use these guys as inspiration. And it’s all respect! Respectable competition. I’m a fan first.”
Busta name-dropped some of the YMCMB artists he was most inspired by. “When I see Drake, when I see Wayne work, Shanell [the singer known for her appearance on Lil Wayne’s ‘Prom Queen’]—she hasn’t put out an album yet, but I’ve watched her work—I’m a super-fan of that,” he noted. “Mystikal, I’m happy they signed him! [Pause] I even think Nicki [Minaj]’s incredibly brilliant.”
Busta elaborated on why he enjoyed these artists so much, and, really, it came down to plainly just liking them as people. “… I love what they represent as a movement, and I love the camaraderie that we’ve had,” he explained. “Me and Bird and Wayne, Slim, have always rocked with each other for the past 12 to 15 years! I just think the respect organically built throughout the years has been consistent. That alone has done a lot for me, at this stage of my career. I’ve done stuff with people I didn’t really have that great relationship with, and gotten amazing results. Now, to rock with motherfuckers that you really cool with? Can you imagine the results that be coming from some shit like that?”
It’s a shame more didn’t come out of Busta’s time with YMCMB. But he clearly enjoyed being around those people, so maybe he’ll manage to collaborate with some of them down the line?