New Music: Rick Ross feat. Jay-Z - "The Devil is a Lie" - RESPECT.

Rick Ross had a pretty rough 2013. On January 27th, he and his girlfriend were involved in a drive-by shooting that, thankfully, yielded no casualties. In March, he was the subject of public outrage for essentially narrating a date rape on Rocko‘s “U.O.E.N.O.,” which subsequently led to Reebok dropping Rozay as a spokesman in early April. Finally, while fans had been expecting his much-anticipated MasterMind project to drop this week, it was announced earlier this month that the LP had been pushed back yet again and will now hit stores sometime in 2014. Surely, in a year packed full of major releases from hip-hop veterans and newcomers alike, that’s not how one of rap’s biggest stars wants to go out.

Enter “The Devil is a Lie,” a soulful, religion-infused jam produced by K.E. on the Track and featuring a top-form Jay Z. K.E., who helmed Ross‘ 2011 hit “You the Boss,” scores once again with this beat, making good use of rich gospel samples a la Blueprint-era Kanye. It’s fitting then, that Hova too finishes off the track with some of the best bars we’ve heard from him all year. While Ross offers up his typical illustrious fare–“sippin’ Bordeaux out in Bordeaux,”–Jay turns away from the Tom Fords and the Basquiats and takes it back to the streets: “White Jesus in my crock pot/I mixed the shit with some soda/Now I’m black Jesus, turned water into wine/And all I had to do was turn the stove up.” All in all, “The Devil is a Lie” is a comforting way for Rick Ross to finish out an otherwise uneven year, and it will certainly restore fans’ faith in the forthcoming MasterMind. Listen for yourself below.