New Music: Lupe Fiasco - "Thot 97" - RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture

There was once a time where people would unjokingly say, “Lupe Fiasco is the greatest rapper ever.” Though only a brave, possibly delusional few would dare make that claim after Lupe‘s last two albums, Lupe is clearly dedicated to once again making that an acceptable statement. On “Thot 97” he raps over the instrumental from “OG Bobby Johnson” by Que. Lupe‘s performance here is genuinely flawless, combining his signature wit with a patently unique flow that melds perfectly with the fierce instrumental’s hostile atmosphere. Rather than merely rapping over the instrumental, Lupe elects to rap with the instrumental, allowing the beat’s menacing tones to sublimate into his delivery, which subsequently becomes just as percussive, dynamic, confident and threatening as the beat itself.

This stylish and highly technical fusion with the beat should be taken seriously. Though Lupe‘s album Lasers was met with hostility for its apparent commercial leanings and Lupe‘s seeming unwillingness to push for instrumentals that weren’t so pandering, what stood about the album was that Lupe nonetheless took the songs seriously. No verses were dialed in; he actually sat and wrote to those instrumentals as if they were freshly made by Kanye. On “Thot 97,” we see a similar dedication. The difference is that this song is just plain better because Lupe released this on his own terms rather than because of his label’s coercion. All that to say this: perhaps Lupe never stopped being a contender for GRE. His last two albums just featured good rapping over bad songs*. Listen below.

*Being a good rapper and being a good songwriter are two very different things.