During the interview that eventually became the Gibbs feature, we talked a lot about the contemporary gangsta rappers that we both liked. Apparently, no one informed him that I don’t like “street-minded hip-hop,” so the conversation went well, except for when I mentioned that I wasn’t a crazy Jeezy fan save for “3 a.m., “”Go Getta” and “Circulate.” At that point, I was halfway convinced that his boy Big Kill was going to personally explain to me the definition of curb servin’. After all, Big Kill is a large man, one more frightening than Large Marge, the Large Professor, and Steve Largent combined. Many names were mentioned: Trae, Z-Ro, Pill, others I’m forgetting, but Boosie stood out because as Gibbs put it, “Boosie goes hard.”
I imagine Torrence Hatch would probably get a lot more love if his name wasn’t Lil Boosie, which sounds more appropriate for a drive-through Daiquiri Stand just outside of Shreveport. It’s fun to play Internet rap blogger and all, but when you step out into the sunlight and talk to the normals, you tend to get a lot of strange looks when you espouse your Boosie fandom. I have promised many people that I would make them Best of Boosie Mixtapes to prove that my appreciation of his music isn’t some ironic white boy affectation. The video for “Gin in My Cup” (via Gotty) doesn’t necessarily disspell that conclusion, but it does provide a window into one of the many sides of a rapper who unfortunately will be spending his immediate future locked up. Namely that for all the hard-core songs about growing up poor in Baton Rouge, his diabetes, his mixed feelings for his dead father, his hatred of the police, at heart, he’s a pretty goofy dude willing to bug his eyes out for the camera, do the loose as a goose dance, and scream at women for daring to offer him a sprite. Who do they think he is, Grant Hill?
Tons of videos featuring Boosie and his bug-eyes below the jump.
10 comments
Gotty™ says:
December 3, 2009 at 6:22 pm (UTC -7)
Not a Jeezy fan? boy stop.
I’m fuckin w/this post though.
Passion of the Weiss says:
December 3, 2009 at 6:51 pm (UTC -7)
Ha. He’s great in small doses, but I’ve always found the guy hard to take over an album or mixtape length–the songs just start to run together for me. In all fairness, I suspect a lot of his appeal stems from a regionalism that I just can’t access being a sun and smoke-stunned Westerner.
Disco Vietnam says:
December 3, 2009 at 7:34 pm (UTC -7)
There are rappers named Big Wayne and Big Poppa? This is ok?
Passion of the Weiss says:
December 3, 2009 at 7:47 pm (UTC -7)
No it is not. I advise you to look past this and consider the historical context of inadequate weed carrier names.
thomas says:
December 4, 2009 at 10:11 am (UTC -7)
“…when you step out into the sunlight and talk to the normals, you tend to get a lot of strange looks when you espouse your Boosie fandom.”
the guy can rap, but he’s not very likeable, imho. all the songs i’ve heard from him seem to point out that he’s not a very nice person. when i listen to his music, my admiration for his skill as a rapper gets outweighed by my sense of revulsion and/or pity for him. maybe he’s just too harsh for me, or maybe i need one of those “Best of Boosie” mixtapes?
rewface says:
December 4, 2009 at 1:50 pm (UTC -7)
http://www.worldstarhiphop.com/videos/video.php?v=wshh2i3hrmk5t24NU8E8
the video that made me a boosie fan…nay, appreciator, i guess. dude is so sincere it’s almost fascinating, especially considering developments since this video was made.
thug motivation 101 is a serious guilty pleasure though.
David says:
December 4, 2009 at 3:51 pm (UTC -7)
“It’s fun to play Internet rap blogger and all, but when you step out into the sunlight and talk to the normals, you tend to get a lot of strange looks when you espouse your Boosie fandom.”
hes pretty hugely popular w/ actual rap fans throughout the midwest & south
bding7 says:
December 4, 2009 at 10:56 pm (UTC -7)
“hes pretty hugely popular w/ actual rap fans throughout the midwest & south”
As someone who’s considers himself an actual rap fan who lives in the south, I have yet to hear a lick of Boosie in a club, at a show, from a car, or out of someone’s house. I don’t doubt you, but I have not experienced this myself.
HDO says:
December 27, 2009 at 8:35 am (UTC -7)
I live in the south – four hours from Baton Rouge – and I’ve got a handful of 7th grade students that love Boosie.
Lil Boosie Superbad says:
January 12, 2010 at 4:16 pm (UTC -7)
Lil Boosie we out chea is that gutta gutta ish… Most underrated artist in the game today.