When it comes to this rap sh*t, Royce 5’9 is one of the best to have ever done it. For nearly two decades he’s been one of the most consistent and elite emcees in the game. And even though I may not post about Lupe Fiasco for personal reasons, he’s a legit alien too. So, after the two started going back and forth online over who could rap better, we’d be lying if we didn’t hope for some bars. And, well… that’s exactly what we got!
As response to Lupe – who, after the back and forth, went on IG Live and kicked a lengthy freestyle addressing Royce and the whole situation (HHNM has a great break down of the entire thing) – Royce came through in the late night with a seven-minute track called “Silence of the Lambda” that featured a few shots at the Chicago rapper.
“I S-M-H, I let you nay-say/ Y’all legends ain’t safe/ I desecrate Flex, I decorate Sway/ I estaimate a hundred left, I let the Kay Slay,” Royce exclaims. ”I don’t carry suitcases on big runs to malls deep/ I don’t carry big guns to a small beef/ I don’t really care what Mickey Factz has to say/ Add Lupe, that’s touché/ I don’t care for big gums and small teeth/ You know the gold all froze if I’ma purchase bling/ Just so you know, not a soul walkin’ the earth this mean/ Bow before the king, kiss the goat all purpose ring/ While the god poses like Bow/Soulja meme/ Y’all with all the jokes, laugh hard but y’all ridiculous/ I’m with all the smoke, Matt Barnes, Sha’carri Richardson”
This continues non-stop for several minutes until Nickel decides to up the ante with a closing stanza where he states he’s Benny the Butcher, Kendrick Lamar and J. Cole wrapped in one and directly responds to Lupe’s “without Eminem you’d be broke” rhyme with a reminder that Kanye West played a huge part in his discovery and career.
“I’m Benny, I’m Kenny and Cole/ I’m bimmy and po, I’ll hit my enemy and chalk any opposed/ If Umi says you really the goat, who tryna hit em the Mos […] I’m Jill Scott playin Gil Scot Heron/ With Preem, H.E.R and D’Angelo/ Queen serving me cantaloupe, hammock low/ Swerve lambs on Atlanta roads/ Earl “Animal“ Manigualt, furs lamb or the nana goat/ The pearl handle where ammo go/ Answer war with your girl nana or aunt ol’ go/ Cancel cultures annual, Santa Po is the anecdote/ Cancer don’t take for granted no family though/ The streets won’t hand us no manual so we go Hansel Emanuel/ You forgot the dude who was about The Chi, who been locked inside/ Wtithout him you’d be dead, probably dread standing beside you/ Fed almon and lied to, while the red camera disguise you/ You violent but where was that for the Craig Kallmans and Kaisers/ Nine minute freestyle about me, I had to make fun of bro/ I got plenty problems, my n*gga, rapping ain’t one of those”
Produced by Carlos “Six July” Broady, press play on “Silence of the Lambda” below and stay tuned for Lupe’s response – which, I’m sure is already in motion. We may have our differences, but I do still consider him one of the best rappers doing it, as well, and really look forward to what can come from this battle. As long as it stays on wax, of course.
UPDATE: Well, that was fast! Literally hours later, Lupe has returned fire with a diss track of his own called “Steve Jobs: SLR 3 1/2).” And damn, he just took things to another level. This is crazy.
Produced by his longtime collaborator, Soundtrakk, the track extends six minutes with Lupe responding directly to what Royce was saying on “Silence” while adding a few missiles of his own – saying Nickel lacks a classic album, has piggybacked off Eminem, relied on DJ Premier, and a lot more. He even wished God took Royce instead of Biz Markie (RIP), which I hope doesn’t take this battle past the booth. We just need bars, guys.
“Lambda Lambda Lambda, I think that shit was… sweeet/ I wish I could just kiss you on the cheek/ Nerds have their hands in everything, gangstas won’t even touch the police/ Why don’t you tell your n****s get that/ Take some of them cool fully’s and go get some of our shit back/ The problem is that you ain’t never had an impact/ KitKats and chit chat and syntax, won’t make up for how much you sit back,” Lu raps. ”I think that n***a scared, he never leave Heaven cause he already dead/ N***a, are you insane? What’s the point of knowing how to point and aim/ If the n****s you gonna bang look exactly the same/ That ain’t muthafuckin’ cool, that’s a muthafuckin’ shame […] “We both wear glasses, the difference is I was in school thinking it was cool and you were thinking of skipping classes/ Listening to your track record, I can see you were skipping classics/ I did it on my first one and delivered to the masses/ Your songs are in-memorable, your verses are impenetrable/ I ain’t even listen to that diss record, I only fuck with you cause of your interviews/ I ain’t even trip, when you called me a bitch/ I was like look at Salem, calling me a witch/ Look at how they made him, look how much they gave him/ Look at all the assists/ N***a if it wasn’t for Premier! You wouldn’t be. If it wasn’t for, if it wasn’t for, if it wasn’t for, if it wasn’t for… n***a I got a dozen more/ Hov think I’m Hov, Nas think I’m Nas/ That’s the trick, you ain’t gotta think if n****s already think you are.”
This continues, until Lu closes out with some body shots.
“In seven minutes he did it/ If he knew how to freestyle he coulda rented Heaven for seven minutes/ And been done what needed to be done by the second sentence,” Lu raps. ”All this extra innings may come across as master — but my impression’s apprentice/ Your penmanship has the fingerprints of a gimmick/ An affection and an intimacy of impressions of that n***a you friends with/ I ain’t gotta say it to say it, I can’t even blame you, the n****’s one of my favorites.”
Check it out below and be on the lookout for Royce’s response – which, based off the directness of Lupe’s diss, should be rather interesting. Let’s go!
Royce 5’9 & Lupe Fiasco Trade Diss Tracks – And We’re Here For It! was last modified: July 22nd, 2021 by
