Last Thursday, Consequence let out some potentially huge news about his work as a ghostwriter. In an interview with Power 106 Los Angeles, Cons told the station that he was a ghostwriter for none other than Jay-Z.
He didn’t pen any verses for Jay, at least he didn’t say he did, but he took credit for working with Kanye on the hook for “Encore.” “One record in particular I was happy about to be a part of was Jay Z’s ‘Encore,'” he said. “When me and Kanye kind of was on the phone and we actually kinda came up with the chorus and forth.”
One can thank Meek Mill for the newfound focus on “who’s writing for who?” While Drake himself still hasn’t really answered the question of whether he uses a writer, his alleged writer, Quentin Miller, spoke on his own behalf. When Flex dropped even more reference tracks, things for “Champagne Papi” got incredibly murky. Drake fans are insistent that none of this matters. “So long as the music is good who cares? All I care about is the music” is usually their defense.
It’s interesting to see where the lines get drawn. When headlines of “Consequence ghostwrote for Jay-Z” hit social media, there was a palpable feeling of “n**** please” in the air. Most people weren’t here for Mr. Carter having a ghostwriter, let alone Consequence being responsible for his pen. When Meek said Drake had a ghostwriter and all of the reference tracks dropped, the capes for Drake were in full swing. In trying to understand the difference between the response in Jay-Z having a ghostwriter versus Drake having one, there’s a couple of conclusions one can make.
One, Jay-Z is clearly held to a higher standard than Drake. It’s okay for Drake to have a sweatshop full of writers, but not Hov because there’s a certain level of respect people hold for him that they may not hold for Drake. Jay-Z is a legendary rapper and arguably one of the best to pick up a mic. So much of Jay-Z’s mythos is tied in his ability to be an MC that the thought of him not penning his own lyrics would undoubtedly be a crushing blow to his legacy. Drake isn’t that.
Secondly, like it or hate, Drake is an international pop star. The 6 God having a football team of writers isn’t a big deal because the music he makes now isn’t confined to the rules of rap. People can say whatever they want about stretching the boundaries of the genre but “One Dance” and “Controlla” aren’t even close to rap music, which is fine. Aubrey doesn’t need to be held to the confines of anything and if his plan is world domination then it’s well within to pursue that objective.
The only problem with that is, if Drake is no longer held to the rules of rap then he can no longer be considered its king. Jay-Z, regardless of how much one cares about his music at present, is still regarded as one of the best rappers to walk planet earth. Even the slightest hint of someone else penning his rhymes is enough to get people up in arms because that’s not what folks expect out of him.
The rule of rap is that if you’re respected as a lyricist, you need to write your own sh*t. There’s a reason why Jay-Z’s legacy would be impacted but Drake is still on tour dissing people in their own city. It’s all about expectations.
