Tyler, The Creator has taken aim at viral white rapper Ian and accused him of “mocking” Hip Hop.
Speaking to Maverick Carter on his SpringHill platform, the Odd Future founder aired out his issues with an unnamed “white kid” while heavily alluding to the controversial rapper.
“There’s this kid right now, this white kid, regular Caucasian man, and he’s like mocking Future and Gucci Mane, like rap music. And people are like, ‘This shit hard!’” Tyler said.
“It’s not even like satire, it’s like, ‘I’m just joking, I’m just mocking it.’ But I’m like, ‘No, no, no, you can’t do [that].’ And I hold rap music so close to my heart ’cause this shit changed my life and everyone’s life around me, and I’m a nerd about this shit.”
Tyler continued: “This is like weird and I’m looking at it and something about it don’t even sit well with me, in comparison to someone like a Mac Miller or Eminem who didn’t seem like they were mocking it; they had a genuine love for it.”
While he didn’t mention Ian by name, most people assumed that Tyler, The Creator was referring to the viral rapper who dresses like a preppy college student but raps in a similar vein to the Southern trap stars named by Tyler.
Bu Thiam, Executive Vice President at Columbia Records and the brother of Akon, also thought Tyler was speaking about his artist and hit back online.
He wrote on his Instagram Stories: “Yo @feliciathegoat, i signed lan & im from Atlanta. He sounds nothing like Gucci or future lol. It’s called influence. But i never thought I’d see the day where you become old & hate on the youth lol.”
Lil Yachty was recently criticized for working with Ian after the two were spotted in the studio together.
The link-up didn’t sit well with fans, with some accusing Yachty of being a hypocrite given his previous comments about Hip Hop’s perceived lack of creativity and originality.
“Nvm I don’t rly fw him no more. This n-gga said Hip Hop is in a terrible state and then went to do a song with a fucking colonizer [three crying emojis] we’re cooked,” one user wrote.
Another critic said: “lmfaoo yall ain’t got no dignity man it’s so sad to see.”
Yachty and Ian’s studio session was evidently productive as they released the aptly titled “Hate Me” in July.
The song made headlines of its own thanks to Lil Boat boldly rapping: “Know I’m richer than your favorite rapper / If I’m not, then, God, kill my momma.”
