Game, Young Jeezy, Jim Jones Talk Hottest MCs: 'You Gotta Be Stamped By Legends'
As you know, the "Hottest MCs" list has been in for a few days and the controversy is swirling heavily. It's all good -- we love it! That's our main goal: to get people who love hip-hop to talk about it. We asked some of the people whose names appear on our list what it means to get the recognition.recognition.
Game, the #3 pick, told us his thoughts on what makes an MC hot. "You gotta be stamped by legends," he said passionately. "It's like somebody being a great high school basketball player but never making it to the NBA. Then you ain't done sh-- because you never made it to the league. If you ain't sold millions of records and ain't got recognition from real hard-core hip-hop fans or been blessed or touched by the Snoops, the Jay-Zs, the Nases, KRS-Ones, Big Daddy Kanes, Spice Ones, E-40s -- people that been in the game a lot longer than your disrespectful a-- -- then you ain't hot. You don't deserve to co-exist with me or any other of the up-and-coming MCs. I'll serve your a-- on any given Sunday."
Young Jeezy, who came in at #6 on the list, said he definitely belongs with hip-hop's elite now. "For real, I'm dead serious about what I do," the Snowman explained. "When it comes to my lane, I'm the best at that. I'm sincere. If there was a lane that had something to do with me, of course I know I'm gonna be there."
As usual, Kanye West, the #5 hottest MC, said enough to fill up an article on his own (see [article id="1565995"]"Kanye West On Making Hottest MCs List: 'It Feels Better Than Winning An Award' "[/article]).
Jim Jones addressed the controversy that his #10 placement -- over Nas -- has sparked. "I don't want y'all to get me jumped out there!" he laughed. "Y'all probably got a lot of rappers pissed right now. I didn't make that decision. I wasn't a part of the round table. But it feels good. I been living this life, this fast life and music life, since I can remember. I was born into this life. I understand the culture a little more than the average person. When we got the opportunity to do the Diplomats, I was all in. Cam was always the face card; it worked for us. After Juelz Santana broke, I said, 'Let me go in.' The people started taking to me.
"I appreciate everyone for that," he concluded. "I count my blessings. When you tell me I'm in the top MCs of today, that's real hot."
How do you feel about our Hottest MCs in the Game list? Take a look and then let us know what you think in You Tell Us.
