S. Samuel
With Atlanta rapper Waka Flocka Flame continuing to build off the buzz behind his Drake-assisted "Round of Applause" anthem, SOHH decided to hit up Brick Squad Monopoly's Frenchie to find out if he ever took Flockaveli's past retirement talks seriously.
In Frenchie’s perspective, the BSM leader’s claim to hang up the mic by 2012 was likely a result of getting stressed out.
“Ah nah, not at all, man,” Frenchie told SOHH when asked if he took the Waka Flocka retirement buzz seriously. “That’s my family. It’s only so much you can take from somebody. It’s like when you see things and get stressed out, you’ll say certain things. But then you have influences like me, Wooh Da Kid, Gucci [Mane] that’s around him and influence him, showing him how much people work. You can’t slow down, this is a family business. We’ve got to keep this sh*t rolling. … I’ve seen his development as an artist. The energy that he brings to the game is so insane.” (SOHH)
Last year, Flocka said a lack of motivation to maintain a rap career steered him into planning retirement.
“That’s absolutely true,” Flocka said, confirming his retirement tweet. “The game as a whole is fake. I’m tired of just going through what I go through and then at the end of the day, the forecast is always rain. It always rains on my world. It’s so many different haters, fake smiles, fake hugs, so to prevent myself from doing anything, I’d just rather quit. I’d rather work at Walmart than rap and that’s my word on God. Yup. I’ll put that on Jesus Christ, I ain’t lying. It’s something I could never explain because people aren’t living this lifestyle. So at the end of the day, people living the lifestyle can probably understand why I’m doing it. At the end of the day, I’m just doing it for my friends and my family, get them straight and then it’s over for me.” (V-103)
Following the announcement, SOHH hit up Flocka’s mentor/rapper Gucci Mane for his take on the retirement hype.
“Me just being honest, I’m one of Waka’s biggest fans,” Gucci added when asked if he believes Waka will really retire by 2012. “I’m a huge fan of his music, you know what I’m saying? Me just being a fan and seeing how he is when he goes into the studio, I would hate for him to stop rapping because I like what he’s doing. Every song he’s every made, I’ve liked. He goes hard. So I would hate for him to leave the game because I think he’s bringing a whole new thing to the rap game. He’s got his own style.” (SOHH)
In the fall, Flocka updated fans on his delayed Triple F Life sophomore album.
It felt like a rushed project. I’m going to do it first quarter (2012) because I need to put my all into it,” Waka Flocka continued on his recently pushed back album, “Triple F Life.” “I felt like I was trying to please the label and not the people that really listen to the music.” Flocka also hinted at another breakthrough guest spot on his upcoming album: DMX. “I’m trying to put a song together with DMX; he needs to get back on the scene!” With 2011 drawing to a close, Waka Flocka offered a bold prediction for the new year. “I’m gonna be the No. 1 artist of the year. That’s not a prediction, that’s a fact!” he proclaimed. (Billboard)
Check out Frenchie & Waka Flocka Flame’s “So Tired” below:
