Lil Bibby can still recall Drake’s initial praise: “Streets need that TAPE! I’m waiting on it.” Initially, the Twitter direct message inspired the rising Chicago rapper to reassess and record new songs for his debut mixtape “Free Crack,” in hopes of meeting Drake’s expectations. As a result, it forced the 19-year old to delay its release by three months, to last November. “I was scared at first, I’m not gonna lie,” Lil Bibby told Billboard’s The Juice. “Drake put the pressure on me.”
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Ever since though, it has motivated other hip-hop heavyweights to check him out – and collaborate with him.
Fresh off a promo run in New York City, Lil Bibby visited Norcross, Ga.’s Tree Sound Studios on Thursday (Jan. 16) to perform songs off “Free Crack.” Amongst those in the crowd were producer Childish Major and Trinidad James. Drake was rumored to make an appearance but wasn’t in attendance.
Due to the lyrical content of his latest release, “Water,” Bibby’s often prompted to talk specifics of his Chicago’s east side neighborhood, if not how he’s reckoned with the city’s gang-ravaged areas. “You try not to lose it [when asked],” he told The Juice. “They’re getting the music, and that should be enough, but they want you to break it down and get into details. I don’t like it, because then I be thinking back to all the shit that happened.”
In between songs, Lil Bibby said that he’s approached Jadakiss and Pusha T for a remix to “Water.” Later, he told The Juice exclusively that he’s also considering Scarface for that same remix, plus a few major collaborations for other songs. Mac Miller has promised to send over a track. Drake also reached out to Bibby, to appear on a song of his. “A couple of weeks ago, Drake told me he has a song for me that I’m still waiting on,” Lil Bibby said. “He said it was his song, so it’s probably gonna be something he’ll hold onto. Hopefully it’s gonna be good enough to make a project of his.”
In November, Drake told VIBE that he plans to release a few tracks, including “Trophies,” as “maybe a blog thing like how I did ‘Versace,’ ‘The Motion,’ all those in one night.” Meanwhile, Lil Bibby said that he will release new music in the coming months, possibly as an EP. “I’m still waiting on a couple of features,” he said, adding, “I’m not gonna keep y’all waiting for that long.”