Detroit’s vey own Courtney Bell and Compton’s Boogie just linked to deliver a statement track, the new “Lion’s Den,” which came accompanied by a striking video to illustrate the song’s message. The Diego-directed visual sees the two rappers pulling up on a cop mid-arrest, then bullying him and out-numbering him, portraying where the power truly lies. The visual ends with a list of names of people killed by police in recent years, including Eric Garner, John Crawford III, Breonna Taylor, and more. On the track, Courtney goes in with his signature conscious bars:
My tongue is a double edged sword, we swore that we would strap up when it’s war. So n***a? What you gon’ do when they come in and destroy and give you chains? Symbolic for nooses, unconsciously stupid.”
Courtney Bell has released a slew of singles so far this year prior to “Lion’s Den,” including “ICE,” “Say You Wanna,” and “Dear Rap Negus.” Most recently, Boogie can be heard with the assist on Alycia Bella on her song “Cue The Sun” and also on Sainvil’s “Boxed It,” which both came out in September. In 2019, Boogie dropped his last full length project Everything’s For Sale, which saw features from names like J.I.D, Eminem, 6lack, Snoh Aalegra, Christian Scott aTunde Adujah, Shae Universe.
In a previous interview, Boogie did some self-reflecting and delved into what he hoped people will get from his project:
That I’m a self-destructive person. I think my fans sometimes put me on a pedestal because of the way everybody else is rapping, and they don’t think I’m a drug head but I really be fucking up a lot. On one of these songs, I say, “I cheated on my queen for a ho.” That’s real-life stuff. The song “Self-Destruction” is about me knowing that I’m fucking up. I just want people to understand that you need to really reflect on yourself and really take that time to sit with yourself and understand what’s wrong and acknowledge it. You’ll grow from it.
Watch the new video for “Lion’s Den” by Courtney featuring Boogie down below.