Gucci Mane reflects on “tense” Verzuz battle against Jeezy
Gucci Mane shared his thoughts on battling Jeezy in a Verzuz back in November.
Roughly six months after he competed against Jeezy on the Verzuz stage, Gucci Mane described the battle as “tense” but “real.” During a Billboard cover interview, the “1017” emcee talked about the matchup, which brought him and his former rival together after a years-long tension.
The competition — which took place in Atlanta’s Magic City strip club back in November — had many on edge given the history of the “So Icy” emcees, whose relationship includes diss tracks, a loss and a murder trial.
Though the tension was apparent through verbal exchanges in the battle, it increased when Gucci decided to play “Truth,” a track referring to the death of Jeezy’s former associate Pookie Loc.
Fortunately, the Snowman responded with maturity, noting his intentions to come together for the culture. The night eventually ended on good terms as they put on for fans with a joint performance of their 2005 hit.
When asked about his thoughts on the battle, Gucci responded, “Looking back at it, it was tense, but it was real. It was a good step forward. For us to do that and for nothing bad to happen, that was great.”
His sentiments mirror statements made by Jeezy shortly after the battle.
“It’s been going on almost two decades,” the “Put On” rapper said. “It was a point when we were cool…The real shit that went on, that’s just something me and him gonna have to figure out later on…Time heals all, but that was effort — it was in front of the world. It wasn’t even for show. It’s real life. We both gotta come to grips with that. We both gotta really be men.”
Elsewhere in Gucci’s interview, he talked about his influence on rappers, including Nicki Minaj, Future, Migos and Young Thug to name a few.
“Is the true story of what really happened with all these artists and how I helped them going to come to light?” he asked. “There are some interesting stories, and it was so long ago that they get lost. Nobody ever really told the true story. [Artists] want to tell you what made them look good… I don’t get the credit.”
“If you wait on [the world] to give some credit, either they’re going to do it when you’re dead or when somebody has fallen off and they’re not relevant anymore,” he added. “They never give it to the person when they’re still in the moment.”