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Depending on where you stand, Joyner Lucas is either one of the most exciting, lyrically-focused independent rap acts of the past few years or he’s one of hip-hop’s biggest haters. The polarized perception he has among fans will likely remain so with his latest tirade against the Lollapalooza Festival, which he took to task for featuring Cleveland rapper-turned-emo-rocker Machine Gun Kelly in the headlining slot for its upcoming Chicago event.
“These festivals is gon stop playing with me like I ain’t that nigga,” he vented on Twitter. “Putting my name next to the names of a bunch of random n****z that nobody heard of and offering me a weak ass
As he continued, he boasted his accomplishments, reminding followers that “I’m the biggest independent artist period with the exception of my nigga tech [N9ne]… How is it that these festivals keep tryna bunch my name up with a bunch of n****z who ain’t on my level?” He then demanded to have his name removed from the flyer, writing, “All I know is @lollapalooza better take my fukin name off that flier. I ain’t agree to that lineup and I don’t want that weak ass
Then, of course, he just had to go there, posting a photo of Machine Gun Kelly with his nails (and tongue) painted black from last year’s Billboard Music Awards. “Then you got this goofy ass nigga headlining?” Lucas wonderd. “Smh how sway?”
Of course, this could be a residual effect of Joyner receiving career support from Eminem, with whom MGK had a short-lived rap feud in 2018. However, since then, MGK’s foray into pop-punk with Tickets To My Downfall landed at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart, leading to wins at BBMAs and VMAs. Even before that all of his prior releases had debuted in the top 5, with all but Hotel Diablo receiving Gold certification from RIAA.
While it’s not entirely fair to compare an independent artist to one on a major label, it’s undeniable that these accomplishments outweigh Joyner’s; to date, his only studio album ADHD peaked at No. 10 on the Billboard 200 with only five songs reaching the Hot 100 — all assisted by heavyweight artists like Eminem, Chris Brown, J. Cole, Lil Baby, and Logic. Also, not for nothing, the last time one of his songs went viral, it was the exceedingly corny “I’m Not A Racist,” which fans were quick to remind him of on Twitter.
Even fans who sided with Joyner seemed pretty unhappy about it.
Whether it’s a case of just cause or just sour grapes, it doesn’t appear that Lucas will actually be performing at Lollapalooza this year. Somehow, I doubt anyone’s asking for a refund over it.
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