DaBaby taps NBA YoungBoy as his favorite rapper in the game right now.
Now that we are approaching a new decade, many artists and rap critics are taking the time to discuss the biggest moments and most influential names in hip-hop over the past ten years. Although relatively new to widespread fame and success, DaBaby sat down with Carl Chery, Jon Tanners, and Trent Clark of The Rap Pack to discuss his perspective on the most talented and defining artists of the 2010s. DaBaby gave credit to several different rappers, but perhaps most unexpectedly, named NBA YoungBoy as his favorite artist aside from himself.
He shouted out the Louisiana rapper, saying, “I know he don’t get the credit he deserves for his music because of the stigma that’s around him. I just listened to his last project and he’s like crazy talented.”
The stigma DaBaby is referring to is a challenge he is familiar with himself, being one of the few successful “street” rappers left in the game. NBA YoungBoy was charged with two counts of attempted murder in 2016, which was reduced to a charge of aggravated assault with a firearm after he agreed to plead guilty. He was arrested once again in 2018 for assault, among other charges. DaBaby referred to YoungBoy’s lifestyle as one of the reasons he respects him as an artist, saying, “After my music, I probably like his music the most just because of his story and how he puts it out there, how shameless he is with putting it out there and the type of music he continues to make.”
DaBaby also mentioned Lil Wayne, Kanye West, Nicki Minaj, Drake, and Meek Mill as some of the most influential artists of the last decade. In addition to NBA YoungBoy, DaBaby especially recognized Meek Mill’s impact on hip-hop, calling “Dreams & Nightmares” one of the top verses in the last ten years.
