Yasiin Bey (Mos Def) Clarifies Drake Comments But Wants More Substance From Him

Yasiin Bey, formerly Mos Def, caught a lot of attention last week following his interview with The Cutting Room Floor where he said Drake’s music is equivalent to shopping at Target in Houston. “In the sense of if I was in Target in Houston and I heard a Drake song,” Bey clarified in the interview when asked about Drake’s music. “So it feels like a lot of his music is compatible with ‘shopping’ – or, you know, it’s shopping with an edge.”

On Monday (Jan. 29), Yasiin hosted an Instagram Live to address his comments on Drake, and their conflict. While sharing he is entitled to his opinion, he clarified calling Drake a pop artist and reached out to him directly to talk about the situation.

Beginning at the 3:56 mark, Yasiin Bey said: “Drake, if you’d like to speak to me directly, you can at any point,” Yasiin said. “I reached out to [Dave] Chappelle, actually reached out to you. I DM’d you. You are a very talented MC, but for me, I require more of myself and others than just talent or charm or charisma — particularly in times of urgent crisis. And what I would like to see in terms of creators or creative people in the world, as it relates to our culture, is for people to connect with us beyond the jukebox or the dance floor.”

Drake has not responded to the new live session at press time but initially replied to Yasiin Bey with a clip of an old Method Man interview where he defined hip-hop culture. 

Ebro in the Morning chimed in on the Mos Def and Drake situation after the show on Tuesday (Jan. 30). Check out the complete breakdown below.