19-year-old Chicago rapper Lil Bibby is probably the most buzzed about young rapper in the game right now. Thanks largely to the success of his song “Water” off his ‘Free Crack’ mixtape he’s currently on the receiving end of tons of media attention, something he’s struggling to get used to. BOSSIP caught up with him at his Atlanta mixtape release party at Treesound Studios and he opened up about how his newfound success has changed him and how, like the refrain of his popular song, he’s striving to keep his head above water. “I’m kind of forced to talk a lot now with the rapper stuff,” Bibby tells BOSSIP at his Atlanta mixtape release party. “So I’m kind of getting out of that.” As for any pressure he might feel over being dubbed the next to blow, for now he says it’s only made him more focused. “I can’t put out no more regular records, just playing around,” Bibby admits.”I gotta get in the studio and pick up, since the pressure is there to work on them classic-type records.” Whether he’s talking or rapping, the accolades over his voice, which has a particularly deep timbre for such a young man, keep pouring in. There’s also been a lot of discussion about what he looks like. When he’s introduced onstage by Treesound owner/manager Groove Chambers, he’s ribbed about his light skin, light eyes and curly hair — a combination that likely has record execs drooling over his potential to sell to girls in much the same way that certain other rappers have before him. Asked about steering clear of the “lightskinned ni**a” stereotypes, Bibby laughs, “What is the stereotype?” We tell him he’s got the potential to be billed as a sex symbol, that he may be expected to craft music that women will like. “No, I’ma talk about selling drugs,” Bibby laughs. “That’s what I’ma talk about. The girls – man, they like it. I don’t know if they like the music or me. I don’t know what it is, but they like it.” He’s in good company too. While he may be steering clear of light skin stereotypes he has already forged a good relationship with Toronto’s very own sex symbol, Drake and speaks of an upcoming collaboration that could be just what he needs. “Me and Drake may be working in the future,” he confirms. “I talk to him a lot, but you know he be busy. He just got off tour, so hopefully it’ll be soon.” While Lil Bibby has previously worked with fellow Chi-town rappers Chief Keef and Lil Reese, when we ask him how he’ll avoid running into some of the same legal issues that have plagued some of his counterparts he tells us he doesn’t smoke or drink and quickly dismisses any concerns. “I don’t move like that anyway. I try to keep everything legal,” Lil Bibby tells BOSSIP. “I try to dodge those problems so you probably won’t see me on the news doing anything.” At times he seems years older than the baby faced teenager he is, a quality he attributes to his work ethic. “A lot of people say I’m more mature, but I don’t know. I’m kind of a boring person,” Bibby says. “I don’t like to have fun like that. That’s probably why people call me mature, because I just like to work. I’m just working on a single. That’s what I think I need. I need a big single, a breakout single.” It’s definitely coming. Will you be listening???
Originally posted here:
BOSSIP Exclusive: Lil Bibby Speaks On Pressure To Succeed And Working With Drake
