If you've ever been to Memphis, you're well aware that Yo Gotti is the city’s presiding ruler. The key to understanding Gotti’s stranglehold on his city’s scene lies within his delivery. He is at once wizened, weary, and menacing, serving up lyrics in a rasp that makes him sound like he’s forcing the syllables out of a pneumatic tube, rapping from the perspective of a trap karate master teaching his pupils the right ways to do the wrong things.It's no surprise that Gotti's upcoming album, his second under the Epic Records umbrella, is titled The Art of Hustle, a play on Sun Tzu's The Art of War. The project's lead single, "Errrbody," which takes aim at those with the temerity to falsely stunt on social media, is just the latest in a series of victories for Gotti, who recently did a stint opening for the Drake vs. Wayne tour and can be credited with breaking Snootie Wild. Today, Noisey proudly premieres the remix to “Errrbody,” featuring verses from Ludacris(!!!), and Lil Wayne(!!!!!!!!), both firing on all cylinders.
Yo Gotti: The whole concept of it, of using social media interpretation to real-life, saying things that people living. I think it just touches people and it's 100 percent what's really going on. You gotta defend it because you livin' it.As an artist, you obviously have to use social media to build a fan base, but is it hard for you to watch people pretend to be someone they're not?
Nah, it ain't hard. Coming from the culture I come from, it's not different, it's just on social media now so you see more of it. Whether you're in school or the hood or whatever, you've seen people frontin' before. So it's the same thing, social media just puts it on a bigger platform and you see way more of it, quicker.On the remix, Wayne kicks things off with some crazy energy, sounding like his mixtape days. How'd you get that kind of verse from him?
Man, that Wayne verse is killer. I got that verse from him when we were out on the Drake Vs. Wayne Tour. You know, I think there was just so much good energy out there, so many people coming out there. And one thing he always said in his show is that he made classic records. I think this is a classic Lil Wayne verse.What about Luda? He's been quiet for a while, but he's obviously a legend. Why was it important for you to get him on the track?
I wanted to do something that wasn't expected. I make music with so many people, I have so many peers musically, but I didn't want to do something you could expect and see coming. Luda's one of the artists I respect that I'd never worked with on a record. Plus, he's also one of the artists that I never heard a wack verse from. Certain artists like Bun B, Luda, you just never heard a wack verse from.You've had a great year as far as getting love from fellow major artists. What do you think everybody sees in you that creates automatic respect?
Man, I just keep it a hundred. I put out good music consistently. And for some artists, they see the numbers more than some of the other industry people can. When we moving around, we bumping into each other and passing each other. The artists know what I'm doing out here. They know these numbers I'm pulling in. I just think they respect that.Follow Dan Buyanovsky on Twitter.
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Noisey: "Errrbody" has been out for close to two months now and has continued to get bigger. Why do you think it resonates with so many people?
Yo Gotti: The whole concept of it, of using social media interpretation to real-life, saying things that people living. I think it just touches people and it's 100 percent what's really going on. You gotta defend it because you livin' it.As an artist, you obviously have to use social media to build a fan base, but is it hard for you to watch people pretend to be someone they're not?
Nah, it ain't hard. Coming from the culture I come from, it's not different, it's just on social media now so you see more of it. Whether you're in school or the hood or whatever, you've seen people frontin' before. So it's the same thing, social media just puts it on a bigger platform and you see way more of it, quicker.On the remix, Wayne kicks things off with some crazy energy, sounding like his mixtape days. How'd you get that kind of verse from him?
Man, that Wayne verse is killer. I got that verse from him when we were out on the Drake Vs. Wayne Tour. You know, I think there was just so much good energy out there, so many people coming out there. And one thing he always said in his show is that he made classic records. I think this is a classic Lil Wayne verse.What about Luda? He's been quiet for a while, but he's obviously a legend. Why was it important for you to get him on the track?
I wanted to do something that wasn't expected. I make music with so many people, I have so many peers musically, but I didn't want to do something you could expect and see coming. Luda's one of the artists I respect that I'd never worked with on a record. Plus, he's also one of the artists that I never heard a wack verse from. Certain artists like Bun B, Luda, you just never heard a wack verse from.You've had a great year as far as getting love from fellow major artists. What do you think everybody sees in you that creates automatic respect?
Man, I just keep it a hundred. I put out good music consistently. And for some artists, they see the numbers more than some of the other industry people can. When we moving around, we bumping into each other and passing each other. The artists know what I'm doing out here. They know these numbers I'm pulling in. I just think they respect that.Follow Dan Buyanovsky on Twitter.