The tragic passing of Doe B heavily affected artists and fans alike, but T.I.--head of the late rapper's Hustle Gang crew--has been the most vocal, even eulogizing Doe at his funeral last month. Tip also hopped on a track with Doe B that saw release last week, and the Atlanta rapper explained the collaboration in more detail during an interview with DJ Nando.
"When we initially did it, I was holding it for my album," revealed Tip on "Why". "The subject matter, and how it felt after he had passed, I felt it was more appropriate for him right now. He's kind of speaking to us about his situation, and I haven't really heard anything as eerie as that since Makaveli."
The Trouble Man rapper then spoke on Doe B's unmatched work ethic. "I refuse to let his efforts and his energies go to waste," he said. The time that he put into cultivating his craft, it separates him from anyone who could even possibly be considered on his level. I think he was a shoe-in for the XXL Freshman cover, and anyone else who would've been on that cover with him, he was above and beyond their skill-set, no disrespect to whoever's gonna be on the cover [laughs]."
According to T.I., success never affected Doe's passion for music. "A lot of time, when artists go from being in the hood everyday, to getting a record deal and working on their first album," he explained. "Usually, the distractions of celebrity consume them for at least their first few albums, but he never allowed himself to become distracted," revealing that the late rapper has "at least 3 or 400" unreleased tracks.
Watch the full interview below.