Troy Ave Says The Streets Is A "Free For All": "It Ain't No Real Rules"

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Troy Ave attends Wrkng Title Fall 2014 press event at Manon on April 8, 2014 in New York City.
Troy Ave on "The Streets Is A Myth."

Over the past two years, Troy Ave has stated that the "streets is a myth." A statement that he's made on wax and in interviews, it's also became his mantra, apparently. With the release of White Christmas 7, we recently chopped it up with Troy about the project. He's a pretty open guy so naturally, when we spoke to him, the conversation surrounding his own project led to other topics, such as Tekashi 6ix9ine's trial, his friend Nuke, and of course, the streets being a myth.

6ix9ine's trial was surely a sobering moment for a few rappers in the game but not Troy Ave. For someone who's already been preaching that the "streets is a myth," watching the Nine Trey Gangsta Bloods case unfold didn't necessarily reaffirm his position on the streets. Troy Ave was at the court date when CEO Kris took the stand against Nuke, a friend of Troy's. All this really means for Troy Ave is that Kris will come out, pay someone and go back to living his life.

Even bigger than this 6ix9ine thing, it was another dude. The dude who sent [Nuke] to jail. He was supposed to be the biggest drug dealer and biggest gang member and all that. He turned around and basically lied and said that he gave him the drugs on this day, that day and a bunch of shit. I was like, “Wow. This is crazy.” And the fact that when he comes home, it’s just going to be all -- it ain’t gonna be a big deal because, you know, people chase clout. So all he gotta do is come home from jail, and give a little bit of money to some people and it’s all good. You know what I’m sayin’? It ain’t no real rules or nothing. Everybody is a free for all. You can’t get caught up in the streets unless you plan on living in the streets. Successful people, in the real world, is not living in the streets and not living by the street rules. 


About The Author
Aron A. is a features editor for HotNewHipHop. Beginning his tenure at HotNewHipHop in July 2017, he has comprehensively documented the biggest stories in the culture over the past few years. Throughout his time, Aron’s helped introduce a number of buzzing up-and-coming artists to our audience, identifying regional trends and highlighting hip-hop from across the globe. As a Canadian-based music journalist, he has also made a concerted effort to put spotlights on artists hailing from North of the border as part of Rise & Grind, the weekly interview series that he created and launched in 2021. Aron also broke a number of stories through his extensive interviews with beloved figures in the culture. These include industry vets (Quality Control co-founder Kevin "Coach K" Lee, Wayno Clark), definitive producers (DJ Paul, Hit-Boy, Zaytoven), cultural disruptors (Soulja Boy), lyrical heavyweights (Pusha T, Styles P, Danny Brown), cultural pioneers (Dapper Dan, Big Daddy Kane), and the next generation of stars (Lil Durk, Latto, Fivio Foreign, Denzel Curry). Aron also penned cover stories with the likes of Rick Ross, Central Cee, Moneybagg Yo, Vince Staples, and Bobby Shmurda.
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