Paul Wall Thought He Was Getting Punk'd On His Way To Meet Kanye West

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Paul Wall explains the mission he went on to record "Drive Slow" with Kanye West.

Paul Wall's reign as a Southern legend doesn't go unacknowledged. He's still rapping to this day but many recount his defining appearances on Nelly's "Grillz" and Kanye West's "Drive Slow." The latter of which came to fruition after a whole mission that apparently left Paul Wall under the impression that he was getting Punk'd. The song not only landed on Kanye's Late Registration but also on Paul Wall's debut album, The People's Champ, which he described as "unheard of."

"But for Kanye to put it on his album [Late Registration], JAY-Z had to sign off on it," Paul Wall told HipHopDX. "He always let me know, ‘You know you owe me for signing off on that’ because they didn’t charge me. He was looking out. Because really, that’s unheard of for somebody to put it on their album and then let you put it on your album, too."

"I thought I was being Punk’d the whole time," he continued. The rapper explained that at the time he had only met 'Ye on a few occasions. He and his friend landed in LAX and two detectives approached him. He said they had done nothing wrong so something felt fishy, especially with camera crews at the airport already. He said that he got a bit aggressive since he thought this was going to be on television, plus Mike Jones was recently Punk'd. "I was ready to go the whole nine — take off running, maybe fight him because I’m thinking I’m getting Punk’d. I really got to being borderline disrespectful and we were in public, so I wasn’t afraid or nothing," he said.

Eventually, they got out of the airport, caught a cab to the hotel where he dropped off his friend. Then, he made a move to the studio to link up with Kanye West. After his driver made a left on a red, the cops pull him over. Wall said that this only further fueled his theory that he was getting Punk'd since he got away at the airport. "I was kind of hyped about meeting Ashton Kutcher, but then I was a little disappointed because I’m like, ‘Well, I’m going to meet Ashton Kutcher, but I guess that means I’m not going to get on Kanye album.’ I’d rather be on Kanye’s album. Then we get up there and I do my verse. To be a part of all that, it was unbelievable.”


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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