Killer Mike Shares Surprising Revelation About JAY-Z's "Poppin’ Tags" Collaboration

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LEEDS, ENGLAND - AUGUST 26: (EDITORIAL USE ONLY) Killer Mike of Run The Jewels performs on the Main Stage East on Day 1 of Leeds Festival on August 26, 2022 in Leeds, England. (Photo by Matthew Baker/Getty Images)
Killer Mike says his verse on JAY-Z's "Poppin Tags" was pushed further in the song because he was "rapping his ass off.”

Killer Mike says that his verse on JAY-Z's “Poppin’ Tags” was originally directly after HOV's, but someone moved it back in the song because he was "rapping his ass off.” He recalled the making of the track during a recent interview with Idea Generation.

“I remember somebody tried to insult me like, ‘The only reason you got a Grammy is you’re on a song with OutKast,” he recalled, in reference to the 2001 song, “The Whole World.” “I said, ‘I had the wickedest verse on that muthafucka.’ ‘Cause what you not gon’ do is not tell me I’m a bad-ass motherfuckin’ rapper. You go listen to ‘Poppin’ Tags.’ I originally was directly behind JAY-Z. Somebody chopped it and pushed my ass down one more. Said, ‘Let’s get Twista in between this.’ ‘Cause I was rapping my ass off.”

Killer Mike Performs In Atlanta

ATLANTA, GA - JANUARY 21: Michael Render aka Killer Mike of Run The Jewels performs at The Tabernacle on January 21, 2017 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by David A. Smith/Getty Images)

Mike then pointed to Black Thought's “Good Morning,” with himself and Pusha T. “Go listen to ‘Good Morning’ with Pusha T and Black Thought,” he added. “Rapped my ass off, and somebody changed their verse and I ain’t gon’ tell you who. When it come to humility, time we get on that track, that shit is out the door.” Check out Mike's full comments below.

Killer Mike On JAY-Z's "Poppin Tags"

Mike also discussed working with JAY-Z during a recent appearance on an episode of Math Hoffa’s My Expert Opinion podcast. He recalled the legendary rapper's reaction to his new album, Michael. “I be tripping out now when I wake up, get up, moving around and see a text from him just out of nowhere,” he said. “Like, ‘Peace God. I see what you did. Just sending some encouragement your way.’ He’s still a very grounded, cool human being. I appreciate all the love and encouragement.” Mike continued: “As I was making the record, we sent it to him early and he sent back some real positive notes. He sent back a great compliment. He was like, ‘It feels like I went to my cousin’s house and watched a movie.’ I was really honored, I think it was about a year ago he sent that comment. And we delivered.”

[Via]

About The Author
Cole Blake is a current staff writer at HotNewHipHop based out of New York City. He began writing for the site as an intern back in 2018 while finishing his B.A. in Journalism at St. John’s University. In the time since, he’s covered a number of breaking stories for HNHH. These include the ongoing YSL RICO trial, the allegations surrounding Diddy, and much more. His work also extends outside of hip-hop, having written extensively about a myriad of topics including politics, sports, and pop culture. He’s attended several music festivals to provide coverage for the site as well, such as Rolling Loud and Governors Ball.
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