The incident that took place on Sunday involving Lil Wayne being rushed to the hospital after sustaining a seizure in his Chicago hotel room had led many to speculate the rapper's unfortunate state of physical health was due to his habit of sipping lean. This was later denied by a TMZ report earlier today (September 5th) and attributed to his lack of sleep. However, this sequence of events has provoked yet another discussion into the effects of lean on hip-hop and whether or not it's starting to take over the culture in a negative way. The latest artist to sound off on this issue is Ty Dolla $ign, who isn't being shy about his stance on the "purple drink" concoction.
In a brief interview-style interaction with TMZ, Ty said that it's time to move on from lean, but if you're still down to keep it in your life, then he won't hold it against you either. "Yes, lean is dead," he said, right before closing the door to his car on the cameraman. "Do what you want to do, you feel me? If it makes you feel good, do what you want to do." Though the answer might seem non-committal to most, the timing of the answer, coming after the Wayne rumor, is the important factor. It's not like this is the first time speculation has run rampant about lean use affecting a rapper in an overtly negative way. At the beginning of August, we reported on an article about Young Thug's lean use, which fans responded to critically, calling it an attack job for making unsubstantiated claims. Whether or not those accusations are true, it's clear that lean use and whether or not it should die, in the words of Ty Dolla $ign, is a hot button issue in hip-hop right now.
Speaking of Ty, he recently recruited both Damian Marley and Skrillex for the new track "So Am I," a reggae-style number that has some seriously cool vibes going on. It's the latest entry into the rapper's discography that's sure to be a hit. Check it out here.