Pusha T Explains How Kanye West Took "Follow God" Away From Clipse

BYGabriel Bras Nevares4.3K Views
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"MNIMN" Listening Event
NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 11: (L-R) Kanye West and Pusha T attend the "MNIMN" listening event at Industria Superstudio on September 11, 2013 in New York City. (Photo by Johnny Nunez/WireImage/Getty Images)
The rest, as they say, is history.

Pusha T and Kanye West have a very complicated relationship, and one that isn't very amicable right now. Still, that doesn't mean that they can't look back on their extensive history, even if some of these reflections indicate more contentious moments. For example, Push and his brother No Malice spoke to Rolling Stone ahead of their upcoming reunion album as Clipse. During this conversation, they recalled pulling up to Wyoming in the late 2010s to work with Ye on his upcoming material, which included a self-titled 2018 album, Pusha's own solo LP, and the Chicago artist's 2019 project Jesus Is King.

Furthermore, this was the first time that Clipse worked together in almost ten years, but according to Pusha T, it was frustrating. Kanye West would allegedly "nix" Pusha's ideas, but there was a lot of back-and-forth inspiration. One instance was when he and No Malice recorded over the "Follow God" beat, a song that eventually became a solo cut on Jesus Is King. "He gave us the beat. Forgot about the beat. We working on the records," Pusha explained. "We laid [vocals] to it," NM recalled. "Kanye was like, ‘I need that back,’" the "Nosetalgia" spitter added.

Pusha T & Kanye West Performing In 2009

NEW YORK CITY, NY - JULY 30: Kanye West and Pusha T attend THE DIESEL U Music Tour 2009 NYC - Arrivals / Performance at Webster Hall on July 30, 2009 in New York City. (Photo by NICK HUNT /Patrick McMullan via Getty Images)

Of course, we all know that Clipse eventually reunited on Jesus Is King's "Use This Gospel" alongside Kanye West and Kenny G. As for their next moves, Pusha T and No Malice are just waiting on one feature for their new album Let God Sort Em Out before it drops later this year. "I’m so excited about this new Clipse album," Push told the Ghetto Runways podcast recently. "That’s what I’m on right now. It’s absolutely finished. Just waiting on a feature. Just waiting on a feature, bro, just one feature."

Meanwhile, Pusha T recently explained why Kanye West still collaborates a lot despite his volatile and bigoted ways as of late. "I believe that there’s a level of visibility that comes along with being next to somebody like Ye,” he told Complex. “At the end of the day, it’s a level of musicality and genius-level production that comes along with being next to him. So you get a lot of things that I think artists are looking for these days in being next to him. It’s all about the music for me and just making music at a certain level. I’ve been in this game a long time, so it’s about a certain type of hip-hop that I want to make. And truthfully, Ye definitely knows what I like to make, and I only want to be a part of things that I want to do."

About The Author
Gabriel Bras Nevares is a music and pop culture news writer for HotNewHipHop. He started in 2022 as a weekend writer and, since joining the team full-time, has developed a strong knowledge in hip-hop news and releases. Whether it’s regular coverage or occasional interviews and album reviews, he continues to search for the most relevant news for his audience and find the best new releases in the genre. What excites him the most is finding pop culture stories of interest, as well as a deeper passion for the art form of hip-hop and its contemporary output. Specifically, Gabriel enjoys the fringes of rap music: the experimental, boundary-pushing, and raw alternatives to the mainstream sound. As a proud native of San Juan, Puerto Rico, he also stays up-to-date with the archipelago’s local scene and its biggest musical exponents in reggaetón, salsa, indie, and beyond. Before working at HotNewHipHop, Gabriel produced multiple short documentaries, artist interviews, venue spotlights, and audio podcasts on a variety of genres and musical figures. Hardcore punk and Go-go music defined much of his coverage during his time at the George Washington University in D.C. His favorite hip-hop artists working today are Tyler, The Creator, Boldy James, JPEGMAFIA, and Earl Sweatshirt.
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