"Power 106 Los Angeles" with Justin Credible is one of hip-hop's premier freestyle destinations, something that REASON sought to prove once more. He came through to drop two new off-the-dome performances to promote his new album I Love You Again. Ironically, the former TDE rapper first tackled ScHoolboy Q's "THank god 4 me" off 2024's Blue Lips, but he didn't have any ill will towards his former labelmate. Instead, he shouted out Q and the beat's producer Kal Banx before ripping into the instrumental and keeping up his fiery energy for the next beat: J. Cole's "Port Antonio."
It was overall a great lyrical display from the Carson, California MC, even working in some blunt and passionate statements in between dynamic flows, rhyme schemes, double entendres, and punchlines. For example, he commented on how he won't diss his friend Joey Bada$$ even though he reps Cali. If you didn't already hear, Joey shot at the West Coast multiple times on his recent string of singles. It just goes to show that some rappers care about beef, and some rappers care about bars. They will continue to drive each other to their peaks without having to tussle.
Read More: REASON Says Kanye West Is “Aging Like Milk”
Why Did REASON Leave TDE?
If you dismissed REASON because of his highly publicized departure from TDE, then this freestyle will have something else to say. For those unaware, he expressed frustration with Top Dawg Entertainment over what he perceived as a lack of label support and excitement concerning his releases. They sent several shots at each other on social media or other platforms, although their official split in June of 2024 came with a thankful message from the former signee to his former team, his current colleagues, and his fans.
However, REASON sought this process in unexpected ways. "The only fans I really lost were fans that I shot myself in the foot [over], but I had to do that to get out of the label deal,” he shared on The Bootleg Kev Podcast. “When the [Kendrick Lamar] and the Drake beef started, I felt like Top and them were kind of dragging their feet a little bit. I don’t think purposely, I think they just had a lot of s**t going on. And I knew that if I sparked a fire a little bit, that they’d be like, ‘We got to separate from this.’ So I started tweeting s**t on the side of Drake purposely. […] That s**t worked. A month later, I was gone. It was fast. […] Paperwork was in my email." Fortunately, this new album means folks can give their due flowers based on quality and not affiliations.
