Denzel Curry has long been known as a rapper with a pretty distinctive sound and, specifically, a flow that is not normally associated with too many other rappers, if anyone. However, it seems like fans believe that Jaden Smith, whose new album Syre was released not long ago, may have drawn a little too much inspiration from the Zeltron on one of the LP's tracks.
The song in question is "Icon," which showcases Smith's much-improved chops behind the mic, spitting some pretty fire bars at a fast-paced clip. He gets into a really nice rhythm while the bass-heavy beat plays behind him, with the auto-tuned moans adding another otherworldly dimension to the proceedings. Check out the song below and judge for yourself if it's close to Curry's flow or not.
If you're asking the Miami-born rapper, he's tell you that, if one were to believe that Jaden did intentionally cop his flow, he wouldn't be the first one. In a tweet that has since been deleted from his official account, Curry was actually pretty deferential to Smith in this case, choosing not to sling the mud at one of his contemporaries via social media, but instead pay him a decent-sized compliment in the process. He told his fans to take the inspiration/rip-off with "a grain of salt" and that, in his opinion, the song was "pretty straight" after a first listen. Check out a screengrab of his full tweet below.
Interestingly, Curry may have changed his stance slightly on the issue after he posted and then deleted this tweet. There's another post that he shared with his followers that take a more defiant tone where the alleged copycat act is concerned. "I got mad flows," he said. "Yeah you stole some, thought you had the cookie but you got the cookie crumbs," he continued, using a photo of him grinning in laughter as accompaniment for the tweet. That's not the kind of follow-up you'd expect from a man who, not long before, told his supporters to take the "Icon" flow with a grain of salt.
What do you think? Did Jaden Smith intentionally rip off Denzel Curry? Or is this being made into a bigger deal than it deserves? Sound off in the comments.