Big Sean Delivers Bristling Freestyle Over Aaliyah Classic, Ends Fan Speculation Over His Target
Big Sean is in album mode. He dished out an appetizer for fans on Tuesday (July 16) when joining On the Radar for a fiery freestyle over Aaliyah’s 1996 classic “If Your Girl Only Knew.”
Rocking a DMX shirt, Sean wanted to salute another late legend and “pay tribute to one of [his] favorite singers ever.”
“I got better things to do than find someone to beef with/ Or else I’m off the deep end/ This game will take you either way, you know it’s offense-defense,” he raps.
The Detroit spitter rumbles through the two-minute sprint and gives a shout-out to Black activist Dr. Umar Johnson. “Trust when I see your dark side I got night vision/ Going hard is Dr. Umar on white women,” Sean spews to close out the freestyle.
The “find someone to beef with” bar caused a stir on social media, as fans speculated that he could be targeting Kendrick Lamar — following his feud with Drake — or Ye, who attempted to hop into the same beef.
Big Sean took to X to bring an end to the narratives running rampant on social media making it seem as if he were sniping at his peers.
“Yall goin wit so many narratives, im talking to da haters who just keep finding something to point out they dont like bout me,” he wrote in a since-deleted tweet. “Its not even worth explaining tho im a just focus on the music.”
Kendrick affiliate DJ Hed claimed he spoke to Sean and confirmed that the lyric in question wasn’t directed at K. Dot. “I talked to Sean. The bar was ‘I got better things to do then find someone to beef with’ And it was not for Dot,” he tweeted. “Bar was directed at a different Gemini.”
Earlier this week, Big Sean previewed an unreleased track titled “Fighting Fires” produced by Ye (former known as Kanye West), which he said could be headed for Vultures 2 — if it ever arrives.
Elsewhere during Monday night’s (July 15) IG Live session, Sean provided some insight into his Detroit 2 follow-up, which could be coming sooner than fans think.
“You know what I love about this album? It’s so many different sides of me,” he said. “It’s multi-f–king-faceted, just like me. I meditate every morning, but I also got straps in the studio — not them straps; I keep guns. [The album] really represents what the f–k I’ve been going through for these past couple of years.”
Sean Don also admitted that he stopped drinking and is practicing sobriety, which has it’s tough times, especially with his partner Jhené Aiko on the road with their 1-year-old son.
“I just stopped drinking in 2022 ’cause that s–t was just f—ing me up,” he explained. “Any of y’all who got like issues with s–t, mentally, that motherf—king alcohol — it’s a depressant so if you dealing with any anxiety like me, I always be thinking about what I gotta do, how I gotta do it, what’s next et cetera. N—a stay away from that alcohol, boy.”
Big Sean has three consecutive No. 1 albums atop the Billboard 200 with 2020’s Detroit 2 serving as his most recent LP. He returned earlier this year with his “Precision” single and dished out features for Jessie Reyez and Eminem. The 36-year-old will also be adding “author” to his résumé in October when his Go Higher book promoting mental wellness arrives.
Watch Sean’s “On the Radar” Freestyle below.
Michael Saponara
Billboard
