Kevin Gates confirmed again he likes to keep it in the fam. He recently admitted for the second time to sleeping with his cousin and continuing to do so even after finding out they’re related.
In an interview with Yung Mami for the Caresha Please podcast, Miami asks him straight up if it was true. The “Twerk” rapper questioned, “Did you really f**k your cousin?”
The 36-year-old Baton Rouge native responded by saying his grandmother told him that this woman was his cousin but he didn’t care and continued to date her for three years. Gates explained, “She pulled me to the side and said, ‘baby, that’s your cousin.’ I ain’t ’bout to stop!”
He said they had a good thing going and why mess it up. Gates initially revealed his unconventional relationship back in 2015.
The Eye usually features up-and-coming artists taking to a minimal studio space for a one-shot, black-and-white performance of discography highlights, with just a single microphone and camera capturing the rendition. That’s mostly true for the latest installment, but this time, performing is somebody we’ve already known well for years now: Kevin Gates.
The Louisiana rapper has been at it for well over a decade, with his first brush with mainstream success coming in 2013 via the Stranger Than Fiction mixtape, his first release to land on the Billboard 200. A few years after that, in 2016, he dropped his debut album, Islah, which managed a peak all the way up at No. 2. The 2019 follow-up I’m Him also fared well, topping out at No. 4. Most recently, his third album, June’s Khaza (which we named one of our most-anticipated rap albums of the summer), was the rapper’s third straight top-10 LP. (A couple mixtapes, 2017’s By Any Means 2 and 2018’s Luca Brasi 3, also both peaked at No. 4.)
So, Gates comes into his new performance for The Eye with a wealth of experience and success by his side. With the instrumental backing him, Gates goes hard for two minutes, sometimes spitting quick-paced verses and sometimes delivering some tender singing.
On the vulnerable track, a single from Khaza, he sings of a woman he loves, for better or worse. Lyrics include, “No one loves you like I will / Feel like Yung Bleu ’cause you mines still / Baby, tell me what the fuck they know ’bout our love / Our love is a fire inside and it’s burnin’ forever.”
Watch Gates perform “Bad For Me” for The Eye above.
Kevin Gates is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
This Friday is the equivalent of an all-you-can-eat buffet; an eclectic mix of new songs and albums. We are so spoiled for choice, curating this list felt like having to drop Hakeem “The Dream” Olajuwon for Shaq as center in your all-time NBA first five list. I kid you not. From Drake proving he still […]
Love is in the air this summer, and cupid has been shooting his arrows around the hip-hop community. Let’s shine a light on some hip-hop lovin’: Kodak Black Though he’s known for posting different women every week on his Instagram. It looks like Kodak Black is now a lover boy, as he’s been posting his […]
It is bonkers to think that we’ve only gotten halfway through the year, yet we’ve already gotten an absolutely massive collection of new albums from some of the biggest names in hip-hop. Those names have included Gunna, Cordae, Earl Sweatshirt, Saba, Kanye West, Lil Durk, Denzel Curry, Latto, Vince Staples, Pusha T, Future, Black Star, Jack Harlow, Kendrick Lamar, and Post Malone… and I’ve skipped more than a few of our favorites.
With all that, you’d think we’d be all out of new music to discuss for at least the next six months, but you know what they say about hip-hop parties and stopping. As the weather heats up, you can expect the pace to pick up as well, with even more established stars and rising newcomers staking their claims on our cookouts, pool parties, picnics, and summer basketball leagues. With that said, here are our picks for the ones you should be keeping an ear out for this summer.
Mount Westmore — Bad MFs
Mount Westmore
Although technically, this album has already been released via the Gala Music platform, fans who aren’t sold on blockchain quite yet can still look forward to enjoying this album from the California supergroup on DSPs sometime soon. With Bay Area pioneers E-40 and Too Short teaming up with their SoCal counterparts Ice Cube and Snoop Dogg, this one is the latest proof in the growing body of evidence that California still knows how to party.
Erica Banks — Diary Of The Flow Queen — Due June 17
Erica Banks
Despite the obvious similarities between 1501 Certified’s more recent signing and her immediate predecessor, Erica Banks has managed to distinguish herself thanks to the viral TikTok trend based on her breakout hit “Buss It” and a string of strong performances that show she can more than hold her own and bring something new to the table. It should be fun to see how she continues to set herself apart on her debut project.
Logic — Vinyl Days — Due June 17
Logic
For a guy who’s two years past his “retirement,” Logic sure has been busy. His seventh studio album will be his last under his Def Jam contract, and he apparently wants to go out with a bang. Vinyl Days is expected to boast a 30-song tracklist with features from all corners of the hip-hop world. Action Bronson, Blu & Exile, Curren$y, Royce Da 5’9”, Russ, RZA, and more all contribute.
Kevin Gates — Khaza — Due June 17
Kevin Gates
Gates’ last album, I’m Him, dropped in 2019 — you know, a whole lifetime ago. The intervening years should have given the 36-year-old Baton Rouge rap vet plenty to talk about and lots of time to sharpen up his pen. Plenty of his peers had similar gaps before their 2022 releases and have impressed; can he keep up the trend?
Duke Deuce — Crunkstar — Due June 17
Duke Deuce
Regular Uproxx readers will know that this site has been following the Quality Control Music artist from Memphis since just about the beginning of his rise to stardom. His 2021 debut Duke Nukem certainly paid off that early support in quality, and we’re looking forward to seeing how he improves on the formula while capitalizing on his No. 3 Heatseekers chart placement with his sophomore effort.
Westside Boogie — More Black Superheroes — Due June 17
Westside Boogie
Boogie made an impressive entry to the rap game with his mixtapes Thirst 48, The Reach, and Thirst 48, Pt. II. Since then he seemingly slowed down the pace of his releases, taking another three years to drop his Shady Records debut Everythings For Sale. Three years later, he’s back with another serving of his unique, Compton-bred perspective. His low-and-slow approach to the last album paid off, and we fully expect it to do so again.
Joey Badass — 2000 — Due June 17
A rapper’s rapper, the 27-year-old Brooklynite has 10 years in the business, but only two full-length albums to his name. That should be enough to tell you why his new album is one of our more anticipated releases of the year; the quality with which he’s approached every project beginning with his breakthrough mixtape 1999 at just 17 years old bodes well — especially considering 2000‘s title appears very much to evoke a spiritual successor that exciting introduction.
Black Thought & Danger Mouse — Cheat Codes — Due August 12
Let’s keep it a buck. There are few rappers better at rapping than Black Thought. He’s hands-down one of the illest spitters to ever pick up a microphone, and three decades of releases are all the proof he needs to support this claim. Anyone who disagrees should get their ears examined. Meanwhile, Danger Mouse is one of indie music’s most respected producers, even though his output has slowed down a bunch in the last few years. However, during his most prolific era, he produced some of the most groundbreaking, genre-blurring projects in popular music, from the Gorillaz album Demon Days to the MF Doom Adult Swim experiment The Mouse and the Mask to projects with ASAP Rocky, Norah Jones, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Karen O. Basically, this one is as close to a must-listen as it gets.
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
Kevin Gates is back. The Baton Rouge General sources his street cred in the video for “Intro,” his third official single of 2022. While he’s peppered the first half of the year with freestyles like “Super General,” “Who Want Smoke?” and “Talking To My Scale,” he’s been slow-rolling the release of his upcoming third studio album Khaza, due June 17 on Atlantic. He kicked off the promotion cycle in April with the release of “Big Lyfe,” then continued with “Bad For Me” last month.
In addition to dropping Khaza next week, Gates is gearing up for his Big Lyfe Tour, starting in August and running through October. You can see the full tour dates below.
08/18 –- Dallas, TX @ The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory
08/19 –- Houston, TX @ 713 Music Hall
08/20 –- Houston, TX @ 713 Music Hall
08/21 –- Austin, TX @ Moody Amphitheater at Waterloo Park
08/23 –- Oklahoma City, OK @ Paycom Center
08/25 –- Albuquerque, NM @ Tingley Coliseum
08/26 –- Phoenix, AZ @ Arizona Federal Theatre
08/27 –- Riverside, CA @ Riverside Municipal Auditorium
08/29 –- Sacramento, CA @ Sacramento Memorial Auditorium
08/31 –- Seattle, WA @ WaMu Theater
09/1 – Boise, ID @ Revolution Concert House and Event Center
09/2 – Salt Lake City, UT @ The Complex
09/6 – Omaha, NE @ Baxter Arena
09/8 –- Kansas City, MO @ Azura Amphitheater
09/9 –- Minneapolis, MN @ The Armory
09/10 –- Milwaukee, WI @ The Eagles Ballroom
09/13 –- Chicago, IL @ The Riviera Theatre
09/14 -– St. Louis, MO @ Pop’s Outdoors
09/15 -– Detroit, MI @ Michigan Lottery Amphitheater at Freedom Hill
09/16 -– Indianapolis, IN @ TCU Amphitheater at White River State Park17 – Newport, KY – PromoWest Pavilion at Ovation
09/20 -– Cleveland, OH @ Jacobs Pavilion at Nautica
09/25 – Boston, MA @ MGM Music Hall at Fenway
09/27 – Washington, DC @ Echostage
09/29 – Charleston, SC @ North Charleston Coliseum & Performing Arts Center
09/30 – Nashville, TN @ Nashville Municipal Auditorium
10/1 -– Atlanta, GA @ Lakewood Amphitheatre
10/6 –- Charlotte, NC @ Bojangles Coliseum
10/7 –- Birmingham, AL @ Birmingham Jefferson Convention Complex
10/8 –- New Orleans, LA @ UNO Lakefront Arena
10/12 -– Shreveport, LA @ Shreveport Municipal Auditorium
10/13 –- Little Rock, AR @ Simmons Bank Arena
10/14 –- Pensacola, FL @ Pensacola Bay Center
Watch Kevin Gates’ “Intro” video above.
Kevin Gates is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
Kevin Gates has never been one to mince his words. Most of the time, he is entertaining due to his lack of a filter. However, moments like today, with his new song “Super General” for example, understandably cause some eyebrows to raise. Set to Kodak Black’s “Super Gremlin” produced by Jambo and ATL Jacob, the Baton Rouge artist takes aim at his former partner Dreka on the heels of rumors that the two had broken up.
The 36-year-old definitely seems hurt by the fact she turned his children against him and the fact he took all the bullets in public for their drama to protect her image when, in reality, they were both at fault. It appears his recourse for moving on is to dive right into something new, as he transitions into revealing his fantasies about Rubi Rose, Beyonce, and Nicki Minaj. He attempts to shoot himself some bail by mentioning his respect for Jay-Z before saying sex with him would make her urinate. As for Nicki Minaj, he essentially says she’s got the wrong guy whose name starts with a “K.”
Listen to Kevin Gates’s new song “Super General” above.
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
Amid reports that he split with his wife Dreka, the Baton Rouge rapper dropped his “Super General” freestyle, on which he addresses their estranged relationship.
“Her and her son jumped my new wife and took her purse and won’t admit it,” raps Gates, who has been romantically linked to “Love & Hip Hop: Miami’s” Jojo Zarur.
He also insinuates that his partner of 18 years was unfaithful. “Personal trainer invaded my personal space / Deep down inside it killed me,” he raps over Kodak Black’s “Super Gremlin” instrumental.
He then proceeds to express his explicit sexual desires for famous women including Beyoncé, Nicki Minaj, and Rubi Rose.
“Rubi Rose, I can’t wait to have your feet facing my ceilin’ / With my tongue deep in yo ass while I kiss all on yo kitty,” he raps before shooting his shot with Queen Bey.
“Ain’t no disrespect to Jigga, met through Nipsey, that’s my ni**a / Don’t know if they into swinging / Beyoncé need to let me hit her,” he says before detailing more of his graphic fantasies.
He also lusts after Nicki Minaj, knowing very well that she is married. “I want Nicki, she need Kevin / She still playin’ around with Kenneth.”
Elsewhere, Gates addresses his friendship with Moneybagg Yo. “That’s still my brother, but we just distant / Always love when he be shinin’, remind me of Mozzy when he glistenin’.”
