There’s been some significant backlash surrounding the release of Pop Smoke’s latest album, Faith. The 20-song project marks the second posthumous release from Pop Smoke and many don’t seem to be entirely keen on the results. Most people, including close friends and collaborators, have taken issue with the fact that a large number of features on the album came from artists that Pop Smoke might not have even wanted to work with.
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Rowdy Rebel might be the most notable artist to voice his disapproval of the project, or at least, one song on the album. “Top Shotta” ft. Pusha T, The Neptunes, TRAVI, and Beam originally featured Eli Fross and had completely different production. The removal of Fross left many close to Pop disappointed in the outcome of the track. “SMH I don’t understand why my boy not on this tracc,” Rowdy wrote on Instagram, along with a side-by-side comparison of the two songs. “Ayoo Eli Fross don’t trip bro yu know how theses industry n***as is straight succers.”
While people like 808Melo and Pop’s childhood friend Mike Dee shared similar sentiments to the project’s release, it looks like Rowdy’s commentary caught the attention of Drake. ItzBizkit shared a screenshot of Rowdy’s post on his Instagram page which Drake quietly liked.
Drake might not have made any sort of public statement yet but his issues with “Top Shotta” might not only lie within Eli Fross’ exclusion on the track. Pop Smoke was signed to Steven Victor who also manages Pusha T. We can’t imagine Victor’s been in Drake’s good graces since the release of “The Story Of Adidon.” While Drake might have hoped that the original track with Fross was included, it’s safe to say that he probably wasn’t a fan of the fact that Pusha T replaced him.
On top of that, fans have also speculated that Pusha T took shots at Drake on the other song he’s featured on, “Tell The Vision” alongside Kanye West. In his first few bars, Push seemingly takes a few subs at Drizzy when he raps, “The crown is only for the king, they trying to place it on a clown.”
What are your thoughts on Pop Smoke’s Faith? Let us know in the comments.