Five years ago, Los Angeles rapper Nipsey Hussle released Victory Lap, his only full length album. It was the high point of a career stretching back to the mid 2000s, when Hussle started releasing mixtapes on his own record label — mixtapes that brought him respect from artists like Jay-Z and Kendrick Lamar, but were not widely heard.
Victory Lap brought him both the critical acclaim and commercial success he deserved — It hit #2 on the Billboard 200, and was nominated for a Grammy for Best Rap Album. But only a little over a year after its release, Hussle was shot to death outside his clothing store and community center in Crenshaw. In some ways, Hussle’s tragic end has overshadowed his incredible life as a musician and community activist.
In this conversation with Justin Tinsley, host of the podcast King of Crenshaw, we listen deeply to Victory Lap to hear Nipsey’s identity as an artist and consider the legacy of his debut album on its 5th anniversary.
Songs Discussed
Nipsey Hussle - Victory Lap, Dedication, Hussle and Motivate, Last Time That I Checc'd, Real Big
Arctic Monkeys - Knee Socks
Jay-Z - Hard Knock Life
Snoop Dogg - Y'all Gone Miss Me
More
Listen to the King of Crenshaw podcast.
Check out more of Justin's work
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Metro Boomin Wants Some More
In Defense of Crunk
Made In America: Jay-Z & Toby Keith ICYMI
The Art of Flow (with DJ Jazzy Jeff) ICYMI
Doja Cat’s Satanic Suite
Jimmy Buffett: Next Year in Margaritaville
Beyoncé's 'Renaissance' Era ICYMI
Olivia Rodrigo’s Good Ideas
Wonders: "Stacy's Mom" and Adam Schlesinger
The mid-career crises of Travis Scott and Post Malone
Song Camp 2: Electric Boogaloo! (with Alex Tumay, Wolftyla, Nicholas Petricca, Grace VanderWaal)
The secret world of songwriting camps
Your cursive singing is tearing this family apart!
Barbie and the plasticity of pop
How Louis Armstrong invented the modern pop star
Speak Now (about Taylor's versions)
My Beyoncé Ticket Cost $4,000: Why the Touring Industry Might Be Broken – Into It with Sam Sanders
What makes a gay anthem?
Switches Brew: blink-182, Kate Bush, BewhY, The Pointer Sisters, Saint Levant
Chartbreakers: Mexican regional y más
Create your
podcast in
minutes
It is Free
Good One: A Podcast About Jokes
The Vulture TV Podcast
Vulture Festival Podcast