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
Listening 2 Daft Punk: Random Access Memories
Listening 2 Daft Punk: Human After All / Alive 2007
Listening 2 Daft Punk: Discovery
Listening 2 Daft Punk: Homework
The Jonas Brothers' Yacht Rock Revival
From Westeros-techno to trance metal: Eurovision 2023
Who killed the key change in pop music?
A.I. Drake has put music in a tailspin
BTS goes solo together
This Generation's Caroline Polachek
The Shakira Conspiracy
Reinventing Bach
100 gecs and the new sound of hyperpop
Switches Brew
Modern Classics: Seal - Kiss From a Rose
How John Denver got huge in Asia
Chartbreakers: Jersey Club, Complicated Country, and 50s Crooners
“Flowers” and the art of the response song
Rihanna Party! ICYMI
Create your
podcast in
minutes
It is Free
Good One: A Podcast About Jokes
The Vulture TV Podcast
Vulture Festival Podcast