5 Things I Learned About Nipsey Hussle

By Rob Kenner

Writing a book is a test of endurance, not unlike running a Marathon. As I sit down to write this article for Pigeons & Planes, it’s just a few minutes before midnight on Monday March 29th. By the time I finish writing this it will be exactly one week since my book The Marathon Don’t Stop: The Life and Times of Nipsey Hussle was published (on March 23, my late mother’s birthday—much love to Mary Anne Kenner).

Pigeons & Planes asked me to share 5 things I learned writing the first biography of Neighborhood Nip, which is tough because Ermias Asghedom was a complex individual and the book clocks in at 400-plus pages, including tons of footnotes. But here are some of the big takeaways that stand out for me.

1. Nipsey Hussle Loved Rap Music, A Lot

The rap industry—particularly the New York gatekeepers and tastemakers—slept on Nipsey for much of his career. To the extent that people were aware of his movement, they held onto a superficial “gangsta rap” cliche. “Nip’s really about that life,” “He’s really in the streets,” etc. etc.

While some of that may be true, before all of that Nipsey Hussle loved hip-hop. Born in 1985, he grew up in South Central Los Angeles, in the aftermath of the Rodney King uprising and at the dawn of the Death Row era. He was seven when Kriss Kross dropped “Jump” and he wanted to be a child rap star more than anything. In some ways his whole life was a quest to get into the studio and lay down his raps. That’s why he would ride the bus all the way from Crenshaw to Watts just to get one hour of instruction on the MPC. That love is what drove him to figure how to build his own computer from parts. He loved hip-hop so much that he never indulged in beef or made a practice of dissing other rappers, with very few exceptions. If you could use beats and rhymes to feed yourself and your family and uplift your homies he respected that.

 
2. Nip Agreed With Q-Tip About Industry Rule #4080

Followers of P&P IG already know the story about an Interscope A&R advising Nipsey that he needed to work on his dance moves. Nip promptly stood up and walked out of the meeting with his mentor Dexter Browne, who had tried to advise him against messing with major labels. He soon recorded a mixtape called Fucc Tha Middleman, which he began passing out by hand in the shopping plaza at Crenshaw and Slauson around 2003—long before the tapes that are available on streaming services today.

Way back in 1991 A Tribe Called Quest dropped a record called “Check the Rhime” on which Q-Tip uttered the immortal words:

How far must you go to gain respect? Um…

Well it’s kinda simple, just remain your own

Or you’ll be crazy, sad and alone

Industry rule number four thousand and eighty

Record company people are Shady

Nipsey was definitely on the same page with Tip on that point. "As an artist, There’s a business model that exists in the music industry to prevent you from having ownership," he once told me, "to prevent you from bein’ a partner in the lion’s share of the profit and of the actual value in the whole mechanism." He was clear on the reason for that. "We in a business model as musicians that wasn’t built by musicians, and content creators that was not built by content  creators," he told me. "Somebody saw the way people react to musicians and said “We gonna build a business and make money offa that.” No musician said, “I’m a musician I want to sell my music and I’m gonna come up with a way to sell it.” The game woulda been way different. So it’s preventative mechanisms from ever becoming as empowered by the music as the execs and the business people are by the music."

Although Hussle's Bullets Ain’t Got No Name mixtape series was quietly supported by a deal with Epic Records, Nipsey walked away from the label before releasing his highly anticipated album South Central State of Mind and opted instead to release his landmark mixtape The Marathon, which was distributed on his website iHussle.com. After entering your email address, fans would receive an email containing a zip file containing MP3s and a digital booklet designed by Hussle’s loyal business partner Jorge Peniche.

The Marathon digital booklet contained Hussle’s essay explaining why he decided to go independent. “As is the case with most people in this game,” he wrote, “I am driven by both financial and creative motives. The decision I had to make recently is to which motive I would give priority in my career.” Despite naming his company All Money In, Hussle chose to prioritize creative integrity over chasing commercial hits. He said you could always tell when artists are reaching for radio records and club bangers. 

“My biggest disappointment with the label,” Hussle wrote, “was the separation of the processes it takes to develop and release something special: the music, the pictures, the videos. It was all being created and released from separate points of reference, therefore confusing the consumers about the identity and integrity of my brand.”

The next line of Hussle’s essay was written in red capital letters: “I WILL NEVER SAY SOMETHING I DON’T AGREE WITH OR BELIEVE IN . . . even if the reward is massive!” He went on to underscore the principles behind his decision, which was not made without sacrifice: “I always told myself that if I make it here I would keep it true to my heart and soul,” he wrote. “I will not break my word for anyone.”

 
3. Time is Money

When I sat down with Hussle a few days after the release of his debut album Victory Lap, Atlantic Records publicist Brittany Bell set up the earliest interview appointment I have ever had with any rapper in almost 30 years as a music journalist—9:30 a.m. Our time had to get there early to make sure all of the lights and cameras were set up, and to be honest they were a little bit skeptical about it. “Is he really gonna be on time?” I remember someone asking. I told them to please just be ready, that it would be worth it.

Hussle arrived ten minutes early, super focused. He had been waiting for years to roll out the perfect major label debut album. Now that the time had come, he was not going to waste a single minute. He even gave up smoking weed during the rollout so he could stay super focused.

 
4. When Nipsey Called Himself “Tupac of my Generation” He Meant It

Shortly after the release of his debut album Victory Lap, I asked Nipsey about the line in his song “Dedication” featuring Kendrick Lamar, where he calls himself “Tupac of my generation.” It was a big statement, and he knew it. Our conversation on the topic is contained in the video piece Mass Appeal released shortly after the interview.

While researching The Marathon Don’t Stop I learned that there was way more to this statement than most people know. Before he was known as Nipsey Hussle, Ermias Asghedom used to rap under the name Concept. He and his high school classmate Ralo Stylez—who has production credits on “Dedication” and dozens of other Nipsey Hussle classics—made a record with Concept and another young rapper named Zayd Malik that found its way to the late great Afeni Shakur who personally invited Ralo, Zayd, and young Ermias Asghedom to Atlanta where they all performed at the release party for the posthumous Tupac album Better Dayz. Afeni personally met the young, unknown rappers at the airport and drove with them back to Stone Mountain Georgia where the event took place. During the drive Mtulu Shakur, Pac’s stepfather—who was a lifelong freedom fighter just like Afeni—called from behind bars and asked to speak with young Ermias. It’s hard explain that away as a mere coincidence—hard not to believe that destiny was calling this young man.

In one of his most famous interviews, Tupac said he might not change the world, but he would spark the mind of the person who would change the world. I believe one of the minds that he sparked was Ermias Asghedom.

 
5. Triumph Over Tragedy

My inspiration for writing The Marathon Don’t Stop was the realization that Nipsey Hussle is one of the most important and misunderstood people in hip-hop history. During his amazing career there were very few proper magazine profiles written about him, despite the fact that his inspirational story and visionary business acumen inspired countless people all over the world and literally changed the game.

To cite just one example: people thought his concept of selling physical copies of his Crenshaw mixtape for $100 per CD was crazy. It was a wild idea, especially for music that was available for free download. But Hussle knew that he had build such a powerful connection to his fans that they would be “Proud 2 Pay” for a limited edition disc and access to a VIP-only live performance—and his gamble paid off. Jay-Z was among the customers who supported his first pop up, wiring $10,000 for 100 CDs. Once Hova tapped in the whole world began to believe. And of course today pop stars like Justin Bieber and Taylor Swift use the concept of selling “bundles” as a way to market their music and concert tickets—taking a page straight out of Nipsey’s playbook.

You’re reading this article on March 31, a tragic anniversary. If you’re looking for some kinda hip-hop cops whodunnit, look somewhere else. My book does not focus on the atrocity that took place in the parking lot at Slauson and Crenshaw two years ago today. There are plenty of websites and YouTube videos filled with theories trying to explain Hussle’s murder, or assassination, but none of that is going to bring Nipsey Hussle back. While I do break down what happened in one chapter of the book, the true purpose of The Marathon Don’t Stop is to extend his legacy, to pass on the game that he shared with anyone who was prepared to listen as they ran their own marathon.

These are the last words of our interview:

"The game free, man. I ain’t outside giving out jewelry or droppin’ off bags of money on people. But I’m givin’ out game, for free. And as a young person growin’ up, that’s all I expected. If you know somethin’ bro, and you figured it out, I’m not gonna be a threat if you just give me the game. You don’t gotta give me the secrets, just give me the game—and I’ll do the rest. Just point me in a direction. You know I mean? Because if not, it’s like a form of like… hatin’ almost, or insecurity. May the best hustler win. If you secure in how you hustle, you don’t have to hide the game man. You gonna wake up every morning on your job. You gonna be good."

Long Live Nipsey Hussle.