Jack Harlow joins the Hot 97 podcast to discuss his career, upcoming album, being compared to Eminem, working with Drake, Kanye West, and more.
Earlier today, The 24-year-old rapper released the tracklist for his next project, “Come Home, The Kids Miss You,” which will feature Lil Wayne, Pharrell, Justin Timberlake, and, Drizzy.
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Here are some of the key topics discussed during the interview:
Jack Harlow reacts to being likened to Eminem and making “club records.”
During the interview, the host of the show, Ebro, asked Jack about making the radio hits, stating that he is “the first of [his] kind.”
“You have one of the biggest club records of the last five years- ‘What’s Poppin.’ That is kind of rarefied air. Like, that’s not generally where even the biggest white rappers, who we love, [go]. Like, Eminem doesn’t make the ‘club’ records, he’s a lyricist and is a huge star as a result of it, but like, No one else is actually been in this space of being a white boy who actually makes really good commercial hip-hop records,” said Ebro.
“I’ll say I’m aware of it. I feel like, you might not be able to put Eminem in a ‘club box’ but he was making mainstream hip-hop that was being consumed by the masses.” Harlow replied.
He further explained that his goal as a rapper and artist is to make the most of what he does. “I just wanna play ball and that’s how I look at it… I don’t wanna go play on a niche court, I don’t want to go play on a baby court,” meaning that he is in the industry to compete and be at the peak of his game.
Jack Harlow discusses how he felt about fans obtaining “Churchill Downs” featuring Drake before its official release.
Towards the end of the interview, Harlow disclosed that “Churchill Downs,” which first surfaced on the internet in April, will be included on his forthcoming album.
“Churchill Downs” is a Drake feature in which the Toronto rapper throws jabs at Pusha-T.
“My urges for revenge are uncontrollable/I know we are getting older though, yeah/But I gotta get a ni**a back for that/It is non-negotiable, it’s not even debatable,” raps Drizzy.
These lyrics got a lot of attention, however, the Kentucky rapper explained that the snippet that appeared online is not the official version and that people will hear a finished product from him. Jack also expressed how he felt after finding out that the song had been released to the public.
“It hurt my feeling,” he said. “I don’t bounce my music so I haven’t had le*ks in a long time. I don’t ride to my music when I’m working on an album. The only time we get to experience it is in the studio.” Later he added, “Especially because [Drake] is an idol of mine. I wanted to control that moment. But, it’s destiny
Harlow also shared Drake’s opinions about the incident, saying:
“He was sad too… He kind of, you know, he nudged me like, ‘Hey, do not trip. This was meant to happen.’ I think with his experience, he let me know like, ‘You think this is going to affect your life? Like, it is fine.”
Jack Harlow teases new lyrics from the upcoming album.
Jack revealed one of the lyrics from his forthcoming album, stating that the lines are meant to be interpreted in a way that describes his outlook on life. “Where I’m from we wanna live a full life” he explained after teasing the verses:
“You know the squares hate the prom king/ You know they can’t wait to see if I say the wrong thing/ Look at the disdain that these hit songs bring/ I mean I could have kept a niche but I’d rather see my brothers get rich.”
Watch the full interview below:
