Chicago emcee and Kanye collaborator Rhymefest recently sat down to rate the bars of a few emcees including those of his longtime estranged friend Kanye West.
In the latest episode of BET’s Rate The Bars, ‘Fest recited and rated the bars of fellow rappers G Herbo, Common, Lupe Fiasco and of course Kanye West; but when it came to Ye, Rhymefest was given two rhymes, one from the old Kanye and one from the new.
The first set of bars was from West’s Grammy-winning “Jesus Walks,” ‘Fest gave his partner in rhyme 5 bars, explaining that the excerpt proved it’s still possible to put out a hit record with a message and purpose.
“I do think it’s possible to have good writing and rhythm,” he said. “It’s about being complete and thorough. It’s about moving and purpose.”
The next ‘Ye rhyme, however, Rhymefest wasn’t so generous. When it came to 2016’s “Father Stretch My Hands Pt. 1,” Rhymefest revealed that the rhyme on this song is what prompted him to begin to separate himself from his longtime friend.
“I said this is not who you are,” ‘Fest said in regards to the bleach-related bars. “This is all vanity and no humanity. Who you are is, you vanity and humanity have to fight each other. If it’s all vanity or all humanity, it don’t work…this right here, this was the beginning, and this is when I took an airplane and went home and said ‘fuck it’, I give that a zero.”
It’s no secret that the two friends and collaborators relationship has been strained over the last few weeks after Rhymefest reached out to Drake on social media during the Pusha T beef to help with funding the charity and youth outreach program, Donda’s House, he ran with Kanye and named after Ye’s late mother. According to Rhymefest, the last time he reached out to Kanye over the foundation, his response was less-than-flattering, claiming ‘Ye told him “f*ck the youth of Chicago.”
Check out the breakdowns below.