Lil Wayne is sounding off.
Ahead of his Uproar Festival in L.A. on Friday, the Young Money boss spoke with the Los Angeles Times from the living room of his new $15.4 million Hidden Hills mansion where he discussed several topics including DaBaby’s troubles and his own controversial meeting with Donald Trump.
Wayne said he was not aware of the homophobic rant DaBaby made at Rolling Loud last month, which led to his cancelation at several festivals. However, he acknowledged the power of social media in the wake of the backlash.
“You know how it does. The spotlight on artists and celebrities is absolutely crazy,” said Weezy. “You don’t even have to be a celebrity. Even normal people can feel like they’re wrong because their 200 followers said something. But that’s the power of social media today.”
Following the recent deaths of DMX and Biz Markie, Wayne was asked what the hip-hop industry can do to better look after its veteran artists.
“I may surprise you with my answer. My answer is ‘absolutely nothing,’” he responded. “The industry has nothing to do with your life and your productivity. It’s not what the industry should be doing for us. It’s about what we can do for ourselves.”
The 38-year-old rapper, who’s had his own health scares, credits his eating habits for his health. “I don’t work out, but my main thing is I haven’t eaten fast food in about 20 years,” he said. “My mom’s a chef, so that’s always been vital to me, to eat a home-cooked meal every night. She makes the best gumbo, but I have a chef and they make sure I eat vegetables every day.”
He also addressed his use of Lean. “It’s life. You do what you do with it. I guess with the Lean or whatever, it could be Lean but it could be coloring books. You don’t make it your thing, you try not to make it the fixture in your life, whatever it is.”
Wayne met with then-President Donald Trump last year during his reelection bid to discuss criminal justice reform efforts, prompting criticism from some fans.
When asked if a meeting with Trump could lead to progress, he responded, “Progress is always possible.”
However, despite the backlash on social media, he claims he didn’t feel any pushback. “Nah, not at all,” said Wayne, who was pardoned by Trump during his final hours in office.
Elsewhere in the interview, he opened up about the state of music in the age of TikTok, while giving props to rappers including Polo G and Pooh Shiesty. “Music lacks some creativity. But I like the real calm, cool flow of Pooh Shiesty. It gives me an old Fabolous vibe,” he said. “LPB Poody, I did the remix for a song called ‘Batman.’ One of the lines whacked me in the face and I said, ‘OK, you got bars, you’ll probably be around for a minute.’ And Polo G, I think he’s real genuine.”
