Call it being passionate about the culture or not, Joe Budden is not here for “happy” tracks and bubble gum lyrics when it comes to the nature of hip-hop and rap music.

Like. Really…not here for it. So much, that a recent conversation with rapper Lil’ Yachty on Complex’s talks show, “Everyday Struggle” reached a point where Budden’s veins popped through his neck, tan skin turned blood red, and the use of his hands to further articulate his message intensified.

A little bit of backstory. People have been getting on Yachty’s case since he admittedly stated he couldn’t name a Tupac or Biggie song and his “happy” raps rub some the wrong way. Now, of course, the hip-hop head who breathes the essence of the culture and its major influencers would surely take offense to this. It happened with Compton rapper, Vince Staples who made the bold statement: 90s hip-hop is overrated. And true enough, it hurts my heart to hear it. But, we have to realize these dudes were hella young in the come-up era of the Nas’, Pacs and Biggies. True, they can tap back into the history but it’s clearly a different purpose riding the waves of their ambitions to spit bars and talk to people on a global scale.

Yachty’s response to any of the backlash: “I’m just having fun.”

Welp, when you’re going up against a guy like Joe Budden who pens his pain in his rhymes and is admittedly emotional, comments like the one above and Yachty also saying he’s “happy everyday” is sure to get his blood boiling and set off a fire.

“Feelings are fickle,” Budden said. “What that means is, they come and they go. Nobody is one thing forever. You cannot tell me … you would be lying to tell me that as a young man in this industry, in this music industry, in the music business, you are happy 24-7. That is a lie. That is bullshit. And I refuse to have somebody tell me bullshit. I want to have an honest conversation.”

In round one, Yachty calmly defended himself listing elements of his past and present.

“When you come from a college dorm room, with no money…and you ain’t gettin’ no play with no girls, you have no clothes, you have no car…and you come to having three or four cars, millions of dollars, half a million dollars on your body just to wear, and any kind of clothes you want, any hoes you want, how can you be upset?”

Budden dismisses it as “bullsh–t” and takes Yachty to school on this game of hip-hop and how humans work. Watch the full discussion below.

The heated discussion is making its social rounds and below are a few responses.

everyday struggle
hip hop
joe budden
Lil Yachty