Last night, Verzuz debuted Season Two with a showdown engendered with deep Southern history: Jeezy vs. Gucci Mane.
The two successful artists harbor a long-standing beef from their early days as mixtape stalwarts that were blossoming into global rap stars.
Although the two are in very different places in their lives from where they started, they stood before each other as icons in a culture experiencing a touchpoint through the Verzuz series.
As usual with the Verzuz format, the two went song for song performing when the mood hit them.
However, everybody came for the tea and there was plenty.
https://twitter.com/aguascaliente_/status/1329689188367626241?s=21
It was pretty clear from the outset that Gucci Mane was here to sonically settle a score.
He jumped right into the battle with a diss track while Jeezy began checking off his hit list from early street classics to his mainstream radio bangers.
Gucci: Next time let’s do a jewelry verzuz
Jeezy: Lets do a real estate verzuz
Gucci: pic.twitter.com/gC4rGj4nHS— DAYTON’S DRAGON 🐲 (@MicJones_) November 20, 2020
The tensest moment of the night came when Gucci Mane performed his track called “Truth” which is a scathing rebuke of Jeezy. It delves into the disagreement regarding the rights of the 2005 Gucci Mane single ‘Icy’ featuring Young Jeezy and Boo.
More importantly, it pokes the bear over the murder of Jeezy associate Pookie Loc.
Pookie Loc – real name Henry Lee Clark III – was a rapper and member of Jeezy’s crew. He was shot dead on May 10th, 2005 and Gucci Mane was accused of killing him.
Pookie was only 27-years-old.
According to multiple reports, Gucci was involved with an altercation with four men inside the home of a friend on this date.
https://twitter.com/cmplxambition/status/1328043875781505025?s=21
One of the men was Pookie and Gucci told investigators that they barged into the apartment and began assaulting people inside.
This led to gunfire and Pookie died, later to be found in a wooded area near Columbia Middle School.
Eventually, Gucci then turned himself in, admitting to shooting at the group of men.
He claimed his actions were in self-defense. In the past, Jeezy has been accused of sending Pookie Loc to harm Gucci Mane.
However, the Jeezy song ‘Forgive Me’ from 2015 includes the lyrics: “Rest in peace to Pookie Loc, blame it on me never snitching/Lord knows I ain’t send the homie on no dummy mission.”
The charges against Gucci were later dropped by prosecutors in 2006 due to insufficient evidence.
Nahhh Jeezy went off last night #Verzuz pic.twitter.com/JrC6ZFUqjm
— P (@sk8_BoardP) November 20, 2020
During the Verzuz battle, Gucci stooped low when he made an off cuff statement about Jeezy being buried sonically like Pookie Loc.
However, Jeezy rose to the occasion at this moment.
He reminded Gucci that the millions of people watching them live were because they are embodiments of rap culture and they are a testament to the lost souls; artists like Nipsey Hussle, Doe B, Mo3, King Von and more.
It was a humbling moment that brought some brevity to a potentially tense scenario inside Magic City and although there is never an official winner, Jeezy took the grown man crown.
Rap music has so much animus surrounding it due to the proliferation of materialism and bravado that it felt good for a moment of reflection over its cultural impact.
https://twitter.com/yudisarkar/status/1329655625492492288?s=21
Jeezy admitted that he reached out to Gucci Mane and that solidified the fact that he has accepted the position of being the bigger man. It ultimately makes him the bigger artist as well.
Season Two of Verzuz began with a historical reconciliation for the culture.
Respectfully.
