Due to arrive this summer, ‘Muddy Waters 2’ will follow the rapper’s VERZUZ battle with longtime rhyme partner Method Man. Billed as a “4/20 Special”, the virtual event takes place on Tuesday (April 20) to celebrate the international weed smoker’s holiday.
Redman accompanied the news of his forthcoming album with the release of a new track called ’80 Barz’. It hears the New Jersey MC rap non-stop for three minutes straight, delivering witty punchlines and hard-hitting bars throughout.
“Make you duck down/ Learned that out my boot camp/ I was a big deal when MJ dated Brooke Shields/ Now I’m equipped to go Bushwick for the bills, that part,” he spits in the opening lines of the track.
Another set of bars hears him namecheck Eminem, Dr. Dre and Houston rapper and activist Trae Tha Truth. “I rep my city like Trae in Houston/ Hungry like Em’ before Doc’ Dre produced him/ The straitjacket I had on was loose/ And now I bodybag any rap n***a that suits him,” he raps.
Listen to the new track below:
Released through RIV MUSIC, Redman spoke of his collaboration with the company. “Collaborating with RIV MUSIC doesn’t feel like a partnership,” he said in a press release. “It’s definitely a family at this point.
“I can appreciate that they understand hip-hop, the authenticity of it, quality control, and most importantly that they are fans of it. They know their stuff and it felt right jumping back with not just this track that I’ve briefly been sitting on, but ‘Muddy Waters 2’ as well.”
‘Muddy Waters 2’ has been in the works for years, dating back to Redman’s time signed to Def Jam Records. He told HipHopDX in 2018 that the album would arrive that year, however it never materialised.
Speaking to the same outlet in September, he explained why it never materialised. “You have to understand that I’m a self-contained artist,” he said. “That means I engineer everything right here in my house that I’m talking from. I engineer, I write the music and I mix in my house. What I learned from Def Jam — because I’m a Def Jam baby — I learned all my tutelage on how to put out music through Def Jam.”
He continued: “The only thing now that’s missing is me having a date and me rushing when they want me to put it out. I’m able to move on my own time. Last time I talked to you, I thought I was ready, but I wasn’t. A couple of months ago, I knew I was ready to put the album out, but COVID hit. I’m like, ‘I want to be able to be out there to promote the album, not sit from a couch doing interviews.’”
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