Donning a custom embroidered Atlanta Braves baseball cap full of patches that either salute Gunna‘s Drip Season 3 album or spell out “Free YSL,” Veeze is posed a question by OGM host Hakeem Rowe that would probably take a lot of hubris to conjure up an answer for: “What do you feel like it is about you where people f**k with Veeze so much?”
However, being the humble, nose-to-the-ground artist that he is, the Detroit native reeks of humility as he responds, “I would want you to ask them that.”
Some of the people that Hakeem is referring to are the biggest hip-hop artists in the entire genre in 2022, such as Lil Baby, Lil Yachty and most importantly, his Detroit brethren, Babyface Ray. For much of Veeze’s rise, he has been what many would call a right hand man to these figures.
But as he and Face’s patented Detroit style rap continues to capture the hearts of the hip-hop community and attract mainstream appeal, Veeze is ready to turn it up a notch. “It’s just the beginning forreal,” he said. “They ain’t even seen the half of what I got in store. I’ve just been really kind of half-assing it (so far).”
Whether it be landing on hits like Lil Baby’s April track “U-Digg” with 42 Dugg, which peaked at No. 52 on the Billboard Hot 100, “Spending Spree” off Babyface Ray’s 2022 album FACE or three different tracks on Lil Yachty’s 2021 Michigan Boy Boat tape, Veeze has been surrounding himself with stars for quite some time now. But, that should not take away from his thrilling solo efforts, whether it be his 2019 debut tape Navy Wavy, his SVU-inspired 2020 banger “Law ‘n’ Order” or his latest November single “Close Friends.”
All of this and more has been an integral part of Veeze’s slow-burning ascent, which will meet its climax with the arrival of his upcoming album Ganger, named for his most notable and frequent ad-lib. When discussing the LP, he explained that he feels like his fans should be more aware of the work he’s been putting in behind the scenes, because they have not had the opportunity to see his full evolution as an artist lately.
“Just really want to give my fans a project,” he said. “Get them back on track to what they’ve been missing. It’s just gonna be my own way of how I do Detroit music.”
And while he has always been accompanied by legends, his “own way” has always been the best way. With tracks like the aforementioned “Law ‘n’ Order” and his viral 2021 Babyface Ray collab “Gallery Dept.” giving his name buzz, he knew that building relationships over doing cheap tricks would pay off in the long run.
Speaking on one-hit wonders vs. lasting artists, Veeze had an excellent food-related analogy to simplify his thought process. “We know when something got made in the microwave or something got made like a Thanksgiving feast,” he said.
In order to prepare his career like a serving of delicious stuffing or a juicy fried Turkey, it took Veeze establishing both a unique delivery and consistent work ethic. Claiming that he got “98% of the things I do in rapping and recording” from Babyface Ray, he still has been able to craft a distinct flow that he describes as “moody,” where he opts to punch in lyrics rather than write them because songs are already mapped out in his head.
Artists like Veeze who can combine an impressive innate ability with an overwhelming likability don’t come around often. And, even though he has always been contractually independent, it’s the support from peers like Face, Yachty and Baby that have propped him up even more so, as he prefers to call these figures his “brothers” rather than just rappers.
Now with all the tools necessary to be a dominant artist for years to come, the 7 Mile native will be looking to take the next step in his career with Ganger. As he prepares for this new era, Veeze’s exclusive interview with Hakeem touched on many of these topics and more, such as being in Lil Baby’s “Heyy” promotional video, why he seldom does interviews, making the “Gallery Dept.” music video, the obscure references in Detroit rap and his musical influences.
Check out Veeze’s Our Generation Music exclusive interview below!
