Who will win the battle for based ? spectator.co.uk - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from spectator.co.uk Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Image via Lil B / Design by Sho Hanafusa
Brandon McCartney is just 31 years old, but jokes that he’s nearing his 40s. When I ask the Bay Area icon what his longtime moniker means, he simply says “love.” He seems to mean it. No other artist I’ve ever interviewed has texted me to call me “hun,” or ended an interview with an “I love you.” And though many assume the B in Lil B stands for based hence his relationship with the Based God surveying the music industry today it might as well stand for blueprint.
Lil B’s influence on modern hip-hop may not be obvious to casual rap fans, but it’s become impossible to neglect, whether his 61 mixtapes are in their rotation or not. When McCartney was dodging the beat during his verses in the early 2010s, many of his peers were more concerned with technicality. Before most knew what developing an online brand meant, Lil B was creating what he calls the “first music meme” and building a presence beyond his “pretty bitch