Officially, hip hop is 53 years old. What was long treated as music for the young now belongs to several generations at once. Russ sees this as an advantage and credits veteran rappers with paving the way.
Recently, Russ sat down with the Behind The Wall podcast. Eventually, their deep conversation about hip hop culture and the music industry turned to age and experience. Rap is often expected to chase youth. But artists grow older, live more life, and gain new things to say. Should they stop evolving because they fear the audience will stop listening? Absolutely not, Russ believes.
His conviction came from following the careers of hip hop superstars, pioneers, and revolutionaries who did not stop growing and changing – and never stopped rapping:
Watching Nas, Clips, Jay-Z, and Eminem still have all this interest – it’s super inspiring to see in the rap space. ’Cause I’m like, okay, cool, you can rap and have people care about what you’re rapping about at 50. That’s fucking awesome to see. That’s why I think we should all champion older rappers because we don’t want this shit to turn into the NBA or turn into sports where once you turn 35 ؘ– it’s a wrap, retire.
Admittedly, Russ has never been shy about praising Eminem or crediting him with sparking young Russell’s interest in hip hop. Lately, though, it is not only Eminem’s music that seems to matter to him, but his longevity.
Now, at 33, almost 34, Russ is thinking about the future. And his generation is lucky enough to know that a rap career does not have to expire early, thanks to Eminem, Nas, and many more who walked this road without knowing where it might take them.