Lecrae 'Tells The World' Everything on The Breakfast Club: Christian Rapper Gives Candid Interview After 'Anomaly' Debuts at No. 1 [VIDEO]
Life is good for Gospel's most successful rapper, Lecrae. Earlier today (Sept. 17), Billboard announced that his seventh studio album, Anomaly, debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200. Though Texas native has a Grammy and numerous awards, this is the first time he has walked away with the first place.
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A week before, stopped by The Breakfast Club to promote his new album, and we have a feeling that half of people who watched this interview went out and bought it-- contributing to the 88,000 copies sold. Lecrae is known for his faith, but in this candid new interview, he discusses everything from dealing with groupies to the Tupac. He is not one-sided at all and after watching this interview, he certainly has new fans in the Enstars team.
Here are 17 Things We Learned About Lecrae on 'The Breakfast Club':
1. Lecrae does not like to be put in a box. When introduced as a "Christian Rapper", he corrected the Breakfast Club hosts though he is the first hip hop artist that tops the gospel charts.
2. He considers himself an artist who's "faith informs his movement," and not necessarily a person who raps solely about God. Though he is used to the Christian rap title, he does not want to scare away potential fans and only raps about what experiences in his life.
3. Unlike most rappers, Lecrae doesn't smoke weed. But, he "isn't opposed to drinking."
4. Contrary to popular belief, Lecrae does not want his fans to think that "He is the picture of perfection." He is human like everyone else and not trying to be "the standard."
5. He is about to add author to his title, as he prepares to write his first book.
6. He is sick of people not "knowing what to do with him." At times, the music industry can be frustrating for 34-year-old rapper because he is too hip hop for gospel and too gospel for hip hop.
7. He still doesn't understand the cause of his "sudden" success-- because this is Lecrae's seventh album and the first time he's had a no. 1 billboard spot-but he is certainly enjoying it.
8. He is happy that with his growing popularity will expose the youth to a new type of rapper. Growing up, Lecrae's mom raised him on Malcolm X and Dr. King. In Tupac, he saw the same militance and was inspired to rap.
9. Lecrae graduated from the University of North Texas and is a member of the Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity.
10. With the fame comes the groupies, but Lecrae deals with it by remembering that one dumb decision could ruin everything he's worked to have. [Exhibit A: Ray Rice. Ahhhhh, man.]
11. He wants ladies to "be a Ferrari." Basically, people want Ferrari's because they are hard to get and not advertised (like Hondas or Toyotas), so wants ladies to value their worth even though most of rap is misogynistic.
12. He's been through real things, and has forgiven the people who hurt him. He liberates his fans by sharing his skeletons (he was molested as a child) in his music.
13. Though he is obviously busy these days, when fans or strangers approach him to talk about life issues they are dealing with, he makes time or gives them an email address to continue the conversation.
14. Two of his biggest musical inspirations are Dead Prez and Common. He enjoys listening to people who have a voice, which is one of the biggest reasons he hates being put into the "Christian box," because his viewpoints span various subjects.
15. His peers in the industry like working with him because he is genuine and even Tech N9ne reaches out to him for advice.
16. His lack of radio spins doesn't bother him anymore and he likes being able to walk down the street without being recognized.
17. Lecrae is his actual birth name.
To check out the full interview, watch it below.