Drakeo The Ruler is Gonna Give You The Truth Whether You Like It Or Not
We spoke to LA rapper Drakeo The Ruler about his new album, We Know the Truth, working with Drake, and more.
If LA was the Wild West, Drakeo the Ruler would be the outlaw whose voice never raises above a raspy whisper and whose visage is seen on Wanted Dead or Alive posters.
Drakeo is a victim of the corruption that has long been poisoning the Los Angeles criminal justice system. He has spent the last couple of years entangled in a complicated conspiracy case. In 2019, he was acquitted of murder and attempted murder charges, but the district attorney decided to refile gang-conspiracy and shooting from a motor vehicle charges stemming from an unrelated case in 2016. While incarcerated ā and using only a GTL-powered prison phone āDrakeo recorded the 19-track project Thank You for Using GTL, with the assist from producer JoogSzn. The project is a harrowing glimpse of the mentality of a man fighting to win in a game thatās already been fixed for him to lose.
On November 4th, 2020, Drakeo was released from prison following a plea deal offered by the D.A. Following his release, it didnāt take long for Drakeo to hit the studio again ā the first time in three years after recording his previous tape, the underground classic Cold Devil, on borrowed time. We Know the Truth was Drakeoās moment to address the masses, from friend to enemy. Itās nearly impossible to ignore the disdain drenched in venom when he raps, āWhen I was in the county I aināt even get a letter,ā on the hook for āEnergy,ā one of the standouts from the tape. Or the moments of celebration on the opening lines of ā20 Pieces,ā flaunting the fact that he received a not-guilty charge from all 12 jurors in the D.Aās face. Drakeo raps as if heās talking through you, keeping a chilling-composure that nearly freezes you at the end of every punchline.
The Truth Hurts, released last week, is the follow-up, a chance to revel in the spoils of his recent success. Drakeo takes a different direction than the previous confrontational effort in We Know the Truth. The production exchanges blood-thirst for LA club bangers and jewelry-flaunting anthems prepared to take over radio waves. Led by the Drake-assisted āTalk to Me,ā The Truth Hurts is a celebration, the moment the door of stardom opened its doors for Drakeo and shined its heavenly gleam despite the PTSD and trauma that hangs over the album. Itās not all exhilaration, however. A week before the albumās release, tragic news struck when Drakeoās close-friend, and member of his crew Stinc Team, Ketchy the Great had passed away in a car accident. Drakeo paid homage to Ketchy on the open-wound song āLong Live The Greatest.ā
We recently spoke to Drakeo who talked about how heās adjusted to being home, working with Drake, and the desire to avoid conflict.
What was it like getting back on your feet in an industry that changed so much recently?
Well, it was kind of weird. You get adjusted to it, but thereās a lot of stuff, thatās just weird. I donāt know. But since I had nothing to do, it was kind of easy, though. Aināt got nothing to do without a studio.
On We Know the Truth you were pissed off at everybody. What went through your head while you were writing those songs?
A lot. There was so many people that had so much to say and all this stuff about me while I was in jail. I couldnāt do nothing, I couldnāt say nothing about it. So now, when I got out, it was just like, thatās it. Iām going to make sure nobody says anything when I get out. You remember all that shit. A lot of people didnāt think I was going to get out, so when I was writing all that shit, I was like, āMan, they better hope I never get out because when I get out, they are going to hate me.ā
It was crazy. It went from people not really noticing who I was, not giving me the credit, and me going to jail, I canāt even do anything ācuz Iām in jail. When I got out it was crazy. I didnāt think it was going to be like this.
What would you say was the biggest challenge you faced coming back into the rap game?
Just understanding that this shit is fake. Itās not real. And to stop letting my emotions get into this shit. Trying not to let my emotions get the best of me, ācuz itās not real. There might be a couple people in there, but itās not real. Might be a couple genuine people, but this shit aināt real.
Your content never changed even when the D.A. used your lyrics against you in court. What made you stick to your guns like that?
Because if Iām honest, I just knew that wasnāt nothing going to change if I changed it up or not. They still were going to do whatever. They had it out for me. That wasnāt going to change nothing.
Now on The Truth Hurts you sound like youāre celebrating throughout the songs. What kind of album did you seek out to make from the jump?
I wanted everybody to know, āI know the truth, and it hurts.ā Now they seeing this. They seeing it, I got out, they already knew. Happy to congratulate me when Iām out. The truth hurts now I got Drake on stage and Don Toliver. Yāall canāt fuck with me, bro. I gave yāall your chance. Now itās over with. Three years. Three years to do what they want. Didnāt go nowhere.
How has your mentality changed between releasing the two tapes?
I donāt do the same things. I try not to take these guys seriously because peopleās careers are going down the drain and theyāre taking shots at me. I aināt trying to kill, man. I donāt want no followers or nobody. I donāt even understand these people.
You got a single with Drake now thatās going crazy. Did you ever plan to hit the mainstream like that?
Not the way I did it. Now my homie died, itās kind of weird. Canāt really enjoy all this shit like I want to.
How did you and Drake connect?
They was telling me about something he wanted to do with me when I was in jail, but Iām like, āI donāt know.ā So I didnāt really take him seriously. But then I ended up getting out so I DMāed him and now weāre here.
Between the last two projects, you featured a handful of Detroit artists, from Icewear Vezzo to Krispylife Kidd, what makes the current scene in Detroit and LA so similar?
We kind of have the same style; we both talk shit. Itās kind of easy. Canāt really explain. We just go together.
At the same time, since theyāre so similar, what makes them different?
I mean, the words that they use. I guess their accents. They use different words than us.
The way you got two cities from two different states to come together to make a new wave in hip-hop, what makes it difficult for individuals in their own city to come together and squash the beef?
People donāt want to see other people pass them up. They donāt want other people taking their shot. They donāt want to see people who pass them up. They donāt like to see that. They pretend like they do, thatās what causes these gangs to go on each other, all that type of stuff. It is what it is.
Iāve heard your work on a project involving the new cats coming out of LA. right now. Are there any details you can give about that?
I gotta figure it out ācuz every week I have a new person that gets pumped up not to like me. I got to figure out who I am with all the people, all that breathing. Aināt got nobody to push their limits.
How crucial is support from the fans?
Itās really crucial because, for me, Iāve been in jail three years and to still have my fans, hundreds of thousands of more fans is kind of crazy. Some people donāt get that love. Some people, three years go by and their career is over, but I got some loyal fans. So thatās important. I appreciate all my fans that believed in me, or whatever. That played a big part in keeping my head straight, knowing that I have fans out there to support me when I got out. When I got out, it was okay. It was real. Time to get back to it.ā
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