Atlanta’s Lil Baby managed to become one of the top Hip Hop stars of this era. His It’s Only Me studio album recently topped the Billboard 200 chart.
According to a former owner of The Source magazine, Lil Baby is the 2022 version of a late rap icon. Benzino went on Twitter to make comparisons between the “Heyy” rapper and Tupac Shakur.
“I been around Hip Hop since day 1, out of this generation’s rappers @lilbaby4PF is the most influential and important at this time,” tweeted Benzino. “He like PAC’s influence can help turn around young black men to elevate their lives from the streets to a better life. He’s special trust me I know.”
The Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta alum added, “[Lil Baby is] really from and wit the s#### and talks that street talk, but he also raps about positive elevation and change, (like Pac), he never beefs online, helps his people and raps about it and you can see his maturity, not just on the mic but in real life, he’s this generation’s Pac.”
Tupac Amaru Shakur is one of the best-selling music artists in history. The West Coast representative is widely considered a global cultural icon who experienced high-profile ups and downs throughout his career in entertainment.
Both 2Pac & Lil Baby Found Mainstream Commerical Success
Before his death in 1996, 2Pac scored two Number Ones on the Billboard 200 with 1995’s Me Against the World and 1996’s All Eyez on Me. The latter project earned Diamond (10 million units) certification from the Recording Industry Association of America.
Posthumous 2Pac albums also made it to No. 1. The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory, Until The End Of Time, and Loyal To The Game led the chart. His Diamond-certified Greatest Hits compilation just crossed the 450-week mark on the Billboard 200.
Lil Baby’s It’s Only Me album opened at #1 on the Billboard 200 by earning 216,000 first-week units. The album currently sits at #4 on the rankings after six weeks. It’s Only Me is the third chart-topper of Baby’s career.
My Turn by Lil Baby spent five weeks atop the Billboard 200 in 2020. The Quality Control recording artist also scored a Number One in 2021 with the Lil Durk collaborative project The Voice of the Heroes. Baby’s “Drip Too Hard” single with Gunna earned a Diamond Award in September.