No I.D. Says Big Sean’s "Control" Was Originally For J. Cole & JAY-Z

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Artium Grammy Brunch
LOS ANGELES, CA - FEBRUARY 12: No I.D. hosts the Artium Grammy Brunch at Private Residence on February 12, 2016 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Johnny Nunez/WireImage)

No I.D. has revealed how the beat for Big Sean's "Control" came together.

No I.D. says that he originally made the beat for Big Sean's iconic song, "Control," for J. Cole and JAY-Z. The track ended up making waves in the music industry due to Kendrick Lamar’s feature verse, in which he disses J. Cole, Meek Mill, Drake, Big K.R.I.T., Wale, Pusha T, ASAP Rocky, Tyler, the Creator, Mac Miller, Big Sean, and Jay Electronica. Speaking with Stereogum for a new interview, No I.D. explained how the song came together.

“[J. Cole and I] were talking, because I got a running joke with him, which is, ‘If I do sessions with you, I’m gonna make amazing music for other people that you won’t use,’” he began. “And the first iteration of that beat was made for J. Cole. And then I made another version for Jay[-Z], and then I made another version for Sean. So sometimes when I think an idea is special, I will work on it for a long time and make many versions of it. And sometimes people will be like, ‘Why you didn’t give me that?’ And I’ll be like, ‘I did.’”

Read More: Kendrick Lamar Allegedly Disses Big Sean, Jay Electronica & French Montana On New Leak: Report

No I.D. Celebrates Big Sean's Birthday

BEVERLY HILLS, CA - MARCH 25: (L-R) Big Sean and No I.D attend Remy Martin V Celebrates Big Sean's 25th Birthday Dinner at Wolfgang's Steakhouse on March 25, 2013 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Johnny Nunez/WireImage)

No I.D. also addressed why the song didn't make it onto Big Sean’s sophomore LP, Hall of Fame. He clarified that it wasn't due to sampling issues with regard to the 1974 song “El Pueblo Unido Jamás Será Vencido” by Quilapayún and Sergio Ortega, as many have theorized. "No, ’cause actually, that’s all live instrumentation, it was definitely a replay," No I.D. explained. "But I’m sure that’s a good reason to say. It was a big issue at the company, too, it was a lot of stuff going on."

Revisit Big Sean's "Control" Featuring Kendrick Lamar & Jay Electronica

Elsewhere in No I.D.'s interview with Stereogum, he discussed working with Killer Mike, Common, Kanye West, and more. Check out Big Sean's "Control" above and be on the lookout for new music from No I.D. on HotNewHipHop.

Read More: Big Sean On “Control” Not Making His Album: “I Don’t Fuck With Negative Shit”

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About The Author
Cole Blake is currently an Editor at HotNewHipHop based out of Brooklyn, New York. He began working at the site as an intern back in 2018 while studying journalism at St. John’s University. In the time since, he’s graduated with a bachelor's degree and written extensively about a wide range of topics including pop culture, film & television, politics, video games, sports, and much more. He’s also covered music festivals such as Gov. Ball and Rolling Loud. You can find him publishing work for HNHH from Monday to Wednesday or on weekends. On the sports front, Cole’s a passionate NBA and NFL fan with his favorite teams being the Indianapolis Colts and Los Angeles Lakers. He also roots for the Yankees whenever he finds himself at Yankee Stadium or the Red Storm when in the company of other SJU alumni. His favorite hip-hop artists are billy woods, Earl Sweatshirt, Cam’ron, MIKE, and Mach-Hommy.