Oschino Explains Why Dame Dash Deserves More Credit For Kanye West’s Success Than Jay-Z

BY Aron A.
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February 10, 2008; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Kanye West on stage duringThe 50th Annual Grammy Awards at the Staples Center in Los
February 10, 2008; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Kanye West on stage duringThe 50th Annual Grammy Awards at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, CA. Mandatory Credit: Robert Hanashiro via USA TODAY NETWORK/USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
Oschino provides insight into Ye's relationship with Jay-Z during his early days with Roc-A-Fella.

After JAY-Z seemingly dissed Oschino during his Roots Picnic freestyle, the former State Property rapper hasn’t shied away from responding. Most recently, he sat down for an interview in which he revisited the early days of Ye’s career, when no one really saw his vision. While he’s often considered JAY-Z’s greatest prodigy, the truth is that it was Dame that believed in Ye when no one else did.

“Dame said, ‘My producer’s nasty. You got to hear him.’ Ye was in there making beats and sh*t. Dame said, ‘Spit something.’ He started spitting some sh*t, I’m like, ‘Oh, he nice.’ But Hov wasn’t trying to hear that shit,” he said, explaining how it was Dame that put the Roc-A-Fella chain on Ye’s neck. “Dame see sh*t in people.”

According to Oschino, JAY-Z’s primary issue with Kanye was his visual appearance because it didn’t fit the mould of Roc-A-Fella at the time. “He had velvet shoes on, no socks. Polo shirt with the white collar coming out,” he added, describing that the uniform was baggy clothes and throwback jerseys at that time. “We ain’t understand that. We was really from the streets.”

Still, Oschino explained that despite his fashion sense, the talent was clearly there.

Oschino Explains Kanye’s Frustrations

When asked if Ye felt some type of way about Jay at the time, Oschino explained that the Chicago artist wanted him to be his “big brother.”

“No matter what Dame did, he’s the executive, Hov the rapper so he probably identified with him more. Hov more famous, Hov could take him on road with him,” Oschino explained. He said that he could see why Ye aligned with Hov in the end instead of Dame but felt as though the “Flashing Lights” artist “should’ve doubled back and made sure Dame was straight.”

About The Author
Aron A. is a features editor for HotNewHipHop. Beginning his tenure at HotNewHipHop in July 2017, he has comprehensively documented the biggest stories in the culture over the past few years. Throughout his time, Aron’s helped introduce a number of buzzing up-and-coming artists to our audience, identifying regional trends and highlighting hip-hop from across the globe. As a Canadian-based music journalist, he has also made a concerted effort to put spotlights on artists hailing from North of the border as part of Rise & Grind, the weekly interview series that he created and launched in 2021. Aron also broke a number of stories through his extensive interviews with beloved figures in the culture. These include industry vets (Quality Control co-founder Kevin "Coach K" Lee, Wayno Clark), definitive producers (DJ Paul, Hit-Boy, Zaytoven), cultural disruptors (Soulja Boy), lyrical heavyweights (Pusha T, Styles P, Danny Brown), cultural pioneers (Dapper Dan, Big Daddy Kane), and the next generation of stars (Lil Durk, Latto, Fivio Foreign, Denzel Curry). Aron also penned cover stories with the likes of Rick Ross, Central Cee, Moneybagg Yo, Vince Staples, and Bobby Shmurda.

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