At one point iLoveMakonnen was looked at to be one of the biggest names out of Drake's OVO Label with his hit record "Tuesday", where the once-labelmates explained their love for strip clubs on one of the oddest weekdays. But due to old tweets resurfacing across the internet, Makonnen's tenure with Drake's label tarnished along with his reputation in hip hop.
But his 2018 record "Spendin" featuring Gucci Mane is moving into the new year, meaning that Makonnen is ready to put relevance back into his name.
Though "Spendin" wasn't the main focus of his latest interview with Bootleg Kev and DJ Hed, the ex-OVO signee had a number of things to open up about on the show. As one of the few rappers to publicly come out of the closet, Makonnen explained the difficulties of doing said action in a rap community that wasn't welcoming of the gay community, and addressed rumors of him dating the late Lil Peep.
However, Makonnen believes that this generation is more accepting of anyone and everyone that enters the hip hop community. Think about it. Between rappers like Kevin Abstract, Cupcakke, and Young M.A., rap has seen many of its spawns come out of the closet; receiving more love than backlash for being themselves.
Though I don't believe Makonnen is the first to openly share his sexuality, I will say his early-stated openness plays a factor for today's artists to be themselves. The facades are fading.
Check out iLoveMakonnen's interview with Bootleg Kev and DJ Hed below to see exactly what I mean: