Dave East On "King Of New York" Talks: "Keep Me Out Of That"

31-year-old rapper Dave East is building a long-lasting brand to support his vision. He often works in the shadows, crafting out his legacy and ensuring that when he leaves this earth, his music is still earning millions of plays on the daily. Last week, there was an interesting conversation regarding his Survival album and how many units it moved. Conflicting reports had the project projected to move under 3,000 copies but today, it was revealed that he scored much higher than that, clocking in 24K units moved and debuting just outside of the Billboard 200. Some would consider him the current King of New York and, especially after Tekashi 6ix9ine threw around that term incessantly last year, we’re all looking for his viable replacement. During a recent interview with No Jumper though, East noted that he wants no part in the conversation.

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After Adam22 said that he always found it interesting how Action Bronson never tried to claim the throne, Dave East interrupted him by saying that he’s not down to be mentioned there either. “Keep me out of that, I ain’t no King of New York,” said the rapper before explaining. “You know, Jay-Z and Nas still out here breathing so there’s nobody on Earth that can say that that’s from New York with them alive. Jadakiss is still out here breathing. Styles [P] is still out here breathing. DMX is still… you know, there’s a lot of people that’s still kicking and moving.”

One listen through Dave East’s debut album and you’ll see just how much love he genuinely has for old school New York bars. Watch the video segment below.