Russ

Released: May 5, 2017

Songwriter: Russ

Producer: Russ

[Intro]
I'm here

[Verse]
Yeah, the cash came, I ain't trippin' on a past flame
Even if they were dimes, you know how many 10's want my last name?
Is this the rap game or high school politics?
Bars could be on Maury 'cause they got a little pop in it'
Before I show up, that's when the deposit hits
You only want me now, that's what I have problems with
Five-star suites, Trojan wrappers on the floor
That's the aesthetic when you gettin' half a mil' on tour
Not bad for six weeks, plus I should receive my plaque soon
Shittin' on the game, I'll probably hang it in my bathroom
Last June I was broke, this June I made a hundred
Before and after, didn't change me though I stayed a hundred
Show me someone else who's doin' what I'm doin'
Singin', rappin', mixin' masterin', engineerin' producin'
That's every song with no exception, plus the catalog longer than a lot of veterans
Mention me amongst myself 'cause I'm the first of my kind
You live a Semi-Charmed Life, 'cause your third eye is blind
I'm a shepherd, not a sheep, but I heard it's my time
Was in the shadows for so long, I deserve all my shine
Got some women you would love to fuck, left on read
Got some homies 'bout that arm leg, leg, arm, head
I should call it a night, too many women can be dangerous
You let 'em behind the scenes, all of a sudden they start framin' us
I make enough to alter her perception of me
The older you get, the more expensive lessons will be
Gotta tighten up, move a little bit more militant
Comin' down your block, lookin' like we copped the whole dealership
Penthouse suites, but couldn't tell you what city
Same ones who stayed down with me gon' be up with me
See that's the code you uphold when you know what it took to really grow into the star you all know so
When Bugus touch down, I got the Bentley waiting for him
In L.A., the next time I'll probably play The Forum
But for now, catch me selling out the Novo
No debut, no openers, I'm solo
You're trapped in the club 'cause you can't sell tickets
Your album flopped and you went ahead and fell with it
But fuck y'all, I'm a business man
I'm smokin' caviar cones in my sprinter van
On the phone with my lawyer talking about eight digits, yeah
Just to be safe, even my safes got a safe in it
False accusations, think I'm done with the groupies
'Cause one bad scene can fuck up the whole movie, so
Fuck these hoes, man I'm out the game
Plus they jump around quicker than House of Pain
Break the bank for the family, take everyone to Waikiki
My homies are big and African, knock you out in dashikis
To my family, I'm Russell, to these women habibi
Ex's know they played themselves when they see me on TV
Big money offends, small minds too bad
I give my girls a new life, you give your girls a new bag
Doin' interviews with Forbes 'cause the come ups amazin'
I got a new fetish for jewelry and expensive vacations
I got the industry shook, like, "How's he's popping like this?
How I don't know him, but he still got 60K on his wrist"
Now I can't go to the mall, 'cause I'll probably get mauled
And I lied, I wasn't busy, I'm just ignorin' your call
'Cause maybe I feel like you don't really deserve a response
'Cause you were curvin' me crazy when I was tryna get on
Now I'm fresh up in the game, and I already went gold
'Cause I gave them what they want now they losin' control
Had to do it myself, pull the trigger on my dreams
Always knew that this would happen, manifested everything
Now they gon' write about me, like they were right about me
Some people lookin' like they wanna snatch the white up out me
That's new to me, forgive me for bein' jaded to my race
But I been color blind, that wasn't just a mixtape

[Outro]
Yeah, one of eleven, yeah, I put out eleven
Produced, mixed, mastered, engineered, written by me
Yeah, this just the beginning though
Yeah, debut shit

Russell Vitale is a rapper from Atlanta, Georgia, by way of New Jersey. A lifelong fan of rap, Russ began writing raps in his notebook at the age of 7. At 14, he began making beats, producing for his friend Bugus who had dreams of making it as a rapper. In high school, Russ made the decision to also pursue a career as a rapper himself.

Between 2011 and 2014, Russ released 11 mixtapes. These received minimal attention, and Russ decided to wait to release his debut album until he had enough of an audience. What followed was 96 consecutive weekly singles released to his SoundCloud page. Two notables among the slew of singles were “What They Want” and “Losin Control,” both of which ended up being certified 2x Platinum by the RIAA.

On May 5, 2017, Russ released his debut album There’s Really A Wolf, which spawned 7 singles with Gold certification or higher and was certified Platinum within a year of its release. A year later, his sophomore project ZOO came to be on September 7, 2018, this time opting to enlist external producers and featured artists. Then, at the end of January 2020, he dropped his long-awaited SHAKE THE SNOW GLOBE album, where he talks about love, haters and his wealth.

more tracks from the album

There’s Really a Wolf

From the albums

There’s Really a Wolf (2017)
NBA Live 18 (2017)

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There’s Really a Wolf