To coincide with the release of his new album, What Happened to the Streets?, 21 Savage sat down for an interview on Perspektives with Bank and explained how he believes the city of Atlanta is grooming children.
While discussing how he’s moving in the city now that he’s famous versus when he was an up-and-coming rapper, 21 suggested that Atlanta grooms children into living a particular type of lifestyle.
“This is how I really feel… Atlanta is really, goddamn, what’s the word? Atlanta really a pedophile,” he said around the 18-minute point of the interview, as seen above. “‘Cause Atlanta really groomed us, bro, since we was kids.”
His comment was met with a laugh from Big Bank and some of the crew, but he insisted that they should listen to his comparison.
“Maybe pedophile the worst word,” he backtracked slightly. “Maybe pedophile the wrong word. Atlanta is a groomin’ ass city. Atlanta groomed us n***as since we was ten, or 11-12, on club life, bro. Like, when I was a lamb, n***a, on my mama, I was taking out trash for $2 in apartments. Just to goddamn get some Chucks and some Dickies…”
He recalled how, when he was a kid, he would go to a venue that would provide kids with pitchers of Sprite and other soda, reminiscent of pitchers of alcohol that they would serve in clubs.
“So your ass getting groomed for the club, from [when] you goddamn in middle school,” he continued. “So now when you 30, n***a, I’ve been going to the club since I was 11, 12 years old. Bro, fuck the club. Atlanta groomed a n***a, bro. And n***as banging out at these clubs.”
21 Savage later explained that he felt he was “forced” into street life because of his circumstances.
“‘Cause I couldn’t do nothing else, I ain’t got no green card,” he said, referring to his immigration status. “I can’t get no job. So how the hell else was I gonna survive? I don’t feel like I jumped in the street, I feel like I was kind of forced.”
He realized growing up in Atlanta that money was thin for his family, so he felt obligated to make money however he could as a teen, selling weed, taking out trash for people, and selling candy in school.
The 33-year-old rapper just dropped his new album, What Happened to the Streets?, on Friday (Dec. 12). The project features appearances from many of his regular collaborators, including Drake, Metro Boomin, Lil Baby, and his girlfriend, Latto.
Watch the full interview above.