by Jordan Upmalis with Shaheem Reid
In the past few days, we've seen Shaq take aim at Kobe and Soulja Boy Tell'em and Ice-T trade verbal jabs. So it seemed natural to assume that Ne-Yo's freestyle dis track, which finds him rapping over Lil Wayne's "A Milli" (a popular idea in recent weeks) was directed at Chris Brown.
While Ne-Yo doesn't mention Brown by name in the song, there's plenty of reason to think it's directed at him — possibly stemming from rumors that Brown was overheard dissing Ne-Yo's singing ability and boasting that his sales are much bigger than Ne-Yo's. The last part is true — Brown's latest, Exclusive, has sold over 1.5 million copies, while Ne-Yo's Because of You has sold less than a million. And Ne-Yo's freestyle over "A Milli," opens the track with the words, "To whom it may concern, you might sell a million more than me/ But you ain't got a million more than me, let's be real."
In the track, Ne-Yo also points out that before he broke through as an R&B star, he was already making hits as a songwriter. He raps: "Though this Ne-Yo thing to you may look like a new career/ I've been the man behind the pen for about eight, nine years." Of course, Ne-Yo has written plenty of hits, notably Beyoncé's "Irreplaceable," as well as "Unfaithful" for Chris Brown's rumored girlfriend Rihanna, which would seem to add some personal punch to the line, "I ain't lyin', man/ Your girlfriend's favorite song is mine."
However, Ne-Yo himself said recently in a video interview with producer Bangladesh's blog that the song isn't directed at Brown.
"That is not a Chris Brown dis," he said. "I'm not shooting at nobody ... Chris, I ain't shooting at you. That's my homeboy. It is not a Chris Brown dis!"
So what do you think? Is Ne-Yo's "A Milli" directed at anyone, or is it just a generic rant?
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