A ‘New Level’ of Drama in the A$AP Mob

By Dagen Kipling

In today’s social media-driven society, where clout and clicks run the social hierarchy, it can become difficult to recognize the difference between reality and a publicity stunt. Twitter users faced this problem as hip hop twitter was set ablaze Sept. 1 with breaking news — A$AP Ferg, the trap lord himself, had reportedly been kicked out of the A$AP Mob.

The Harlem hip hop collective, A$AP Mob, was founded in 2006 by A$AP Illz, A$AP Bari, and A$AP Yams. The news of Ferg’s removal came from a string of Instagram stories posted by A$AP Illz. Illz claimed that “Ferg ain't A$AP NO MORE sorry guys,” and  “That n***** burnt out, songs dumb trash mr anthem cant get right.”

Immediately fans of the A$AP Mob took to twitter to express their shock at the idea that A$AP Ferg would no longer be in the group. A$AP Bari, fanned the flames by writing, “He said what he said,” in an Instagram post discussing Ill’z claims that Ferg had been kicked out of the group.

In a string of dramatic tweets and speculation, it looks like there is some shade inside of the A$AP Mob.

(XXL | Aleia Woods)

The decision from A$AP Illz, seemingly confirmed by A$AP Bari, continued to boggle minds as losing Ferg would cost the Mob a large chunk of their commercial appeal. Out of the current fourteen members in the A$AP Mob, only two of them have had a single billboard entry — A$AP Rocky and A$AP Ferg . Combined, they have sold thirty times the amount of the rest of the members. From a purely financial side, letting one of your most profitable and successful members does seem to be a poor idea.

A few hours after Illz’s accusations had hit social media, A$AP Nast took to twitter to refute Illz. Nast claimed that “THE TRAP LORD WAS NOT AND WILL NOT BE KICKED OUT OF A$AP FALSE NEWS EVERYBODY GO HOME NOW #ASAPFOREVER”. Nast chalked the entire incident up as a simple familial dispute and explained how embarrassing and unnecessary it was for the fight to play out in front of the world.

Nast’s claims prove to be accurate; even the official A$AP Mob twitter account retweeted his tweets. Ferg has not commented about the dispute.

The decision to kick the ‘New Level’ rapper out of the group, risking commercial success and the financial status of the A$AP Mob, would have been completely irrational and irresponsible. Such an unwise decision has caused fans to question: was this an actual familial argument or just a publicity stunt to draw hip hop heads’ attention back to the Mob before a new project is released?

Publicity stunts to boost streams and sales are not uncommon in the hip hop industry. The master of the publicity stunt, Tekashi 6ix9ine, who famously cooperated with the feds, snitching on his fellow Nine Trey Gangsta Bloods to reduce his sentence, continues to troll the internet to promote his brand. Now released from prison, he dropped his first post-prison album “TattleTales” Thursday, which is projected to debut number #1 after it’s first week out.

Regardless if Illz’s stories were just for clicks or a small fall out between close friends and co-workers, hip hop fanatics should rest easy knowing that A$AP Ferg remains in the mob and is here to stay. Hopefully, the next thing we hear about Ferg is the release of Cozy Tapes 3.

You can follow Dagen on Twitter @DagenKipling.