Lil Tjay recently cemented a breakout year by dropping his debut studio album, True 2 Myself. On the opening track, “One Take,” the young rapper clears the air by addressing comparisons to fellow Bronx native A Boogie Wit da Hoodie.
Over ZiggyOnTheKeyboard’s beat, Tjay acknowledges the A Boogie comparisons while stating he’s trying to carve his own path:
They said I’m the new A Boogie, relax
I ain’t never try to copy your swag
I’m just tryna put my hood on the map
When Tjay started breaking out earlier this year, early coverage drew parallels with A Boogie’s melodic style of rapping, and the comparison has stuck with the 18-year-old rising star since then.
It’s worth noting the two rappers do share at least one influence. In a January 2019 Pitchfork interview, Tjay revealed he grew up listening to R&B artists like R. Kelly, Usher, and Michael Jackson.
A Boogie has never been shy about being inspired by the latter singer. His biggest hit to date, “Look Back at It,” interpolates the King of Pop’s “Remember the Time” and “You Rock My World."
In addition to Tjay, fellow New York rapper Lil Tecca, YNW Melly, and even Lil Baby have all been mentioned in the same breath as A Boogie.
Tjay has achieved several career milestones this year. He landed his first Billboard Hot 100 single with a feature on Polo G’s “Pop Out,” which peaked at No. 11 in June. Just three months later, he earned his first solo hit when “F.N” reached No. 68 on the chart.
Time will tell whether he is able to match A Boogie’s accomplishments of two Top 5 albums and more than a dozen Hot 100 hits, but for now, Tay is off to a solid start.
Listen to the song above, and read all the lyrics to Lil Tjay’s “One Take” on Genius now.
