What up gang.
Back with the real you know what’s the deal. I don’t know what it is with the hood. We keep seeing the same thing. Hood dudes for some reason have difficulty starting out with their homies and staying homies once things take off. We seen it with G-Unit
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Slaughterhouse
Cash Money
The vision seems to get blurred once the money start piling and that was the root of the fallout between GBE founders SD and Chief Keef.
When GBE was blowing up, the bond started to fade and it was visible, but things were happening behind the scenes that no one knew, until now. Even Fredo Santana, RIP to the legend, had squabbles with Keef. Today we’re going to follow the story and see what fans aren’t aware of under the surface between SD and Chief Keef. Let’s chop it up and break it down.
Everyone who is everyone knows who Chief Keef is. Grew up in Chicago, 300 General, Lamron savage, dubbed the inventor of drill, attained goat status for putting Chicago on the map and starting a new wave of rappers that ate off his blueprint and trend etc etc etc He’s a goat, whether you rocks with his music or not. But not many people talk enough about his former GBE homie he started things with, SD, and its about time that’s changed because I feel like bro deserves his credit and to understand the timeline of their rise and fall you gotta understand who SD is.
Like Keef, SD grew up in Chicago, but in his case, he moved around the city a lot. Even growing up in O Block at one point in life with his grandmoms https://youtu.be/2N4oGyvmO3U (5:11-5:35) https://youtu.be/GxADNhO0How (4:24-5:01) But his main hood where he kicked it at and chilled with the streets was Blackgate which is also a Black Disciple set https://youtu.be/GxADNhO0How (3:20-3:33) He had both parents, but their relationship wasn’t the best, mostly with mumsie even though he still got love and respect for her. In fact, at around age 11 or 12 she kicked him out the house and he’s had to fend for himself. Probably why he moved around the city so much https://youtu.be/GxADNhO0How (6:27-7:00).
Like his homie Keef that he’d meet in time, SD saw the rough part of life, the violence, the crime, the struggle to make it out the hood. According to SD, “It felt like every morning waking up was like facing death so it was like having a barrel to his head.” https://youtu.be/-kR5wxjadyg (3:55-4:07) That’s some harsh realities for a youngin to grow up in. He took it with stride though and turned to music to push his way to a better life. This was when he met Chief Keef not too long after moving to the O. Chief Keef used to hit the studio with DJ Kenn who was like the mastermind behind their producing, videography everything. DJ Kenn lived around where SD was at and it so happened he was in the studio and Keef came through the same studio to work with DJ Kenn too, and that was the first instance SD and him met up around age 13 https://youtu.be/GxADNhO0How (7:09-8:19)
You can see DJ Kenn in this rare clip of all of em back in the day https://youtu.be/l-0PcAmAO7A (1:30-1:34)
SD and Keef clicked, and they started kicking it and collaborating on joints. Keef’s cousin and Chicago legend, Fredo Santana (RIP) was serving time while all this was happening and when he got out, his idea was to collectively form a group and that’s how the pioneers came up with Glory Boys Entertainment (GBE) https://youtu.be/GxADNhO0How (8:20-9:44)
This union created a movement that would change Chicago and each of their lives forever, especially Keef. SD and Keef went on to drop multiple bangers like “Let’s Get Money” featuring LEEKELEEK (RIP) https://youtu.be/h2q_wO1FpWU, “Global Now” https://youtu.be/R4BoVEpYF94, “My Ninjas” https://youtu.be/tv0BSc-h-vA and “She Boring” https://youtu.be/e0evIed0h_0 It was a whole wave that was taking over and the entire world was being drawn in by GBE.
But somewhere along the line the original visions of the three pioneers began to diverge. Fans wouldn’t know it then, but that’s what was happening outside of the internet’s view. All the world noticed was that SD was no longer being in songs with Keef, or mentioned with GBE. And that said a lot because SD and Keef were tight, you be seeing him even in Chief Keef’s solo music videos cuttin’ up https://youtu.be/YWyHZNBz6FE (0:27-0:40) https://youtu.be/tD3xowIXjAA (1:02-1:12) Added to his disappearance from the squad, his presence online and even dropping personal music slowed. Speculations were flying left and right about what happened, some saying he got kicked out of GBE, others claiming drugs to be the cause.
In 2014, SD would do an interview where the question of him and Keef came up and this was his response https://youtu.be/-kR5wxjadyg (12:18-12:30) His answer kind of downplayed anything being the issue saying that they cool but he’s just on a different path basically. So it seemed all good, just musically everyone was on to other waves, but that actually wasn’t the entire truth to the story. But before fans knew any other details, SD kind of dressed back from the music scene and he later stated he disappeared for a while to get his life right and make sure his focus isn’t caught up in the hype of social media https://youtu.be/mNw4nmL5PdI (4:00-4:52). Instead, he was taking care of his kids and family, enjoying being in their life and trying to guide them down a better path https://youtu.be/Fkex-2K7URA (9:58-12:20)
Fans who of course knew of the original GBE members kept on questioning both Chief Keef and SD on their separate IG lives about was up with both of them. Chief Keef got more annoyed than open about the situation, at first seeming to be throwing shots at SD with his response to fans https://youtu.be/Y7Y4o67aP9s (3:44-4:17) But then he made sure to let fans know he ain’t on that type of time and SD really still his dude but they just ain’t rocking like before basically https://youtu.be/Y7Y4o67aP9s (4:24-4:42) Some can still say from how he called him his son that he’s throwing shade, so could be, could be not, but SD never fed into it which led me to think it wasn’t any type of real problem but more like a family fall out. SD was more welcoming than Keef at first to fans asking was up with him and keef. Joking even about it https://youtu.be/4M2f-_s8MQU (0:00-0:30) SD made it known that if something did happen between the other crew and Keef, him and Keef weren’t at odds https://youtu.be/4M2f-_s8MQU (0:33-0:57)
SD actually wanted to link up and do music but he feels like Keef is sacred to hit the stu with him https://youtu.be/4M2f-_s8MQU (1:16-1:35) Since their apparent fall out, SD has always kept the story that he’s not sure what Keef got with him and its all love on his end and he wants Keef to call his line https://youtu.be/RzwTo8RSnHA (7:50-9:46) But you know the fans, the net has no chill and even got to SD with all the Keef and beef questions https://youtu.be/4M2f-_s8MQU (3:34-3:54)
Eventually though, SD would come out and say what actually happened to cause the rift between him and Chief Keef. When GBE was poppin’ and they were taking over, Keef wanted to change the name to Glow Boys and be more like a boss with the others being under him. That was different from the start where everyone was on the same level and all bosses as a team and SD wasn’t about to answer to no one https://youtu.be/Fkex-2K7URA (13:55-14:40) Now we come to find out this actually wasn’t sitting well with Fredo Santana either. Instead, Fredo wanted to start his own label called Savage Squad that SD had a hand in coming up with, but one thing led to the next and the next to another and Fredo would branch off to do the Savage Squad thing on his own https://youtu.be/Fkex-2K7URA (14:41-15:03) SD was now placed in the middle.
He was cool with Fredo, the two even lived together at one point making music like their track “War” https://youtu.be/VLVQ_XzlKAc and becoming close homies when something caused SD and Keef to fall out at one time before https://youtu.be/mNw4nmL5PdI (0:14-0:30) https://youtu.be/mNw4nmL5PdI (0:43-1:14) But at the same time, him and Keef came up from the bottom so out of respect he wouldn’t have gone with Savage Squad https://youtu.be/Pks_hmXXKjE (2:12-2:33) So with both Fredo and Keef starting their own thing, SD chose not to choose a side but just do his own thing too and stay out of the family squabble https://youtu.be/Pks_hmXXKjE (0:41-1:12) https://youtu.be/Fkex-2K7URA (15:05-15:35) He started his own movement and label Truly Blessed before changing it to Truly Mafia https://youtu.be/Pks_hmXXKjE (1:13-1:23)
While all this is happening, SD was growing internally and even if they do link back up now, he may have outgrown the type of wave everyone else is on. From since the first time everyone realized they kind of stopped rocking with each other, SD’s headspace was more on breaking apart from living life without no purpose
To leveling up and starting a new life down a different path, a smarter path than the gang life
Like many others in the hood, SD wanted a way out from the madness https://youtu.be/-kR5wxjadyg (4:56-5:16) The difference between them was that SD saw the opportunity in his face and is going after it through music https://youtu.be/-kR5wxjadyg (6:54-7:21)
But even with all of that positive mindset, beef always seem to find you. While going through it with Keef n’em, a homie from his hood, Blackgate Ben Zoe went online stripping SD of his Blackgate credentials https://youtu.be/qUeBRedehes (0:00-0:23)
Rumors are it was because SD charged for a feature instead of giving it to em free because dudes thought since he’s from the hood he shouldn’t charge em. But even for those rooted deep in the streets, maturity sometimes saves the day and like SD, Ben Zoe too has found a new insight into life and trying to build his own roster of artist. He’s even back cool with SD trying to push the music together this time around instead of being on anything negative https://youtu.be/dApyp5RQqAI (3:02-4:15)
Even with Chief Keef and SD not being down each others throats, pause, there have been rumors of other members of Glow Gang going as far as ex’in out SD’s face from past pics https://youtu.be/Pks_hmXXKjE (3:19-5:09)
The GBE movement he started with Keef didn’t take him to the same superstar status due to the change up of the gang from their day 1 vision, but SD has something to say and his music is still going https://youtu.be/mNw4nmL5PdI (6:13-7:10) After dropping his debut project “Truly Blessed” in 2014 https://youtu.be/-kR5wxjadyg (17:39-18:26)
He released his latest mixtape October 2021, “Hated By Some; Love By Plenty”
Aye, me for one I’m rooting for bro’s success and hope to see him and Keef put everything behind them and get to the music https://youtu.be/2N4oGyvmO3U (0:20-0:50) https://youtu.be/Sf5RvMBMzZU (2:06-2:30)
So there you have it. Thanks for kicking it with yah boy, appreciate the love and support. Catch ya’ll in the next one. Peace up and peace out.
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Chad is a professional journalist specializing in Hip-Hop culture and writing music reviews.
