Benny The Butcher talks new 'Tana Talk 4' album, linking with J. Cole, Griselda status and more

Griselda’s Benny The Butcher has a lot on his mind these days. To help unload a bunch, he chops it up with hip-hop personality Ebro Darden on Apple Music 1 to run through his new album Tana Talk 4.

Benny tells Apple Music about past criticism of his lyrics, getting J. Cole on the project, being looked at like the Griselda underdog and having to prove himself. He also discusses being compared to Conway The Machine and him leaving the label, misconceptions over who owns Griselda, working with Kanye West and plenty more.

Check out some of the conversation highlights and keep scrolling for the full chop up session.

Benny The Butcher Tells Apple Music About Criticism of His Lyrics…

Man, society or the fans or supporters, they glorify rappers too much. I am not Dr. Martin Luther King. I am not Malcolm X. I'm nobody like that. I'm not like a revolutionist or one of them type of dudes. I'm a rapper. I'm a guy out the hood who made it. You feel what I'm saying? I'm not a role model. I'm an example. I be hearing dudes say, man, I got more money than rappers. Get more money than Jeff Bezos. It's like, I dress better than rappers. Dress better than the fashion model. Why everything is compared to rappers? People are obsessed with rappers.

Benny The Butcher Tells Apple Music About Getting J. Cole on Album Opener “Johnny P’s Caddy” and That It Almost Ended Up on ‘Revenge of the Dreamers III’…

I met him when they was doing the Dreamville thing in Atlanta. I tried to get a slot on there. I laid something crazy. I don't know how I ain't make that album. But no, I mean, he made it right. He made it right. But that's when I first met him. When I was on tour, he was on tour. I went to go chop it up with him. I let my manager Chase know, yo, I need Cole on his record. He got a relationship with his manager and they put that the together. And when me and Cole kicked it, he like a guy who I feel like he had to feel me out. We sat down and we chopped it. Because he been in this for so long and he really don't like doing features, I don't think. Or he's selective when he do them. So I kind of feel like he felt me out and was like, you know, that guy is all right. He one of the members. He's always, every time we sit and kick it, he always like seemed genuine. So I feel like it's something that he wanted to do. And I feel like it was something that he could get off his chest.

Benny The Butcher Tells Apple Music About The Reaction To His Last Album ‘Burden of Proof’…

When that album came out, people loved that album. But the Griselda fans is like, "He's going commercial. He's getting too lit for us. It's not underground no more. Nah." But if you ask the casual listener, they’ll know that, and won’t know the Tana Talks. And they'll be like, "Yo Benny, oh man, that Burden of Proof album." So it was like, that was a gift and a curse too. But it was more about me showing that I'm capable of doing anything. And it was more about Hit-Boy showing that, “I could work with these type of artists too.” So it was like, we both had a lot to prove on that record.

Benny The Butcher Tells Apple Music About Being Looked At Like The Griselda Underdog and Having To Prove Himself…

I be feeling like people look at me as like the Griselda underdog. I'm the mascot or the hanger on or something. When I came in this, there was a lot of situations. I couldn't get a lot of dudes, I asked dudes for beats, dudes who I knew was giving the beats, they try to charge me. When it was time to come do a rap on radio shows, they're like, "Oh, you got Conway with you?" I'm like, "No, man, Conway not with me. It's just me." So I went through a lot of that and this is a business. So I never get caught up on it. I just had to prove myself.

Benny The Butcher Tells Apple Music About Conway The Machine Leaving Griselda and Says Westside Gunn Is the Exclusive Owner of the Label…

"I’m gonna break something down for you… We’re going to always be crew…I don't think Conway is still signed to Griselda, but that's “signed" to Griselda. He's going to always be Griselda. And no, West is the sole owner of that. I think that's one of the big misconceptions is that they own it together. But that's West's baby. Like Conway tell you if West own a building, he did the construction type of thing…”

Benny The Butcher Tells Apple Music About The Track “Tyson Vs. Ali” and Being Compared To Conway The Machine…

Everybody try to compare me to Conway. They do. They try to put us together. You know, these people are devious. That's what they do. It's the same thing. I am of this cloth. It's like comparing your left shoe to your right shoe. It's like, it's a pair. I come up under Westside and Conway. So with that, one of my lines, is like, "While I'm killing it, Conway's rooting for me.”…But I named it Tyson vs. Ali, because you would never see Tyson vs. Ali. We all talk about it. You would never get to see it though. Keep comparing it. Keep imagining, you know what I'm saying?

Benny The Butcher Tells Apple Music About Making His Biggie Tribute “10 More Crack Commandments” As Authentic As Possible…

I got Diddy on the record because I wanted to make it authentic. So I got Diddy speaking his piece on the record and tying it in to where it would land today. Man, shout out Primo. Primo came and got in the video. None of you rappers try to recreate no Biggie stuff. Leave it up to the real guys. So it's like, I had to make this as authentic as I could make it. So I had to send it to Primo like, "What you think?" I had to send it to Diddy like, "Yo, what you think?" Because if I wouldn't have got their blessing on it, you would've heard this record.