Vince Staples' XXL Freshman Freestyle Is Full of Knowledge and Pain

Vince Staples is already making the summer a scorcher with the release of his XXL Freshman Freestyle. The rapper serves up some heat with bars centered on struggle and pain.

From police brutality to burying his friends, the "Senorita" MC spreads knowledge about his come-up. He even touches on the stark contrast of the wealthy and the poor. "Raised as a have-not, have plots on the fortune / Reduced lunch had a n---- feelin' less important / Rich men in Porsches, broke moms on bus stops / Livin' with emotion, look what the love got / Sittin' in the church, giving her last dollar / Prayer wasn't the answer, they was answering with nada," Vince delivers.

Now that the Long Beach, Calif. native has scored the accomplishment of landing on the 2015 XXL Freshman Class cover, he's still got work to do. Vince has respected vets like No I.D. in his corner, which has helped him land a deal to release his first LP through Blacksmith/ARTium/Def Jam. But even with the project on the horizon, he has a lot on his mind.

"I don’t want to fall off. N---s be falling off. I don’t want to get cocky, get bougie, I just want to continue to go on the path [critics] saw me on," he tells XXL. "I don’t want to jinx myself. I ain’t never had no pressure. They say pressure make diamonds so hopefully we come out with something. I feel like being a Freshman in the eyes of the fans means your hard work is paying off and it gets them excited to see what you’re going to do in the future.

"To be a Freshman in the eyes of this industry means you can be something we’re all going to remember."

Look for the 21-year-old rhymer to keep the momentum going when he delivers his debut album, Summertime '06, due June 30.

See XXL Freshman Class: Where Are They Now?