Stick Talk: A Decade of Future's DS2, As Told By Fans
"Future just has a way."
I’ve recently taken to carrying a miniature notebook around with me wherever I go. I keep a larger journal at home for longer entries, but I love being able to whip out the smaller one at a moment’s notice to scribble something down, whether it’s a passing thought, an idea, or to process some feeling. There’s also just something that feels real journalistic about carrying a miniature journal around LOL.
Anyway, I first got the idea to throw a listening party for DS2 back in June. My work laptop had decided to spontaneously combust, and so I was left with nothing but my notebook for a few hours. As as I sat in the operating room (the Apple Store) the idea hit me. I could have people come through and talk about the album. I could have food items named after the songs.
Once I wrote the words “Stick Talk” in my notebook, that was it, I knew that I had to make it happen, and two months later, on August 10th, we did it. I threw a glorified birthday party for one of my favorite albums. We got together, sang along, ate cake, and said nice things about it. It was so much fun.
My friend Zahra, and the founder of the micro-bakery Black Zaffron created a one of one, Dirty Sprite Cheesecake, that included real lemon-lime soda in the batter—we used 7-Up in place of Sprite because we don’t rock with Coca-Cola; free Palestine—and was marbled to evoke the appearance of the album art. As we played the album front to back, friends old and new came up and talked to me about the music, sharing not only their thoughts, but stories from their lives, and the the role this music had played in them.
I thought about starting with a long intro about the importance of the album to hip-hop at large, explaining the role that it played in Future’s career and all that good stuff, but that’s well tread ground. Instead, I wanna tell you some of what my friends told me. Enjoy.
Track 18: “Fuck Up Some Commas” | Janiel, 28
First off, I was raised by two Capricorns. This is important because these niggas ‘bout they money. Ever since I was a kid, I remember prepping for school and ironing my money so that it would go into my pocket folded properly. My dad was a Future ass nigga. He still is. My mom is like the sweetest person ever, she’s in the church all the time—it’s literally angels and demons, but they both bout they money.
When this dropped, I was 17, interning at a tech company that I ended up being at for ten years after that. So my whole mind was “get money,” and I was like, “I need an anthem.” I never really cared as much as my parents did, but I wanted autonomy. My mom’s super religious, I’m a masc lesbian, I wanted to be outside but not have to be tied to the scrutiny, the shame—she loves me, but you know what I mean. I wanted my money. So this became this anthem for me.
I have not lived the Future life, but because of my father I’ve seen enough people. I used to joke as a kid I would never do no bad shit because I can’t go to jail. I got eczema. They gon’ put fuckin ointment on my commissary? I can’t go to jail. I’m too conditioned to comfort, so I have to be in the mindset of some sort of money at all times. I saw it as empowerment, and yes, this guy (Future) is terrible at times, but I see why you’re allowed to be.
I have a [two year old] niece now. When she first came out like three months old, I played the whole album for her like, “Do you know the world you’ve entered?” I had to set the tone, shit is crazy out here. So I have now generational ties to this fucking album.
Editor’s Note: Subscribe to Janiel’s excellent (and equally hilarious) Substack here!
Track 2: “I Serve The Base” | Shak, 31
So we're gonna go back to February 12th, 2016, and I had moved to New York in December of 2015. I was living in a house in Bushwick with like eight roommates, as one does. One of my roommates was a photographer, and we decided to do an art show together. We did the art show, and then later that night was a Ghetto Gothic Party.
The lineup was like Venus X, LSDXOXO, Total Freedom, and some other folks I don’t remember the names of, but we walk in and…I will never forget it in my life—and I’m a certified loud music enjoyer—they were playing “I Serve The Base” on the loudest speakers I have ever heard in my life up until that point. I genuinely can tell you, that was the loudest thing I had ever heard in my life. I’ll truly never forget it. That bass was shaking my soul free. It was outrageous.
“I Serve The Base” on a sound system like that was actually life changing. I’ve been chasing that high ever since in terms of hearing music that loud. And it was an amazing party, all kinds of crazy shit, Dev Hynes (Blood Orange) and Father were there walking around. And again, I’d just moved to New York, so that night I was like: “Yeah, this is the greatest city ever, anywhere. I’m never leaving. I’m going to be here my whole life.”
Track 10: “Blow A Bag” | Kaya, 31
I first came into contact with Future when I was in high school. 2011, 2012 era. On the weekends, me and my friends were partying and doing all kinds of stuff we had no business doing. Gucci Mane, Future, that’s what the boys were listening to. Future felt like a peer to Gucci, but lighter—the ladies could get into him. Gucci was a little harsh sometimes; you’re just like: “I can’t shake no ass [to this], we just gotta stand here while the men have their little moment.”
I went to [Spelman] college in Atlanta, so that was like being at school while some of this music was coming out. Funny enough, there was a girl in my class who at the time was dating Metro Boomin’, because he went to Morehouse for a bit. So we kind of had this connection to the people making the music. If you know anything about Spelman and Morehouse, that area is in the hood. We would go party on Parsons, and it was nothing but trap houses. It was interesting to see the dichotomy of it all: seeing the music in the “real” Atlanta, and then on campus and seeing the fraternities stroll to these songs.
This album really puts me back in college and being in Atlanta. It was very important for the culture at the time, and it gave people a very important outlet and entry point into Atlanta and [the strip club] Magic City—it looks so small in person. It’s across the street from a Greyhound stop. It’s really in the cut, but the wings are amazing so everyone should go!
Track 4: “Groupies” | Samir, 27
So, I heard this song not when it came out, but in 2017. I’m in college, I’m like 20, I’m out with my friends. I was kind of going through it with a partner at the time, [so I was] that one friend in the corner not having a good time. They started playing this song to make me feel better. Imagine, it keeps repeating: “Now I’m back fucking my groupies!” Everybody’s like jumping on me, and eventually I got into it. I was telling ‘em like: “I don’t got no groupies right now. I thought I was seeing somebody.”
Future was with Ciara previously, and when this album came out they were separated. So that’s the value of that hook, like: “I was there then, I’m somewhere else right now,” and you can hear it ooze through his lyrics. All the ego, and vanity, and all of his flexing. “You deserve Rollies and AP’s and all that!” And I didn’t..I don’t—I’m not giving people AP’s but I’ve still got something for you, you know? There’s a lot of problems with that song, of course, but we’ve all been there.
That was the era of time where I needed that: for my ego, for my self esteem. It’s hard to say this, but I feel like Future can be a face of male empowerment in some way, at least in bigging up your own ego, like yeah, “you’re that nigga,” even if you’re not doing what he’s doing, you can relate to it.
Track 14: “Trap Niggas” | Sanoyha, 21
I got into Future through my older brother [during the] transition period from eighth grade into freshman year of high school. He used to drive me around in the car just bumping Future. It’s one of my favorite songs, I think he should have won a Pulitzer Prize for this. Just saying, like “God bless all the trap niggas,” am I wrong? Actually, God needs to bless me because I lost my trap phone. It’s kind of sad.
Editor’s note: If you find an iPhone 11 in a Hello Kitty phone case, please alert the publication!
Track 16: “Real Sisters” | Nigil, 28
I grew up in Atlanta, so I’ve seen Future’s evolution through the years. When this came out, I was going into my sophomore year of college [at Hampton University] and I was in the marching band. Students would submit music that we would like to play for the upcoming year, and one of the songs that dropped that summer that was huge was “Real Sisters.” One of the students arranged it, and we played it throughout [the year.] I remember because I played the tuba, so I remember the bass.
Future actually came to Hampton to perform. He did a majority of the songs from What A Time To Be Alive, but I remember when he did [“Real Sisters”], the reaction that I saw. I look around—it’s just hella beautiful women around. All the AKA’s was strolling to it, all the greeks—it was just a different type of mode. And at the time, I was also talking to this girl, and ironically, her older sister had a crush on me. So I was like “Oh, okay so everything comes full circle.”
It was just everywhere. It was everywhere in the club, I went to Magic City, I heard this shit. I couldn’t escape it.
Track 12: “Rich Sex” | Joe, 29
I do have to preface that I am a recovering Future hater. It wasn’t my cup of tea back in the day, but it’s hard to hate the man when he made this. I’m a huge R&B person, so when I did listen to rap around that time, I was listening to Chief Keef; real YN shit. Future was cool, it was trap, but it wasn’t enough guns, you know what I’m saying? I don’t know, Finally Rich was just like—“Love Sosa?” I love Sosa.
My favorite Future songs weren’t everyone’s favorite Future songs, you know? I loved “Loveee Song” with Rihanna—it was more like any time he did something more melodic was what I really loved. I didn’t care for the rapping as much. But then, I heard Dirty Sprite 2, and specifically, “Rich Sex.”
My homies were Future lovers, like “you gotta listen to this” and I’m like: “Dude, I really don’t want to.” They would turn on Future, I would leave the room. But then listening through the whole album—“Wow, this is amazing.” “Rich Sex” specifically, probably the best beat I’ve heard in all my years. I feel like what Future does great—it’s not really about the subject matter completely, it’s about the way he kind of is on top of the beat; not exactly what he’s saying, but how he’s saying it. His voice is almost an instrument in the way he uses it.
Track 5: “Lil One” | Destiny, 23
“In the beginning [of the album] he’s talking about fucking bitches and getting money, right? But here, now he’s like: “and don’t make me send my niggas after you, either.” I feel like Future just has a way; you kind of just start to embody whatever that song says to the highest degree, right? So you be [listening to this while] getting ready for work, and you’re like “Damn, and don’t let me send my niggas after you either!” And you’re like sitting in HR but you’re like: “Yeah!”
He gets in a different pocket in the second verse that kind of just re-amps you up to the second level. I’ve never held a gun, I’ve never sold drugs but…“the AR and Tec, that’s a real ménage?” Like, bitch?! There’s just a certain thing that just activates something evil inside you, and that’s really why I love him. Throughout all of the albums he’s released, he has never lost that feeling of like “I’m that nigga,” you know? And that’s why I love him.
I want to thank everyone who came through, and if you weren’t able to make it, stay tuned, I’ve got a lot of new, exciting things that’ll be making it out of the notebook very soon.
I’m Ebrima, and this has been Edited for Brevity.
Crazy, this is so cool to hear other people’s experience with Dirty Sprite 2. I don’t listen to a lot of Future myself so this was actually eye opening to see how other people internalize his music, so now imma take a listen.