“Craziest” by Naughty By Nature
Target: Jermaine Dupri
“N—-s snipe shit so I’m on a knife tip/Like Da Youngstaz ’bout ta take you on some hip-hop ride s–t/If you ain’t jumpin then don’t pump it/I’m hittin Jermaine in Atlanta cos he owe me loot for that “Jump” s–t/F–k astronauts I rock it/And from now on if you bite my style when I see you, I’m in your pockets…”
There are two variations on this backstory: one, a teenage Jermaine Dupri allegedly asked the-then red-hot Treach to ghostwrite rhymes for Kris Kross’ 1992 mega-hit “Jump.” But, the up-and-coming hip-hop mogul stiffed Treach on some money owed for penning the smash. And two, when Treach saw the video for “Jump,” he marveled at how Kris Kross looked — and sounded — a lot like a pint-sized version of Naughty By Nature. Jermaine was known for “borrowing” whatever was hot at the time and using it for his own hits (anyone ever noticed how Death Row-ish early Da Brat sounded?) Either way, Treach was a little miffed and decided to let JD know about it. For good measure, he even included a nod to Naughty’s own teenage protégés, Da Youngstaz — and their then-current single “Hip Hop Ride.”
