Ed Lover has listed former JAY-Z protégé Amil alongside the likes of Nipsey Hussle and Pop Smoke as artists whose unfulfilled careers could have shifted the game.
Picking up a conversation sparked by Nelly, Ed Lover took to Instagram on Thursday (January 12) to offer his input about who he felt might be considered the biggest “What If” in Hip Hop.
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“Nelly said, hands down, the biggest ‘What If’ in Hip Hop history is The D.O.C. because [he] got hurt after giving us one album, right?,” the radio host started. “So I would say yeah, Nelly’s right about D.O.C. But I would also like to add Nipsey Hussle. I would also like to add Pop Smoke. I would also like to add Amil.
“And Imma tell you why I’m adding Amil,” he continued. “Cause with JAY-Z on the pen game? Amil coulda been something stupid special for sure. So: The D.O.C., Pop Smoke, Nipsey Hussle, Amil. I think those are the biggest “What Ifs” in Hip Hop history.”
The former Roc-A-Fella signee famously appeared on JAY-Z’s hit single “Can I Get A…,” one of his earliest mainstream hits, thanks to its inclusion on the Rush Hour Soundtrack and later on his third album, Vol. 2… Hard Knock Life.
The song became Hov’s first Top 20 single, entering the Billboard Hot 100 in 1998 and peaking at the No. 19 position over the course of 37 weeks on the chart.
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Following the song’s success, Amil stepped fully into her role as the First Lady of The Roc, delivering the hook on another Vol. 2 single, “N-gga What, N-gga Who (Originator 99),” before making three appearances on JAY-Z’s Vol. 3… Life and Times of S. Carter, including the album’s lead single, “Do It Again.”
She went on to be featured on albums by both Beanie Sigel and Memphis Bleek; and appeared alongside her labelmates on The Dynasty: Roc LaFamilia‘s “You, Me, Him and Her” before welcoming the crew on, “4 Da Fam,” one of the biggest singles from her debut album All Money Is Legal and her only solo Hot 100 hit.
However, contrary to Ed Lover’s assumption, Amil once said that her talent as writer was one of the things that led JAY-Z to sign her.
“Jay had respect for my talent – writing and my voice – nothing more,” she told Billboard in 2014, while speaking on the success of their first hit together. “Jay gave me the opportunity of a lifetime, and what I did with it was my own decision. That was my brother. There was never a relationship between me and Jay or anyone over there. He was like a brother. He was very protective over [me]. I’m never going to lose any love for Jay.”
As for the brevity of her career, Amil explained that she simply came to realize that she wasn’t that interested in Hip Hop stardom.
“I wasn’t there mentally,” she said. “I was in my own world. Was I prepared? No. Did I realize what was happening right before my eyes? No…I started to rebel. I rebelled against the industry because it’s not what I wanted. I hated traveling. I wasn’t at afterparties or the club. Also, at the time my son’s asthma, [who was] 5 [or] 6-years-old at the time, was getting worse and no one was there for him. I had to be there for him.”
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Amil officially parted ways with Roc-A-Fella Records in 2001. While she’s stated on more than one occasion that she harbored no ill will towards her former label head and mentor, Hov may have felt differently.
JAY-Z referenced the break in at least one song, which saw him mention the original members of the Roc roster in metaphors, rapping: “And you got a couple of beans and you don’t have a clue?/ Your situation is bleek, I’ma keep it real ’cause/ Fuckin’ with me, you gotta drop a mil'” on the Blueprint intro track, “The Ruler’s Back.”
