Who knew that one of the wildest feuds in music for 2022 would involve singer Brandy Norwood and rapper Jack Harlow?
While Brandy is well known for songs like The Boy is Mine with Monica and Have You Ever? in the late 1990s, fans probably shouldn’t sleep on her freestyle abilities these days.
The 43-year-old singer dropped a serious freestyle over the beat for Jack’s hit song, First Class, prompting many individuals on Twitter to give their feedback and reactions to the track.
Brandy freestyles over Jack Harlow’s First Class
The Brandy and Jack Harlow feud is still fresh and has some hip-hop fans fired up. Several weeks ago, Jack Harlow was a guest on HOT 97 with DJ Ebro, Peter Rosenberg, and Laura Stylez. During his time on the show, they had him participate in their Whiteish Wednesday game, as they played him various songs by Caucasian artists, and he had to try to identify them.
Eventually, they switched to playing songs by Black musicians, with some classic tunes for Harlow to guess. One included Brandy’s Angel in Disguise, and they had to give him a few hints, including that it was Ray J’s sister.
After a bit of time, Harlow came to a personal revelation that Ray J and Brandy were related, something he claimed he’d never known. Later, that tidbit went viral, catching the attention of Brandy, who fired off some playful disses at Harlow on Twitter. That brought Harlow back with a retort on social media, involving Brandy’s verse on a Kanye West song.
One of her disses mentioned she’d outdo him rapping over his song and then “sing his a** to sleep.” This past week, she delivered on part of her promise as Hot 97 unveiled Brandy’s First Class freestyle (below).
“Allow me to reintroduce myself; I’m one of the greatest/Living legend, did I mention my resume is amazing/The game need a breath of fresh air, and I’m breathtaking,” Brandy opened her 90-second freestyle with.
She also fired a few clever and playful Jack jabs in her freestyle, which weren’t necessarily dissing Harlow, and seemed to be all in good fun.
“Painting pictures, cinderella scriptures, but that don’t mean Jack in the streets/Jack of all trades, now I’m here jackin’ for beats,” she rapped.
“Over 20 years and I’m still a topic/A picture’s worth a million, now I’m feeling philanthropic/43, I’m feeling like a kid with millions watching/Popular, but now I’m poppin’ this s**t for those out of pocket,” Brandy fired off in her freestyle.
Twitter reacts to Brandy’s First Class freestyle
Various opinions arrived on Twitter as the @rapalert6 account shared a video tweet with Brandy’s freestyle. Some individuals questioned whether Brandy even needed to release a freestyle or suggested she was just trying to gain some publicity in 2022.
Others were clearly impressed by what she delivered over Jack Harlow’s First Class beat.
Many users accompanied their support for Brandy with reactionary GIFs, with one user referring to Brandy as “My girl.”
Some fans brought up Brandy’s lasting legacy within hip-hop culture and entertainment, mentioning singers including Ariana Grande and Kehlani have credited her as an influence.
“For anyone who knows Brandy knows that she ain’t taking this seriously lol this was just a joke bc y’all giving it light. Secondly, she’s literally been rapping, clearly y’all only know her mainstream hits when y’all claim to know her lol,” another individual commented in Brandy’s defense.
While the Brandy and Jack Harlow feud is just weeks old, it seems to be nothing more than some playful publicity. While Harlow has yet to respond or react to the freestyle, he’s likely enjoying that publicity, too, especially with his new album, Come Home the Kids Miss You, released earlier this month.