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\n\tLast week, 21 Savage<\/a> took to X and called for reconciliation between Young Thug<\/a> and Gunna, two titans of Atlanta<\/a> rap who\u2019d fallen out over the belief that Gunna\u2019s plea in the YSL trial amounted to snitching. In a series of posts, 21 \u2014 whose new album is appropriately titled, What Happened to the Streets? \u2014 <\/em>pleaded for the rap world writ large to let go of the so-called street codes at the root of Thug and Gunna\u2019s alleged tension. \u201cFuck the streets,\u201d 21 wrote<\/a>, \u201cwe ain\u2019t get shit but trauma from that shit.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tA few days later, seemingly prepared for a detente, Young Thug tweeted: \u201cFuck the streets @21savage.\u201d 21\u2019s tweets have sparked what amounts to a movement<\/em> on the rap internet, with pundits and fans chiming in on the supposed hypocrisy of rappers who rose to fame in part thanks to lyrical content that glorified street violence. Tekashi 6ix9ine, who was roundly ridiculed in hip-hop circles after he cooperated with federal prosecutors following his 2018 arrest, mocked 21\u2019s recent rhetoric. On Instagram, he posted a Story with the caption: \u201cNow it\u2019s fuck the streets but remember when it was \u2018yo 69 we don\u2019t care about your platinum records WE PLATINUM IN THE STREETS.\u2019\u201d For all his trollish tendencies, many online seemed to agree with 6ix9ine\u2019s assessment.<\/p>\n \n\tThe tension between street ethics and commercial viability has surfaced repeatedly throughout hip-hop\u2019s history. Jay-Z wrestled with it explicitly in the late Nineties and early 2000s, moving from hardened street raps on albums like Reasonable Doubt<\/em> to the more corporate (read: capitalist) self-mythology we see today. Debates around artists like Rick Ross, whose past as a corrections officer became public following his initial rise, exposed how selectively enforced rap\u2019s moral codes have always been.<\/p>\n \n\tThere have been pockets of support for the so-called \u201cF the streets\u201d movement, too. Meek Mill, whose incarceration and subsequent advocacy for criminal-justice reform managed to reframe street authenticity in rap, chimed in, addressing rappers and fans taking issue with 21\u2019s comments. \u201cTo the guys pushing that \u2018street shit\u2019 make sure feeding and supplying resources and opportunities for your family and community,\u201d he wrote.<\/a> \u201cMake sure you didn\u2019t put the streets before your \u2018real family.\u2019\u201d Other artists often associated with \u201cstreet\u201d rap had similar takes, noting the extensive toll some of the violence depicted in their music has in real life. G Herbo \u2014 whose feature on 21\u2019s new album makes for one of its best tracks \u2014 added some nuance to the discourse. \u201cTHE OBJECTIVE IS TO MAKE IT HOME EVERY NIGHT! THE GOAL IS TO TAKE CARE OF YOUR FAMILY & NOT BECOME A SAD STORY!\u201d he wrote in a post on X.<\/a><\/p>\n