Offset Still Finds It Too Painful to Talk About Takeoff: ‘I Get Through My Day Thinking It’s Fake’
Music and art have been the easiest mediums for Offset to grieve the death of his Migos bandmate and cousin, Takeoff. During a recent interview with Variety, the rapper beamed while previewing the music they had been working on together before the 28-year-old was shot and killed at a Houston bowling alley last November. He also showed off the massive tribute tattoo he got on his back — but when it was time for him to open up, Offset explained why he’s found it easier to cope with the loss by shutting down.
“It’s hard for me to talk about shit right now. I’ve never talked about this stuff. Seriously. Talking about Take is hard, man. Talking about all this shit is hard,” Offset shared. “That’s why I don’t, to be honest. That shit hurts. Like, it’s gonna put me in a mood, and I don’t want to get in that mood. Some things I don’t never tell nobody. He’s not here. That shit feels fake, bro. I get through my day thinking it’s fake. And I don’t say nothing to nobody about it.”
The music Offset played for Variety included the last song he recorded with Takeoff. Before his death, Takeoff had formed a musical duo — Unc and Phew — with Quavo, and the two released the collaborative album Only Built for Infinity Links in October 2022. A recent solo release from Quavo, “Greatness,” which pays tribute to Takeoff, suggests that the most recent Migos album, Culture III, in 2021, was their last. “Don’t ask about the group,” he raps on the song. “He gone, we gone/It can’t come back.”
Offset’s currently unnamed solo record is slated to arrive later this summer via Universal Music Group. The album will feature collaborations with Future, Latto, Chlöe Bailey, and his wife, Cardi B. His last solo album, Father of 4, was released in 2019.
“What I appreciate about my husband is that no matter what issue I am having personally or professionally, I know he will take care of me and our family. It’s handled,” Cardi told Variety. “I know that I have a man who has my back for real. I fully support him in this next chapter of his music career.”