Ski Mask The Slump God and XXXTentacion Reunite at 2018 Rolling Loud Festival
After a falling-out last year that saw them part ways, Ski Mask The Slump God and XXXTentacion reunited in one of the most surprising moments at the 2018 Rolling Loud Festival in Miami on Sunday (May 13).
During Ski's Sunday evening set, which was set for a 5:10 p.m. start time on the High Hemp Stage, the crowd was witness to the reunion of the former vros (that Very Rare wave), who distanced themselves from one another in 2017. Just like when they hit the stage together at Rolling Loud last year, this performance was a top five moment of the festival weekend.
Ski, 22, and XXX, 20, performed their lauded collab "Take a Step Back" and "R.I.P. Roach" on the Rolling Loud stage, turning the energy on high as they moved into the crowd. Similar to his memorable set at Rolling Loud last year, XXX delivered his rhymes as he stood atop of the barricades, just inches away from fans, while Ski crowd surfed.
In a touching moment between the rappers, they publicly showed their brotherly love is real. "Ay, negro, yo, with the durag on," X said to Ski, as the latter was sitting on the stage in front of the crowd. "Yo, bro, I love you, bro."
"I love you, too, fam," Ski replied.
So what happened between these two artists who were at one point inseparable? At the end of 2017, it was clear XXX and Ski were no longer the good friends they once were. With countless collaborations and joint projects like the Members Only series, it was a blow to their core fan base when they both clearly weren't making music with each other nor hanging out anymore.
The South Florida natives came up together. They met in jail as juveniles—according to Ski, he was locked up on a weed charge while XXX was facing a gun charge at 15—and formed a friendship once they got out. Fast forward to October of 2017, and their relationship hit a bump in the road. XXX blamed it on a "lack of appreciation" by Ski regarding business dealings but was adamant about mending their friendship. In December of 2017, he turned to his legion of supporters on social media to try to get Ski to be his friend once more.
"If you want me to make music, tell Ski Mask to be my friend again," XXX said in a now-deleted Instagram video. "Tell Ski Mask to be my friend again and I will make music. Tell him to be my friend again."
For his own replies in an Instagram Story, Ski claimed X threatened his family and told Ski he was supposed to be sacrificed. Fans thinking Ski separated himself for no good reason got the details they were looking for. Despite their rocky relationship, Ski made it apparent he had love for X but needed to distance himself from their friendship to focus on his craft as a solo artist. "I will always love that alien-looking nigga named XXX, but I have to distance myself because nobody would see me as an individual," Ski Mask admitted. "On top of that, that nigga crazy as hell."
Now, nearly seven months later, it looks like the past is behind them.
Watch Ski Mask The Slump God and XXXTentacion reunite and perform one of the best sets at Rolling Loud below.
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