It was late 2015 when everything started to rot. If you were following Marcus Hopsin back then, you knew something was off. The Funk Volume empire—the independent powerhouse he’d spent years building alongside Dame Ritter—wasn’t just cracking. It was imploding. Then came the explosion. On March 8, 2016, we got ILL MIND OF HOPSIN 8, and hip-hop wasn't really ready for how personal it was going to get.
Usually, when a rapper drops a "diss track," it’s about territory or ego. This wasn't that. This was a public execution of a business partnership.
People forget how massive Funk Volume was. They had the independent scene in a headlock. SwizZz, Dizzy Wright, Jarren Benton—it was a movement. But ILL MIND OF HOPSIN 8 pulled the curtain back on the "indie dream" to show the ugly, financial skeletons hiding in the closet. It’s been years since that video dropped, but the ripple effects are still felt by every independent artist trying to navigate the industry without a major label.
The Day the Funk Volume Dream Died
Hopsin didn't just leave. He burned the bridge while he was still standing on it.
The track functions as a direct, scathing letter to his former business partner, Damien Ritter. If you listen to the lyrics, it’s basically a forensic audit set to a beat. Hopsin accuses Ritter of gambling away company money, being a "culture vulture," and manipulating the artists on the roster. It’s uncomfortable. It’s raw. Honestly, it feels like watching a divorce through a glass door.
He says, "I'm the one who made this house / You just the one who renovated." That’s the core of the grievance. Hopsin felt like the creative engine being exploited by a suit who didn't understand the soul of the music. Whether you side with Hop or Dame, the song changed the narrative of the "loyal" indie label forever. It proved that even without a major label boss, you can still get screwed by your best friend.
A Visual Masterpiece of Petty
You can't talk about ILL MIND OF HOPSIN 8 without the music video. Hopsin is famous for his visuals, but this one was different. He’s in a courtroom. He’s playing the judge, the lawyer, the witness. It’s theatrical, sure, but the venom in his eyes is real.
He literally raps at a Dame Ritter look-alike.
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The white contacts were there, obviously. They’ve always been his trademark. But in "Ill Mind 8," they didn't feel like a gimmick. They felt like a signal that he was going into a trance of pure, unadulterated rage. He even mocks the way Ritter walks and talks. It’s the kind of character assassination that makes you wonder how they ever sat in a room together for five minutes, let alone years.
Why This Track Hits Differently Than Other Ill Minds
Most of the "Ill Mind" series deals with big-picture stuff.
- Ill Mind 4 was the Tyler, The Creator diss.
- Ill Mind 5 was the lecture to the "lost generation."
- Ill Mind 7 was a literal crisis of faith and a conversation with God.
But ILL MIND OF HOPSIN 8 is the most grounded. It’s about money. It’s about contracts. It’s about the boring, gritty details of the music business that usually stay behind closed doors. By bringing it to the forefront, Hopsin broke the fourth wall.
He admitted the "Funk Volume family" was a lie.
That’s a hard pill for fans to swallow. For years, the FV brand was built on the idea of being "underground" and "real." When Hopsin revealed that he felt like a glorified employee in his own company, it shattered the illusion for a lot of people. It made the track more than just a song; it was a cautionary tale for every kid with a laptop and a dream of starting a label.
The Fallout: What Happened After the Beat Stopped?
The aftermath was messy. Dame Ritter didn't just stay quiet; he did interviews. He claimed Hopsin was unstable and that the financial accusations were twisted. Dizzy Wright and Jarren Benton were caught in the crossfire, eventually moving on to their own solo ventures, but the momentum was gone. Funk Volume died that day.
Hopsin moved to Thailand for a bit. He started Undercover Prodigy. He tried to reclaim his autonomy. But the shadow of ILL MIND OF HOPSIN 8 followed him. It was his highest-charting moment of that era, yet it was born out of his lowest personal point. It’s the ultimate irony of the rap game: your biggest pain usually makes for your best content.
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Breaking Down the Lyricism: No More Games
The structure of the song is relentless. There’s no hook. No catchy chorus to break up the tension. It’s just five minutes of straight bars.
Hopsin’s technical ability has always been top-tier, even if his "preachy" tone turns some people off. In this track, he uses that technicality to dismantle Ritter’s reputation. He goes into specifics about the "30 percent" and the way the tours were handled. He mentions the "Power of the Mind" and how it was used against him.
"You're the reason I'm leaving, you're the reason I'm gone / You're the reason that Funk Volume is no longer a home."
It’s simple, but it’s devastating.
Most people don't realize that Hopsin was actually facing legal threats while making this. He wasn't just venting; he was taking a massive legal risk by naming names and making specific financial claims. It’s probably the ballsiest thing he’s ever done.
The Legacy of the "Snake" Narrative
Years later, the "Ill Mind 8" energy is still a staple in rap culture. We see it every time an artist goes "independent" only to find out they signed a "bad indie deal." Hopsin was one of the first to loudly proclaim that the "indie" label isn't always the "good guy."
He exposed the "label boss" archetype, even when that boss was supposed to be a friend.
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This track didn't just end a label; it ended an era of innocence in the underground rap scene. It taught fans to look closer at the credits. It taught artists to read their own contracts.
Does it Still Hold Up?
If you play ILL MIND OF HOPSIN 8 today, the production sounds a bit dated—that mid-2010s aggressive synth sound—but the emotion is timeless. Anger doesn't age. Betrayal doesn't age.
When he says "I'm a king, and you're just a pawn," you believe him. Not because he's more famous, but because he's the one with the microphone. In the world of hip-hop, the person who tells the story first usually wins. Hopsin told the story, he filmed the video, and he controlled the narrative. Dame never really recovered from it in the eyes of the fans.
What Every Artist Can Learn From This Diss
If you’re a creator, you have to look at this as more than a beef. It’s a lesson in ownership.
Hopsin had the fame. He had the fans. He had the talent. But he didn't have the paperwork. ILL MIND OF HOPSIN 8 was his way of seizing the "moral" ownership of his brand back, even if the legal side was still a mess.
- Audit Your Circle: If the people around you are making more off your work than you are, something is wrong. Hopsin waited years to realize this; don't make that mistake.
- Transparency Wins: Fans gravitate toward the truth. The reason this song has tens of millions of views isn't just because it's a "diss," it's because it's incredibly honest.
- Visual Branding is Key: The courtroom setting made the "accusation" feel official. Use your visuals to reinforce the message of your lyrics, not just to look "cool."
- Emotional Release: Sometimes you have to burn it all down to start over. Undercover Prodigy wouldn't exist if Hopsin hadn't had the courage to drop this track.
The real takeaway? Never let someone else hold the keys to your "mind." Hopsin spent years being the face of a brand he didn't fully control, and it nearly broke him. ILL MIND OF HOPSIN 8 was the sound of him breaking those chains.
If you're going through a business betrayal or a creative block because of someone else's influence, go back and watch that video. See the anger. See the precision. Then go build something that belongs entirely to you.
Don't wait for your own "Ill Mind 8" moment to fix your situation. Check your contracts today. Make sure your "Dame Ritter" isn't sitting in the office while you're doing all the work. Independence is only valuable if you actually own your independence.