At the beginning of April, Griselda lyricist Conway caught his fans by surprise when . “After FKTG, GDMM, and EIF4, I’m out,” he declared, alluding to his upcoming albums From A King To A God, God Don’t Make Mistakes, and Everybody Is F.O.O.D. 4. Now, Conway has once again teased his departure from the game, this time shortening the countdown to two more albums — though it’s entirely possible that EIF constitutes as a mixtape, technically.

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While it’s unclear as to what might have motivated his decision to bow out gracefully, it’s curious to see the tweets he highlighted in his recent IG post. In it, The Machine seems frustrated with those who only skim through his catalog, quoting Jay-Z’s eternal “do you fools listen to music or do you just skim through it?” His main problem seemed to stem from those who accused him of being single-minded, with Conway providing a list of potential songs designed to make his haters eat crow. “2 more albums left and [peace],” he writes, seemingly alluding that we’ll appreciate more after he’s gone.

Given how much Conway The Machine clearly respects Jay-Z, perhaps it’s possible that he’s taking a page out of the Jigga Man’s playbook. Lest we forget, Jay was originally meant to retire after The Black Album dropped in 2003. He returned shortly after with Kingdom Come. Should that indeed be the case, perhaps we can take solace in knowing that The Machine’s absence will be temporary — after all, rappers have tried to get out only to be pulled back in time and time again. 

Either way, we still have two more albums to look forward to before his final bow, including his long-awaited Shady Records debut God Don’t Make Mistakes.