Leaks from Young Thug or Rich Homie Quan aren't exactly rare. However, this month's leak of about 70 records from the Rich Gang duo was much more dubious and damaging than anything in the past.
Thug's engineer, Alex Tumay, took to Reddit to share his thoughts on seeing the material -- some of it clearly not ready for public consumption -- hit the Internet.
"These songs were a huge part of the past two years of my life. Most of those tracks probably would've ended up coming out for free when they were completed and the time was right, but they are for the most part unfinished. Whoever leaked them has no respect for music or the work that goes into creating it. Now there is a very real chance that these unfinished versions will be the only ones that people ever hear. I don't have the time to devote to mixing/arranging the leaks for free, and I doubt there's any interest to pay to have them mixed now that they leaked, so these will be the most complete versions people hear. We spent months on months, more or less living in the studio, creating these tracks. I don't do this for the money. I do it because I care greatly about making something new and unique. Making my client's music better. Making quality sounding music in a genre that change/experimentation/sonics often become an afterthought in. I want to change the world of rap music, and the less these songs are heard, the less of an impact they will make. I'm incredibly disheartened that this occurred and the fact that it will probably result in less official releases and will reduce the impact of some amazing tracks, that deserved a proper release. I'm glad that the songs are getting heard, just wish it could have been in a better context. I hate to give any extra attention to these leaks, but I felt like I had to say something."