On Tuesday afternoon, internet personality DJ Akademiks leaked 7 of the 10 picks for XXL’s Freshman Class of 2018. Many were surprised to see that Lil Skies wasn’t amongst the names included, but the “Red Roses” rapper told a different side of the story on Instagram live this morning.

“Y’all asking about XXL, I didn’t show up. Imma tell y’all straight up, XXL reached out to me months ago and chose me to be a 2018 XXL Freshman. How the fuck do you choose me to be a freshman before the fans get to vote? Even on the vote poll, I still won. I still got on the list. But even before that, they chose me to be a freshman,” Skies explains.

“C’mon now. The list is rigged. You’re not placing me in no category. My focus is music and the stage. That’s it. I don’t care about nothing else. I don’t give a fuck about no XXL Magazine.”

Skies now joins a long list of successful rappers that’ve turned down the Freshman cover, including most notably Drake and A$AP Rocky.

Video director Cole Bennett also chimed in on the controversy by tweeting…