diamond* and Tezzus on Young Thug, “ØWay Cypher,” and UY SCUTI BØYZ

diamond* and Tezzus were preparing for a trip to Asia when they stopped by The FADER office near the top of April. It was two weeks ahead of the release of their joint mixtape UY SCUTI BØYZ, their first release since signing to Young Thug late in 2025, though they seemed more excited by their impending international travel than the music they’d already finalized.

Although they’re the bright new faces of YSL, Tezzus and diamond* are best known as the ringleaders of Atlanta’s diffuse ØWay crew, which counts Sk8star, Yung Fazo, and Diorvsyou among its ranks.

The various rappers in ØWay have their own approaches and styles, but many orbit around Young Thug’s flows and tics. Tezzus seems to channel his boss’s most amped up, party-starting songs, while diamond* raps in a more fluid, legato manner. But where their music from a few years back might have felt less distinct, both artists found their own pocket last year, culminating in their breakout joint single “Bada Bing Bada Bøøm.”

UY SCUTI BØYZ seeks to capitalize on that momentum, tapping big names like Thug and Rylo Rodriguez alongside peers like Nino Paid and skaiwater. Though the album title suggests they’re falling in line behind their labelhead, a variety of ØWay rappers feature on the record. Ask about the first time they met and Tezzus might draw a blank, but neither rapper is forgetting where they came from.

In this new interview, Tezzus and diamond* discuss recording “NSD” while sick in the studio, who they think had the best verse on “ØWay Cypher,” and their craziest interaction with Young Thug. – intro by Vivian Medithi

The FADER: How did you guys first meet?

DIAMOND*: Through the internet and like, real life. [Smiles.] I needed some things.

TEZZUS: He needed some weed. And that was supplied. Pulled up, never left.

Do you remember your first impressions of each other?

DIAMOND*: I had gave him a shirt and he ripped it, right in the same moment I gave it to him. I was like, “He crazy.”

TEZZUS: Did that happen?

DIAMOND*: My Grateful Dead shirt.

TEZZUS: Where you give me a shirt at?

DIAMOND*: At the spot.

TEZZUS: And I just ripped it?

DIAMOND*: Yeah, bro.

TEZZUS: Why the hell I do that?

DIAMOND*: Cuz you be be tripping.

TEZZUS: I don't remember that. My first impression – I just remember like, he was always showing love for real. diamond* always showed love. I just go where the love go, I show love back to the ones that do.

Can you describe the HyperPopDaily basketball game?

TEZZUS: It was like a circus, bro, it was crazy. It was a lot going on at once. It was super fun though.

DIAMOND*: It was actually cool to see everybody. Like to see –

TEZZUS: The whole Internet.

DIAMOND*: Yeah, the whole Internet in one place. It was insane. It was almost like a PlayStation network server.

TEZZUS: But the real people. That shit was actually fire. Though it was crazy. It was super entertaining. I wish that it was more organized though, because I came to win, and they ain’t really choose the champions. I came to win, though, every time.

Who would win one on one?

DIAMOND*: Me for sure.

TEZZUS: [Simultaneously] I’m gon’ win.

DIAMOND*: [Shakes head] Man c’mon bruh.

TEZZUS: Hey, what happened to the last n***a that tried me?

DIAMOND*: That ain’t me though.

TEZZUS: Last n***a that tried me, he still owe me some money.

DIAMOND*: He's also 5’4” [shakes head]

TEZZUS: [Smacks lips] Boy I should beat your ass! [Both collapse in giggles.]

What’s the craziest interaction you guys have had with Young Thug?

DIAMOND*: It just be a party. It's crazy, you never know what you'll see next man.

TEZZUS: Man, what? Oh, yeah, he gave me a watch. Bling Blaow! [Shakes wrist.]

DIAMOND*: No specific stories, not too many. We just be having real player parties.

TEZZUS: Ask your hoe, she know. I’m just playing baby.

After yourselves, who do you think had the best section on the “ØWay Cypher?”

DIAMOND*: I ain’t gon lie man, ShawtyyRokk.

TEZZUS: He had two verses.

DIAMOND*: ShawtyRokk go crazy.

TEZZUS: I feel like Rokk is like the lightskin version of me. ØWay! That's my little brother, y’all gon hear about him soon.

What was a bar he had that you like?

DIAMOND*: When he was like, “I used to post at that store with a Drac' / My bitch rock Dior Homme and Balmain jeans,” something like that.

TEZZUS: He got taste. I like my little brother Lilkixkdor. He in jail right now but I love his verse on the cypher because you can see he not like a rapper for real, y’know what I'm saying? He a real stepper but we put him on there because our world big. And that boy, he was rapping like a motherfucker, but when you look at it, he got his hood on, like he looked damn near uncomfortable on there. So that part made me the happiest to see.

What’s your favorite slang from your city?

TEZZUS: Shit, I like hell you talmbout. That’s my favorite, cuz boy I be popping it.

DIAMOND*: I ain’t gon lie, I like, burnt.

TEZZUS: Burnt! Oh my god, burnt the one. Cause burnt could be a celebratory thing, but we burnt gang! Like we just been partying three days straight. That’s one thing that happened with me and Slime, me and Thug, though, two days ago. We partied from like 9 p.m. to 3 p.m. the next day.

DIAMOND*: Y’all boys burnt.

TEZZUS: And it was still going, like the music still going gang. And Thug just sitting there burnt. I'm burnt. I look at him, look at me, I’m like, “We burnt gang,” and we just start dying laughing.

DIAMOND*: Shit don’t stop.

TEZZUS: I still like, "Hell you talmbout" though. That shit still my favorite, cause hell you talmbout?

Say that again?

TEZZUS: Hell you talmbout.

DIAMOND*: [Over-enunciating] What the hell are you talking about?

TEZZUS: Like, if you pop it like, you do something crazy, you do something fye, you like – alright so look, brand new AP, hell you talmbout.

DIAMOND*: [Laughs.] That n***a burnt.

Can you tell us about the session you had with Sk8star for “NSD?”

TEZZUS: I was so fucking burnt. I was actually too burnt that session, that was the bad burnt. I couldn't even see for real. I hate being sick, ion't know why. I'm the toughest guy ever, like, I'm a gangster. But when I get sick, I be burnt out. I'm down there on the couch in fetal position. I feel cold on the inside. I can't even really smoke – but I'm still smoking – but I wanted to be on that album so bad, bro. That's how I am though. I want to be a part of all my friends' legacy. When diamond* dropped No Idols, I wanted to be on his album so bad. I used to damn near diss the album until I was on it.

DIAMOND*: You dissing my album?

TEZZUS: Dissing is crazy but damn near. It's not an album 'til I'm on it. That's how I was with Sk8 too. I'm pushing up every day on Sk8 like, "Bro, you got to put me on the album." And he slick. I never really seen Sk8 work until that day. He like, "Bro, it's the last day that y'all got to be on the album for real." So we came. I think diamond* was sick too, though.

DIAMOND*: Bro, I had the flu. But he was like, It's last day to be on it. And then he played the beat. I was like, "Damn, let's do it." And now we have "NSD."

TEZZUS: We made "Yeannn" that day too, before "NSD." It was perfect though, because I was damn near woozy making "Yeannn." I feel like I always go in the studio and that first song be like waking up. But by the time "NSD" came, we were ready to go. Session was legendary though — it was like we came, handled business and left. Real hitman.

Can you tell us about your trip to Vegas with skaiwater?

TEZZUS: That was crazy. How the hell y’all know skaiwater was with us?

DIAMOND*: I was surprised that he was willing to drive [with us]. He rolled, listened to music the whole time, ate whatever we could, stopped a few places. Good little brotherly bonding time, getting to know everybody.

TEZZUS: The night before we went, we was in the studio. Y'all made “ZOOT” the day before. So I was in there, like, Bro, you gotta come to ComplexCon with us in Vegas. That shit gonna be a movie, dadadada. He’s like, “Bro, I don't know, man,” I'm like, “Bro, we got you. We're gonna take care of you. You just gotta come.” His ass really showed up the next morning like, “Let's go.” But that was my first time really hanging out with them for real, it was cool. [Points to diamond*] They got kicked out of the club together! All type of shit, damn near fighting security and everything in Vegas.

DIAMOND*: Bro, because they was playing my song.

TEZZUS: Bada bøøm bada bing [Editor’s note: The song's name is “Bada Bing Bada Bøøm.”]

DIAMOND*: I wanted to be on the fucking stage because this is my song. And when I tried to go over there, these big lineman ass security guards won't let me by.

TEZZUS: They wouldn’t.

DIAMOND*: So usually I'll be like, All right, bro, y'all got it. But I'm like, “It's my first time in Vegas ever in my life.”

TEZZUS: You have to do it.

DIAMOND*: So I get to the front, they like, “Nah, bro, you got to go back.” I said no, and I kept trying to fight. And then they showed me. I need to get in that gym a little bit more. Them boys big!

TEZZUS: I slick see it happening, but I'm at the point where I'm smoking in the front. He trying to get to the front. So the security damn near tryna grab me for smoking out the front. But I'm running from him, and I end up running on top of the piano thing. That's how I got on top of the stage in Vegas to perform: running from the security. Then I just started performing my song once it came on. But I was really running from the police, and he was getting carried out by them. With skai.