It's been a longtime coming for Detroit rapper Big Sean, and after years of working on the sidelines, he's ready to officially jump into the game with his 'Finally Famous' debut, which was released June 28.

Even with the support of Kanye West and a healthy amount of industry buzz, the jury is still out on whether or not the album will be a commercial success, but Sean can rest assured that he's already proving his naysayers wrong.

The 23-year-old, who signed to West's G.O.O.D. Music in 2005, revealed that his road to the top has been paved with nonbelievers. "I just hope that my teacher who told me I was throwing my life away by doing music is watching," Sean told the Boombox. "I'm glad I'm just following my heart. Always follow your heart. I don't want to be 50, 60 years old wishing you woulda, coulda did something," he said referencing a lesson he learned from West.

While his life has changed drastically over the past few months, Sean notes his performance in New York City earlier this month as a moving career moment. West, who hit the stage alongside his protégé, wasn't the only big name hip-hop artist in the building, second to Jay-Z, who reviewed the show alongside Sean's childhood friends. "Jay-Z was standing on the side, and my friends who I used to ride to school listening to [Jay-Z] with were standing at the side, so that was a cool moment," he revealed.

Sean is currently on the road opening for Wiz Khalifa on the Rolling Papers: World Tour but expects to headline his own tour later this year. "I think it starts in the middle of August," he disclosed. "I'm going to announce it [later] but we're going to finish this [Wiz Khalifa] tour first."



Watch Big Sean's 'My Last' feat. Chris Brown
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