On the latest episode of “Drink Champs,” N.O.R.E. and DJ EFN sat down with the multitalented Joe Budden to discuss rumors regarding him beefing with JAY-Z, firing Rory and Mal, calling Michael B. Jordan corny, and Slaughterhouse, among other topics.
Born in Harlem, New York, Budden became a prominent name in the hip hop community, initially earning recognition as a rapper before transitioning into a successful media personality. Budden began his music career in the early 2000s, releasing several mixtapes that garnered attention. His eponymous debut album was released in 2003 under Def Jam Recordings, featuring the hit single “Pump It Up,” which peaked at No. 38 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and received a Grammy nomination for Best Male Rap Solo Performance.
Throughout his rap career, Budden released multiple solo projects, including his Mood Muzik mixtape series and the No Love Lost album. He also became a founding member of the hip hop supergroup Slaughterhouse, alongside Royce da 5’9″, Joell Ortiz, and KXNG Crooked. The group released two studio albums, 2009’s Slaughterhouse and 2012’s Welcome to: Our House, before disbanding in 2018.
As he transitioned into media, Budden launched “The Joe Budden Podcast” in 2015. Initially named “I’ll Name This Podcast Later,” the show quickly gained popularity, discussing music, culture, and current events with co-hosts Rory and Mal. In 2018, “The Joe Budden Podcast” signed an exclusive deal with Spotify, helping to solidify its place as a leading platform in the hip hop and entertainment space. Since then, Budden has gone completely independent and picked up two new co-hosts, Lamar “Ice” Burney and Antwan “Ish” Marby.
To give fans a comprehensive look at Budden’s career and accomplishments, REVOLT compiled a list of eight facts we learned from his “Drink Champs” interview. Keep scrolling to discover more about his rise to fame and impact on the culture, and remember to watch the full episode here.
1. On wanting JAY-Z to appear on “Pump It Up”
Budden has claimed that after his first hit “Pump It Up” broke into the mainstream charts in 2003, he wanted JAY-Z to be a part of the remix. According to Budden, Hov’s rate for a verse was $250,000 at the time, which he couldn’t afford as a new artist. In the end, JAY released a freestyle over the song, which many saw as a dig at Budden.
“At the time, I’m not ranting nowhere. I don’t even know how to receive that, I just know that I don’t have $250,000. I think Webb put the battery in my back to do that,” Budden shared. He jokingly added, “I just seen this n**ga last week, why we talking about 20 years ago? And you know what else I be hating on? That [N.O.R.E.] get to talk about JAY-Z like that. You get to say, ‘Hov is petty.’ I try not to talk about none of them n**gas like that ‘cause I don’t want that call.”
2. On his relationship with Charlamagne Tha God
While speaking on the podcast host, Charlamagne Tha God commented that Budden “knows his worth, but doesn’t know how to properly negotiate it” after his Spotify exclusivity deal came to an end. Afterward, Budden responded, saying, “[Charlamagne] appeared to go out of his way to devalue me.” As a result, the two haven’t been on good terms, trading shots at one another over the past year. “Nothing, we just hate each other. It’s fake, it’s not a real hate,” Budden joked.
3. On his podcasting career
Budden has had a long and varied career in podcasting, which began with his first program, “I’ll Name This Podcast Later,” co-hosted with Marisa Mendez. It quickly gained a following, thanks to Budden’s frank discussions about the music industry, his personal life, and current events. Then, the entertainer launched “The Joe Budden Podcast,” which has since become a mainstay in the social commentary space.
“If we’re going back to the early days of content, I started at HOT 97 in ‘04 I want to say. In 2010, I had my own solo show that I was just uploading to iTunes called ‘It’s My F**king Show.’ Joe Budden TV, I started that in 2007 or 2006, and that went as long as it went,” Budden stated. “You had to be down with a gang to get monetization… Once you find out that there’s coin to be had, and you start to make calls and you see how protective people are over certain avenues. When I started my podcast, there was nothing to be presented because what was anybody doing?”
4. On Peter Rosenberg wanting to produce him
Podcasts have been popular for a while now but as time goes on, more and more musicians, like Budden, Noreaga, and Yung Miami, are starting their own shows. Given that radio hosts and personalities dominated the audio space years prior, it makes sense that several already-established names would take advantage of new talent coming up. According to Budden, Peter Rosenberg tried to produce his podcast before it took off.
Budden stated, “He was trying to produce me, but I’m difficult to produce. I’m a producer. I’m watching to see what you produce and if you’re not producing, then I can produce that.” He continued, “Rosenberg saw a talent and acted on an idea. He clearly was right.”
5. On firing Rory and Mal
Since “The Joe Budden Podcast” had a brief pause in 2021, Budden’s relationship with Rory and Mal has been tense, to say the least. After being fired on air for wanting ownership of the show, the two personalities signed with SiriusXM’s Stitcher to start a new weekly podcast later that summer. They have continued their feud since then, even resorting to subtle jabs at one another. “Once we’re not associated anymore, everybody is free to do whatever they want to do,” Budden shared.
“The version that went to the public is I was stealing. They thought I was stealing,” he stated. “I have nothing negative to say about anybody. I like that everybody is where they want to be, doing what they want to do with the people that they want to do it with. I support that for everybody.”
Budden continued, “You gotta remember, this happened two years ago. I’ve done the interviews, they’ve done the interviews. It’s been hearsay. There’s been he say, she say. You bump into people at parties, you bump into people at clubs, and there’s been mutuals. There is nothing to say about those gentlemen today. I hope they’re doing what they want to do and I hope they’re doing it well.”
6. On Angela Yee leaving “The Breakfast Club”
After hosting “The Breakfast Club” on Power 105.1 for 12 years, Angela Yee left the show in 2022 and started her own. Having experience with business breakups, whether it be his own podcast or The Joe Budden Network, N.O.R.E. asked Budden what his take on the situation was. “I wish her the greatest. I f**k with Angela. I hope the show wins,” he shared.
“I did the ‘F**k you’ part of the Joe Budden experience already. I said f**k you to everybody that was outside that you could possibly say f**k you to. My 40s and 50s, I don’t want to live that way,” Budden added.
7. On the downfall of Slaughterhouse
Budden, Joell Ortiz, KXNG Crooked, and Royce Da 5’9″ came together in 2008 to create Slaughterhouse, which has released two albums to date. The group’s self-titled debut was released in 2009, then three years later, they dropped Welcome To: Our House. Unfortunately, they dissolved with Crooked claiming that Budden was the reason for their next album being delayed due to him being signed to another label at the time.
“Come on, give me the blame, I’ll take it. I ruined everything. Everything that you loved, I ruined that s**t,” Budden stated. He also explained, “I wish I could tell you how much goes into making an album. All of the blood, sweat, tears, equity, lonely nights, hungry nights, and sleepless nights that go into an album. I’m saying if I do it again, it’s certainly not going to be because of the fans. Like my son asked me for a verse. I thought that was fly, I didn’t do it.”
8. On calling Michael B. Jordan “corny”
At the Atlanta screening of Creed III, Michael B. Jordan confronted media personality Lore’l, a former classmate who he claimed called him “corny” during their high school days. After the clip went viral online, Budden addressed the moment on his podcast and said, “You doing that to a girl is some corny n**ga s**t.” As expected, the rapper received plenty of backlash with peers and users alike bringing up some of his controversial moments in the past.
“I do not have beef with Michael B. Jordan,” Budden told N.O.R.E. and EFN. “If it did come off that way, wouldn’t that just be good podcasting? I walked the s**t back, too, like damn, that n**ga seems too invested. That was corny, though. See that’s the problem, it’s not enough n**gas keeping it real in entertainment because it’s entertainment,” he doubled down. “If any one of us doubled back to diss the chick from seventh grade while we up, they’re going to call us corny. It’s not deep.”