Following a wave of speculated jabs and mentions from Drake earlier this week, Joe Budden finally retaliated with episode 665 of his eponymous podcast. The latest installment saw the former MC discussing the online turmoil, especially after allegedly receiving a direct message from the Toronto native himself.
“I ain’t lying. He jumped right in my DMs,” Budden revealed. He shared that the notification arrived during his girlfriend’s son’s birthday party. The New Jersey native continued, “He DMs me with a 55-second voice note. I can’t tell you what it said because I didn’t listen to it. You gotta speak to me with love.”
Subsequently, co-host Melyssa Ford suggested playing the message on air, but Budden declined. He replied, “If I was one of these clout-chasing a** n**gas, that’s exactly what I would come in here and do. But I’m too thorough at my core and my soul. Protecting energy is a thing. Y’all don’t talk to me when I say favorable things any other time. Don’t f**king talk to me now.”
Budden also criticized Drake and his team’s approach to hip hop media. “The way y’all appear to feel about hip hop media, who the f**k are y’all to think you should be granted the luxury of dishonesty?”
The pair began their back-and-forth after Budden claimed that the artist was “rapping for children” with his latest project, For All The Dogs, on Oct. 7. The following day (Oct. 8), Drizzy clapped back with a lengthy response under DJ Akademiks’ repost.
This episode also arrived on the heels of public comments from Charlamagne Tha God, who surprisingly defended Drake after getting clowned in September. The radio host argued that the criticism of the musician’s new LP was unjust.
“This is the same Drake music that he’s been putting out for at least the last six years. What’s the difference from this album [and] the album he dropped with 21 or Certified Lover Boy?” he said.
The rapper’s remarks also prompted reactions from others in his circle. Cash Money Records founder Birdman joined the fray earlier this week by urging Charlamagne to “respek [Drake].”