It was recently revealed that the rising social networking app Clubhouse, a platform that many rappers have joined and embraced, has been valued at one billion dollars. Following that revelation, some like Master P raised an eyebrow, maintaining that black people played a massive role in popularizing the app only to see none of the profits or financial benefits. P's statement seemed to resonate with Akademiks, whose brief appearance on Clubhouse was one of the few times the controversial media host actually partook in the popular application.
Joe Budden Responds To Akademiks Over Clubhouse Comments">Earl Gibson III/Getty Images
From there, Ak proceeded to echo P's concerns that black artists and budding entrepreneurs were missing out on key opportunities, essentially lining the pockets of another. "They're literally building the value of an app that none of them own even a small piece," says Ak. "Instead, they all treat it like an exclusive club they're lucky enough to get in for free." Ak reasons that Clubhouse should be paying artists to contribute and promote the platform, and brings up a few recent comments from Joe Budden -- but not before clarifying that he has nothing but respect for the JPB host.
As Budden seemed frustrated at the fact that rappers and cultural influencers made a company rich without any direct benefit, he moved to have a conversation with the Clubhouse team, one that generally seemed to center around understanding the black demographic. As Joe explains, he received a lot of "lip service," but ultimately felt feeling that Clubhouse was not entirely occupied with his concerns. Upon attempting to speak on the matter with some of his peers, he found that there was resistance from those who simply wanted to enjoy the app, and thus he decided to sit back and let the rise unfold.
Ak speaks on Joe Budden & Clubhouse
It's with that that Akademiks appears to take issue, claiming that Joe was the one who actively promoted Clubhouse to him in the first place. "Joe probably brought half a million people there," says Ak. "He was promoting that shit like it was going out of style. Me and Joe, we talked about, I said 'Joe you own that shit? I thought Joe owned that shit!'" He argues that Joe was one of the first to really promote Clubhouse, to the point where Ak seemed genuinely taken aback by Joe's recently-voiced stance. "I felt a way when people were congratulating me on having the biggest room ever, and all it was was pats on the back," says Ak, in a lengthy Twitch stream addressing the topic.
Following Ak's take on the situation, Joe moved to address a few comments made by his former Everyday Struggle co-host during a recent podcast episode. "What I choose to do is find another company that chooses the fuck with n***as," says Joe. "They ain't the end-all-be-all. I know everybody ranting and raving because of what they were evaluated at. I was having those conversations months ago. I came to my own conclusions, and you should to. Do whatever you want to do on socials. But Joe is not angry at 'Chattyhouse,' Paul, Rohan, or anybody who owns a business and wants to run it how they see fit."
While there's certainly a lot to unpack on the topic of hip-hop's relationship with Clubhouse, it's clear that the former Everyday Struggle duo have plenty of interesting insight on the matter. Perhaps one day we will see Ak and Joe Budden sit down for another meeting of the minds -- in the meantime, check out their takes and sound off with your own.