Dame Dash Divulges On Why He Walked Away From Jay-Z & R Kelly Collab Album

BYGabriel Bras Nevares2.4K Views
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The Best Of Both Worlds-Jay-Z and R Kelly Press Conference
R. Kelly and Jay-Z during Press conference for "Best of Both Worlds" joining Jay-Z and R. Kelly at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York City at Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York City, New York, United States. January 24, 2002. (Photo by Theo Wargo/WireImage/Getty Images)
Dame thinks they crossed a line.

The Diddy scandal has caused a lot of celebrity conspiracy theories to re-emerge, including some harrowing rumors about Jay-Z, R. Kelly, and Aaliyah. Moreover, Dame Dash recently explained why he didn't want to be involved in Jay and Kelly's 2002 collab album, Best Of Both Worlds, due to the latter's alleged sexual assault of Aaliyah. As Dame alleges below, Hov allegedly moved forward with this decision despite some conversations within the Roc that warned against it. Furthermore, it seems like they were all able to settle their disagreements by working out how they would handle the money from the project.

"When it came down to R. Kelly, there was a conversation had about the morals," Dame Dash remarked. "Like, it’s morally wrong to do a project with someone that we know r**ed my girl or r**ed anybody, for that matter. So I do know that that conversation was had, and I was really surprised that he moved forward with that relationship. I don't know Epstein, so I never had the chance to walk away from him.

Dame Dash Speaks On Jay-Z & R. Kelly

"But I do know that when that project did come out, I didn’t want any part of that project," Dame Dash continued about Jay-Z. "I didn’t want any of the money to go to Roc-A-Fella or me. When it came to Roc-A-Fella, it was around the time that Jay was trying to kind of separate himself from us. And he was saying that he didn't want to be a part anymore. We resolved that issue with – look. Because he wanted me to dilute, and he wanted Biggs to dilute. And I wasn't diluting, because I know what I mean and what I do for business, and Biggs was ready to dilute.

"But our OG, Deuce from St. Croix, kind of stepped in and was like, 'That's not right,'" Dame Dash concluded. "And that's how we resolved it. The way we resolved it was, 'Yo, you keep all the money from that project. I don't want no parts of it,' being Best Of Both Worlds. So again, I mean, that is true. But... you know, I just think that... I guess I think homie has to answer some questions right now."

About The Author
Gabriel Bras Nevares is a staff writer for HotNewHipHop. He joined HNHH while completing his B.A. in Journalism & Mass Communication at The George Washington University in the summer of 2022. Born and raised in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Gabriel treasures the crossover between his native reggaetón and hip-hop news coverage, such as his review for Bad Bunny’s hometown concert in 2024. But more specifically, he digs for the deeper side of hip-hop conversations, whether that’s the “death” of the genre in 2023, the lyrical and parasocial intricacies of the Kendrick Lamar and Drake battle, or the many moving parts of the Young Thug and YSL RICO case. Beyond engaging and breaking news coverage, Gabriel makes the most out of his concert obsessions, reviewing and recapping festivals like Rolling Loud Miami and Camp Flog Gnaw. He’s also developed a strong editorial voice through album reviews, think-pieces, and interviews with some of the genre’s brightest upstarts and most enduring obscured gems like Homeboy Sandman, Bktherula, Bas, and Devin Malik.
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