Crooked, having been an integral member of Slaughterhouse, has a deeper understanding of the group dynamic. Such knowledge extends to their label, Shady Records, as well as relationships with Paul Rosenberg and Eminem. After Joe Budden essentially put Eminem's character on blast, including his business acumen, Crook took to Instagram Live to address the heated episode of Joey's podcast.
Before diving in, he explains that Joe Budden's harsh criticism of Revival was missing context, as the public weren't privy to some of the closed-door disagreements between Budden and Em. While Crooked believes that the pair should have communicated like adults, he feels as if Joe allowed his feelings to color his opinions. "There was something else behind that critique, and that was my only thing," explains Crooked, cigar in hand. "I don't have no problem with people having an opinion, that's crazy...But when I saw what he said about Em's music, I knew there was something else there." He concludes his train of thought by saying "you can't bring hostilities or frustrations into your critique of the man's music."
He dives into the podcast, explaining that he "enjoyed it," dubbing it a "very entertaining podcast." "I'm glad that he admitted he already felt a certain way about Em," says Crooked. "So you bringing your feelings into your critique of Revival, you might not have liked it, true indeed. But we all know you kinda went over the line, you know what I'm saying? Especially questioning his integrity, saying, you know, 'he's using the plight of the black man in America or the black lives matter movement to ride a wave.'" Crook explains that Joe's critique of Em's lack of content was somewhat hypocritical, given that "Untouchable" was indeed "content Em."
"I feel like I freed everybody to tell the truth when I left the group," says Crooked. "People were zipped up about it." For more from Crooked, including his invitation to Joe Budden, check out the full video below.