On the otherwise politically centered PBD Podcast with Patrick Bet-David, former Roc-A-Fella Records CEO Dame Dash claimed that the late Notorious B.I.G. and Diddy, then known as Puff Daddy, were emulating him and Jigga in the mid 90s, which led to friction between the two factions.
“Big was the only person I used to smoke with. I didn’t smoke before at all; we used to drink. Supposedly, Jay and Big went to school together but Jay didn’t know him,” Dash said.
“Because we were getting the money and popping the bottles and all that, in that moment, we had always felt that Biggie and Puffy were copying us. They’d see us in the club and it seemed like the next day, a record would be made.”
“That lifestyle of [a] hustler, that was us. That was them copying us, for sure. So we kinda had problems. I was run up [on] sometimes. I was confrontational with Biggie and them at first, but we finally got cool.”
It’s impossible to tell the story of Roc-A-Fella Records without Memphis Bleek. He was a crucial piece of the label’s puzzle, and he rubbed shoulders with some of the greatest rappers of all time. This pedigree makes him the perfect person to launch a Roc-A-Fella themed podcast, which is why he’s linking up with the Drink Champs network to run Roc Solid. The new series will see Bleek recount the label’s rise and fall alongside notable guests.
Bleek posted a teaser for Roc Solid on Instagram, and the guest list is wild. Young Guru, Young Chris, and Freeway are some of the rappers who have already recorded episodes, and each have notable ties to the eponymous label. Ja Rule and N.O.R.E. also appear in the teaser, despite the fact that neither artist was signed to the Roc. The former collaborated with several Roc artists during his peak, however, and the latter is a staple of NYC hip-hop. N.O.R.E. is also the co-host of the aforementioned Drink Champs.
Hip-hop fans will be equally intrigued by the artists who don’t show up. Memphis Bleek debates whether to invite Roc-A-Fella co-founder Dame Dash during the teaser, given their tense relationship. Bleek also weighs the pros and cons of staging a full on Roc-A-Fella reunion, which would include Dash and Jay-Z. The “Dear Summer” rapper has no problem recounting the issues that led to the label folding, as proven by his recent appearance on Drink Champs. He answered all of N.O.R.E.’s questions about the fallout and then some.
For example, Bleek claimed that Dame Dash almost dropped him from the label in 2003. The rapper said Dash and Jay-Z were at odds about the future, and his aggression rubbed Dash the wrong way. “[Dame] looked at me and said, ‘You always going against everything I say’,” Bleek recalled. “If you don’t wanna be with Roc-A-Fella, I’ll give you your walking papers’.” It’s safe to assume these are the kinds of juicy stories the rapper will be sharing on Roc Solid. A release date for the podcast hasn’t been announced.
Dame Dash’s lawyers, Felton T. Newell and Justin H. Sanders, Esqs., of Sanders Roberts LLP, have officially resigned from representing him in the lawsuit from photographer Monique Bunn. In doing so, they cited a “breach of contractual obligations to the firm,” regarding unpaid legal fees. They originally filed the motion to withdraw, last month. At the time, they alleged Dash, “failed to fulfill their financial obligations under their retainer agreement, resulting in the firm initiating an enforcement action against them.”
Attorney Christopher Brown filed the lawsuit on behalf of Bunn back in February, while arguing that the jury in a previous case regarding the unpaid use of her photographs didn’t understand the damages Dash’s actions had on the photographer. “The evidence at trial – which was uncontroverted – established that each photo was worth $1,500, which should have resulted in a verdict for at least $384,750,000,” Brown wrote. “It is well known that professional photographers earn much of their income through licensing their portfolio of photographs, and Defendants’ actions destroyed Ms. Bunn’s economic prospects. The jury ignored the valuation evidence and awarded zero to Ms. Bunn.”
ATLANTA, GEORGIA – AUGUST 07: Dame Dash speaks onstage during the 2022 InvestFest at Georgia World. Congress Center on August 07, 2022 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Paras Griffin/Getty Images)
He continued: “It is impossible to conceive how a jury could conclude that a professional photographer’s portfolio of thousands of photos, as well as photography equipment, could be worth zero. Especially when the Plaintiff and the Defendants both testify that the damages are in the millions. A new trial is warranted under these circumstances.” Check out the resignation from Dash’s attorneys below.
Christopher Brown is the same lawyer involved in the lawsuit regarding the film Dear Frank. That case resulted in Dash being ordered to sell his Roc-A-Fella Records shares to cover a $900,000 judgment awarded to Josh Webber. Be on the lookout for further updates on Dame Dash on HotNewHipHop.
In the high-stakes world of the music industry, clashes between titans are not uncommon but rappers are not the only ones who engage in beef. Now and then, record executives also get down and dirty, starting and maintaining feuds. For example, one long-standing feud between industry giants surrounds the animosity between Dame Dash and Lyor Cohen.
Their beef spans several years and is a testament to the power struggles and egos that often define the business. Despite the passage of time, the feud between the two continues to cast a long shadow over the music industry. Even in 2024, shots have been fired, and it seems their beef won’t be ending anytime soon. Here’s a look at how it began and its timeline over the years.
Before 2004, Dame Dash and Lyor Cohen were friends and business partners with a long history of working together. Alongside Jay-Z and Kareem Burke, Dame Dash founded Roc-A-Fella Records in 1994. In addition, Dash was also Jay-Z’s manager at the time. Cohen, on the other hand, was in charge of Def Jam Records. While Def Jam was under Cohen’s leadership, Roc-A-Fella signed a 50/50 partnership and distribution deal with the label in 1997. As a result of this partnership, Dame Dash and Lyor Cohen saw a lot of each other in the late ‘90s and early 2000s. However, in 2004, their relationship soured after Def Jam purchased Roc-A-Fella and positioned Jay-Z as the president of the iconic label. Since then, Dame Dash and Lyor Cohen have not been on the best of terms. However, they mostly kept things civil until much later when Dash took a shot at Cohen.
2014: Dame Dash Accuses Lyor Cohen Of Ruining Roc-A-Fella
After the events of 2004, some fans believed there was some tension between Dame Dash and Lyor Cohen, especially because of the eventual fallout between Dash and Jay-Z. For a while, neither Dash nor Cohen did anything to confirm this suspicion. However, that changed in 2014 when Dash took a shot at Cohen. During an interview with Vlad TV in 2014, Dame Dash finally got a few things off his chest about Lyor Cohen. When he was asked about the record executive, Dash said, “I think he’s a fake CEO and I think he’s fronting on my culture but he can’t front on anybody else.”
He further stated, “I’m calling him out publicly and I want him to stop trying to rape my culture. Go make some money with some other people.” Driving home his impression of Cohen, Dash continued, “Never had a beef with Jay. Always with Lyor and his whole crew. He’s the one that ruined Roc-A-Fella. Lyor Cohen.”
During an appearance on the Rap Radar podcast in September 2015, Lyor Cohen addressed Dame Dash and his culture vulture allegations. “It actually doesn’t bother me. It would bother me if it came from a credible source. If it’s a credible source, then we can have a conversation and actually have a discussion. If someone thinks something about me that I may have done to offend them or hurt them or do something they misunderstand, then we’ll have a dialogue. We’ll communicate and get to an understanding and move on, or not. But I can’t give any light to that. It’s a clown right now,” Cohen said.
Subsequently, Dash took to Instagram to respond to Cohen in a now-deleted Instagram post. “Just like a #CultureVulture won’t answer a direct question and gonna have the nerve to try to discredit a good positive man from our culture for telling the truth in an intelligent way… and still trying to convince us that we’re lucky to be getting robbed by him…they always try to make us think we are winning when we losing when they are trying to rob us …and he still can’t get a dollar from his own culture…I’m not credible?…. Who’s the clown?… And he’s like 70 still trying to get money off the rap game…nobody’s checking for that… The plantation game is over my culture is smarter then that these days…#HustleForYourLastNameFirst #CultureVulture the book coming soon @hip_hop_motivator let’s go! It’s time I’ve been waiting for him to speak after 6 months #nerd,” he wrote.
2018: Lyor Cohen Says He Doesn’t Know Dame Dash
At this point, it was clear that Dash and Cohen were not fans of each other. Even during periods of silence and peace, there didn’t seem to be any hope for reconciliation between the two. On August 1, 2018, Lyor Cohen made an appearance on The Breakfast Club where he denied knowing Dame Dash. “Who’s Dame Dash? You brought him up. I don’t even know him. You bring his name up, I don’t even know him. I don’t know him. I don’t know what to tell you,” Cohen insisted after Charlamagne brought up Dash’s culture vulture comments. Subsequently, Dame Dash took to Instagram where he posted a photo featuring himself and Lyor Cohen. It was accompanied by a long caption in which Dash called Cohen a culture vulture once again.
Afterwards, on August 8, during an appearance on The Joe Budden Podcast, Dame Dash spoke further about Lyor Cohen. When Budden asked Dash what a culture vulture is and why Cohen is one, the music exec eagerly answered. “A culture vulture is someone that exploits the culture that he’s not a part of, doesn’t benefit the culture and takes care of his culture, and has no respect for the culture he’s exploiting,” he said. Furthermore, he explained, “And that’s why Lyor is one because he’s been making money off of our culture; he is not part of it, he’s been exploiting it. Never helping, teaching or anything, doing what’s in the best interest of his own pocket over the culture. And to add insult to injury, he is not accepted in his own culture. He cannot get no money in his own culture so he comes to ours, acts like a big cat, pretends we need him when we don’t.”
On October 14, Lyor Cohen appeared on Drink Champs with N.O.R.E. and DJ EFN. Addressing Dash’s many accusations, N.O.R.E. asked the executive if he was indeed responsible for Dash and Jay’s fallout. Cohen’s response was, “Absolutely not. If Lyor was the reason, then they never were really together in the first place. Mic drop.” Despite Cohen’s vehement denial of being the reason Roc-A-Fella fell apart, Dash continued insisting that he played a significant part. During an interview on The CEO Show podcast, Dash claimed that Cohen convinced Jay to cut ties with him and Kareem Burke. “He’s the person that told Jay, ‘I’ll do a deal with you or without Dame Dash or Biggs [Kareem Burke].’ And he’s the one that advised him based on what Steve Stoute told me,” Dash said.
Additionally, Dash criticized N.O.R.E. for platforming Cohen without attempting to defend his name. “I just wish N.O.R.E., when he gets a Lyor Cohen and says that he’s necessary for the culture—at least ask him why he would get on a Black platform that caters to us and say I don’t exist,” Dash said. “Just defend me a little, the way I defended him. I appreciate all the accolades he gives me so he always is my brother but when people say they love me, that shit don’t feel like love to me.
2024: Dame Dash Calls Lyor Cohen Out For Allegedly Exploiting Young Thug
On March 2, 2024, Math Hoffa’s interview with Dame Dash on American Nu Network was uploaded on YouTube. In the interview, Dame Dash fired shots at Lyor Cohen again. This time, for allegedly taking advantage of Young Thug. “When I look at Young Thug, I’m like, Lyor and them just made a big check and he’s going to jail. They made money off his music,” Dame said. “So if they made money off that music and he’s in jail for that, then all that money they made off the music should not go to them. How do they get to get all that money and he has to get a jail cell?” he asked.
Dame Dash has fired back at music executive Steve Stoute for his recent comments with Shannon Sharpe on Club Shay Shay. Appearing on Friday’s episode of the Relate to Great podcast, Dame recalled smacking Stoute at the Roc-A-Fella offices.
“To be honest, I’m sick of these n***as. I’m sick of it because you would think that after a while n***as would leave you alone,” Dame said. “But this consistent thing where people feel comfortable saying that they’re going to do whatever they want to do or can do to keep me out of business, talk bad about me to other people you know come together and make a certain narrative and then get on TV and then have the nerve to speak on it…I’m sick of that s**t.”
ATLANTA, GEORGIA – AUGUST 07: Dame Dash speaks onstage during the 2022 InvestFest at Georgia World Congress Center on August 07, 2022, in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Paras Griffin/Getty Images)
From there, he explained that Stoue once owed him $18,000 and refused to pay him back. “I smacked him and s**t and I gave him an opportunity to have a fair one,” Dame recalled. “So like—pop!—smacked him. He asked me, he said, ‘Yo, did you just smack me?’ I was like, ‘Yeah, n***a and ain’t nothing between us but the wind. I’ll give you a fair one.’ I had a Franck Muller [watch] on my [left arm]—crack!—and s**t just broke.” Check out Dame’s full comments on working with Stoute below.
Dame Dash Calls Out Steve Stoute
As for what Stoute had to say about Dame on Club Shay Shay, he placed the blame for the fall of Roc-A-Fella Records on Dame and his erratic behavior. Stoute said that “while he was building businesses, he would go off all around the world with cameras and girls and all kinds of crazy sh*t, and then come back flipping on everybody as if [they were wrong].” Be on the lookout for further updates on Dame Dash on HotNewHipHop.
Dame Dash discussed his decision to put his Roc-A-Fella shares up for auction during a recent Interview with Greg G for America Nu Network. The decision to get the payout comes as a way of settling his $832,000 debt owed to film producer Josh Webber and Muddy Waters Pictures. The imprint’s co-founders, JAY-Z and Kareem “Biggs” Burke, previously attempted to block Dash from getting out while citing company bylaws about selling shares without board consent.
“I just want to sell it and fund my other businesses with it,” Dash said. From there, he accused Jay of falsely acting as CEO of Roc-A-Fella and using the company against him. Dash has also tried moving off of the shares by selling them as an NFT.
Dame Dash & JAY-Z Pose Together During Fashion Week
Jay-Z and Damon Dash during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Spring 2004 – Baby Phat – Backstage at Gertrude Tent, Bryant Park in New York City, New York, United States. (Photo by Johnny Nunez/WireImage)
“Jay pretended to be the CEO of Roc-A-Fella, hired his lawyers on Roc-A-Fella Inc.’s behalf. They illegally tried to change bylaws… Jay’s using my money to pay his lawyers to sue me about something I did not do,” Dash added in the interview. “Finally, the judge was like, ‘Yo, he could sell his interest. Those bylaws that you put in 2021 are not applicable. You can’t tell that man he can’t sell his private property.’ So now I get to take it to auction like I originally wanted to. Now it’s like I got an order of protection against Jay and Biggs from trying to put a lawsuit on me.’ Jay and them can’t stop it. And that was the whole purpose of making sure that it could go to auction publicly.”
Dame Dash Speaks On Roc-A-Fella
Elsewhere in the conversation, Dash discussed the music industry at large, the drama with JAY-Z, and more. Be on the lookout for further updates on Dame Dash on HotNewHipHop.
Earlier this week, record executive Steve Stoute became the most recent guest to sit down with Shannon Sharpe for the Club Shay Shay podcast. As you’d expect, he discussed a variety of topics from his decades in the music industry and even made some comments that rubbed a few prominent figures the wrong way. One of the people discussed was Jay-Z, who Stoute has a decades-long business and personal relationship with. In particular he discussed the evolving relationship between Jay and Dame Dash.
“He’s a gigantic, almost, almost not. He blew it. He had the most important artist of a generation,” Stoute began. ”Dame’s antics. Dame wouldn’t change. The way he spoke to people, they he treated people. He was angry because he had a strong perspective on his business philosophy. Jay saw Dame’s ceiling,” he concluded. It didn’t take long before Dame heard the comments and felt the need to post a response. ”This is the reason I had to smack the sh*t out of @stevestoute a couple years ago…because he’s always speaking on other men’s business good thing I’ve evolved,” Dame captioned an Instagram post responding to the comments. Check out his full response post below.
Another connection Dame Dash has to Jay-Z may have to be severed soon. A judgment spawning from a copyright infringement case a few years ago was never paid by Dame and the judge is willing to go to significant lengths to get the money secured. That may even include forcing Dame to sell his shares of Roc-A-Fella records. Despite their split, Jay-Z is attempting to prevent that sale from happening. He’s citing the fact that it would be bad for both the company and the other shareholders.
What do you think of Dame Dash’s response to Steve Stout bringing him up during an episode of Club Shay Shay? Do you agree with Stout’s take on why Dame and Jay-Z went their separate ways? Let us know in the comment section below.
Dame Dash discussed how the music industry is “toxic” during a conversation with Math Hoffa for his America Nu Network and shared some interesting takes on Young Thug. He claimed Lyor Cohen, an iconic executive and founder of 300 Entertainment, is taking advantage of the Atlanta rapper. He’s currently on trial for his 2022 arrest on gang-related charges.
“[The music industry] only exists because of toxic behavior,” Dash began. “They take advantage of the dysfunction of our culture. For me, if I see a kid that’s making music about shit that’s gonna get him killed because he’s really doing it, I don’t think I’m putting they records out. I’m not gonna enable that child.” From there, he brought up Thug: “When I look at Young Thug, I’m like, Lyor and them just made a big check and he’s going to jail. They made money off his music. So if they made money off that music and he’s in jail for that, then all that money they made off the music should not go to them. How do they get to get all that money and he has to get a jail cell?”
Lyor Cohen and Damon Dash during Ryan Leslie Performs at the Yellow Fever Party at Noel Ashman and Chris Noth’s Nightclub NA at NA in New York City, New York, United States. (Photo by Djamilla Rosa Cochran/WireImage)
Dash has been critical of Cohen for over a decade, previously labeling him “a fake CEO” and a “culture vulture.” He’s also accused him of ruining Roc-A-Fella. “I’m calling him out publicly and I want him to stop trying to rape my culture. Go make some money with some other people,” he told VladTV back in 2014.
Dame Dash Criticizes Lyor Cohen
Check out Dame’s interview with Math Hoffa above. Elsewhere in the conversation, the two discuss working with Kanye West, Wiz Khalifa, and Currency, among other business ventures. Be on the lookout for further updates on Dame Dash on HotNewHipHop.
2024 has only just begun, but already the news cycle in the hip-hop world has taken us on a rollercoaster. For the femcees, the drama between Megan Thee Stallion and Nicki Minaj, as well as a slightly less tense feud between Latto and Ice Spice has been at the centre of internet discourse. As for male artists, the Diddy scandal unearthed by Cassie continues to bring forth other damning allegations, meanwhile, Dame Dash is doing everything in his power to hold onto his Roc-A-Fella shares amid a time of financial strife.
Last week it was reported that the music executive would have to sell his stake in the company to pay off an $800K+ debt he owes. Now, sources are saying Cam’ron and Mase might be the new owners of those shares; these rumours were addressed during a new episode of It Is What It Is this week. When the rappers’ co-host, Stat Baby, asked about the validity of the gossip, they couldn’t help but giggle about the situation for some time. “Let’s just say hypothetically, right?” Mase said with a grin while pulling money out of his coat pocket.
In response to their unofficial confirmation, some hip-hop heads think this is the best move possible for Dash. “I mean, Dame ain’t tryna seel it to Jay, so s**t, why not? I say ask for $3M and walk away knowing it’s in good hands. If Cam and Mase acquire it, then it’s win for them both ’cause now Cam with the ROC and Mase get a win ’cause of those jabs Hov took at ’em,” one person wrote under @thehiphopwolf’s post.
Dame Dash is in a tough spot, with upwards of $800K still owed to a film producer who’s actively trying to get his money. Thankfully, Jay-Z and “Biggs” Burke are doing their part to keep his Roc-A-Fella shares in his name, though this rumoured deal has the potential to shake everything up. Read more about that at the link below, and check back later for more hip-hop/pop culture news updates.
JAY-Z is on Dame Dash’s side in a recent legal matter. Dash was ordered to pay $823,000 in a judgment, and his failure to do so led to a court order to sell his remaining shares of Roc-A-Fella Records.
According to Radar Online, the sum owed is in connection to the 2016 film Dear Frank, which sees the money being paid to Josh Weber. Hov and Roc-a-Fella records third, Kareem “Biggs” Burke interjected, stating the company bylaws reveal the board of directors must approve a sale. The valiant effort may fall short as U.S. Magistrate Robert W. Lehrburger stated the shares can be seized.
On the business side, Hov and Biggs oppose the sale, so the Roc intellectual rights aren’t available via auction, which is exactly what will happen. Lehrburger addressed the two, stating, “They can participate in the auction and place the winning bid.”
“The question at the core of the instant dispute is whether the RAF By-Laws’ prohibition on transfer and sale of Dash’s one-third ownership interest in shares of RAF without the consent of RAF’s board of directors legally prevents sale of Dash’s interest in RAF to satisfy the Judgment,” Leherburger wrote. “The answer indisputably is no.”
Dash was fired as the director of Dear Frank as he was seen as unfit for the job. He then stated Weber ran off with the footage, stating it was his. He would then shop the film to BET under the name The List. Weber won the suit in 2022 but could not collect, leading to the shares going up for auction.
