NORE

NORE Wonders Why Hip-Hop Artists Would Rather Appear On ‘David Letterman’ Than ‘Drink Champs’

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NORE has a bone to pick with artists who choose to grant interviews to more mainstream outlets. The rapper turned podcaster’s show Drink Champs has become a well of viral moments in hip-hop over the past few years. However, there remains a certain class of artists who offer first looks to shows such as David Letterman’s My Next Guest Needs No Introduction, Zane Lowe’s Apple Music show, or CBS Mornings with Gayle King. This has apparently stuck in NORE’s craw, and he made his feelings known on Twitter last night.

“I have been the best to this culture,” he began. “I have always put hiphop first and I see u guys go to Ellen and David letterman’s and Zane lows and treat them wit more respect then the culture but u say u want black excellence.” He continued, name-checking another few well-known hosts. “Imma be honest even going to Oprah or gal is trash at this point !!! We control our in culture why go outside of it!!! David letterman is my favorite but man why go there or Ellen before million dollars worth of game or joe or the champs or even twitter sh*t!!!”

Aside from the obvious answer, which is that all of those shows have way bigger audiences and reach than the handful of hip-hop-focused podcasts NORE mentioned, it’s worth noting some recent history in searching for an explanation. In recent months, artists like Ari Lennox and Kehlani have both spoken out about feeling disrespected in interviews.

Contrast that with Letterman’s laid-back softball style in his recent interview with Cardi B or King’s empathetic treatment of Megan Thee Stallion‘s shooting injury. Could it be that these women looked at how their peers were treated over such sensitive topics as gender identity and sexual activity and decided to forego the possibility of being publicly embarrassed?

How vulnerable could they be with the rowdy hosts of these podcasts talking over them, gaslighting them, and trying to be “funny” about being shot or dealing with criticism as a woman in hip-hop? Even Nicki Minaj has spoken out before about feeling disrespected by “for the culture” outlets and preferring the professional tone of “white outlets.”

It’s easy to understand where NORE is coming from. Why don’t hip-hop artists do hip-hop media? After all, who helped them get to the upper echelons of pop culture? It can feel like artists are avoiding the scrutiny from the audiences who know them best, only seeking out positive coverage from mainstream media. And that’s valid.

But when the hip-hop-centric media are only interested in goading their subjects, looking for viral moments or juicy gossip, we can’t be surprised when it turns out that professional artists don’t enjoy the less-than-professional atmosphere these shows create. There’s probably a middle ground, but with trust eroded on both sides, it’ll probably take a while for artists to feel like “the culture” gives as much as it takes.

ASAP Rocky Apparently Agrees That Travis Scott ‘Stole His Whole Style’

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Despite their superficial physical resemblance, ASAP Rocky and Travis Scott haven’t had the warmest relationship. In fact, you almost never see the two of them together (kinda like Clark Kent and Superman) — which, come to think of it, probably contributed to them being mistaken for each other all those times. However, despite some rumors and speculation, Rocky has insisted that there’s no beef between the two men. However, that doesn’t mean he doesn’t agree with certain comparisons between them — namely, the one that Travis jacked ASAP Rocky’s style.

That question came up again in a teaser for an upcoming episode of rap’s in-house mess factory, Drink Champs with NORE. In the teaser, NORE suggests, once again, that Travis Scott stole Rocky’s “whole style.” Although the clip is edited to exclude any elaboration from Rocky, he does appear to agree with this assessment before the teaser moves on to other topics. This may mark the first time Rocky openly copped to the belief that Travis bit his look; meanwhile, another portion of the teaser may provide some insight into why it’s such a big deal for him in the first place.

“Kanye West came out on this same show and said, ‘ASAP Rocky dresses better than me,’” NORE recalls excitedly. “I never thought I would hear that in my whole life.” Considering Kanye’s reputation as hip-hop’s premier fashionista, this constitutes high praise for the “Fashion Killa,” who appears to be promoting his own comeback project with singles like “DMB.” He’s also been preparing for the birth of his baby with his “Fashion Killa” co-star Rihanna, so he’s still probably too busy for beef. But it is interesting that he’s finally given a straight answer to this question after dodging it since 2016.

8 Things We Learned From Snoop Dogg’s ‘Drink Champs’ Interview

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  • He says Dr. Dre originally didn’t want to do the Super Bowl halftime show

  • Snoop explained what it was like to be in the middle of the Death Row-Bad Boy feud

  • He gave his thoughts on Game’s claim Kanye did more for him in 2 weeks than Dre ever did

  • Snoop responded to a question about why he continued to work while grieving

  • He said he could feel how tense the infamous 1995 Source Awards were at the time

  • Snoop said 2Pac’s “Got My Mind Made Up” was originally a Nas track

  • He explained why he removed the Death Row catalog from streaming services

  • Snoop can’t pick between Kurupt or Method Man: ‘Both of them my n***as’

8 Takeaways From The Game’s ‘Drink Champs’ Interview

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  • Game says he wasn’t a “safe choice” for Super Bowl Halftime Show

  • Game discusses fallout with 50 Cent and considers them to be equals

  • There are only two beats Game has ever been jealous of

  • Game used to think Eminem was “better” than him

  • In Game’s opinion, Ye’s done more for his career in weeks than Dre “ever did”

  • He and Meek Mill are now in the “best space ever”

  • SEAL Team Six Member who shot Osama bin Laden told him he was “grateful” for the music

  • Game spoke with Pop Smoke days before he was killed

The Game Says Kanye West Did More For Him In Two Weeks Than Dr. Dre Did His Whole Career

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Over the course of his nearly-20-year career, Compton rapper The Game has been renowned, respected, and ridiculed for his charismatic storytelling, which can range from introspection on intimate moments between himself and his rap game associates to wild, borderline unbelievable tales of late-night shootouts with compatriots such as 50 Cent. Even more of the same is undoubtedly on the way when he appears on NORE’s Drink Champs podcast this week, which the cast’s Instagram page announced along with a teaser of one of the more outrageous moments to come.

In the teaser clip, Game asserts that Kanye West, with whom he recently collaborated on the song “Eazy,” famous for featuring Kanye’s line about beating up his ex’s new man, has done more for Game than Dr. Dre did in the Compton rapper’s whole career. This is, of course, after he spends at least part of the interview with a black balaclava and winter coat before overheating and removing both.

That said, the wild claim has Twitter buzzing, because even accounting for recency bias, there’s no way Game can truly believe that — his sophomore album is called Doctor’s Advocate, for crying out loud (even if it was released on Geffen after Game left Aftermath over his falling out with 50 Cent). Some have attributed the comment to Game’s supposed bitterness over being left off Dre’s recent Super Bowl halftime show performance, but he shot down that supposition early, saying, “I don’t feel no way about not being included.” Then again, Drink Champs has kind of become the go-to podcast for making over-the-top claims to promote new work — even for Game’s benefactor Kanye.

You can check out the clip, as well as some of the reactions to it, below.