During the first part of Kanye West’s now-infamous Drink Champs appearance, co-host N.O.R.E. asked the Donda rapper who was better as Roc-A-Fella Records CEO—Jay-Z or Dame Dash?
Ye was quick to answer: Dame.
“Absolutely, one thousand percent, Dame Dash,” Yeezy proclaimed. “Dame Dash the visionary. He the original Black hipster. I’m the devil’s worst nightmare, I’m Dame Dash with money.”
Getty Images
While Ye referred to Hov as his “boss” multiple times throughout his hours-long Drink Champs interview, it was clear he thought Dame was the superior businessman, and made his admiration for the Roc-A-Fella co-founder abundantly clear.
In a recent appearance on The Bootleg Kev Podcast, Dame responded to Ye’s kind words, and said he was the only one who ever gave him the respect he felt he deserved.
“He’s an interesting guy. Our relationship, when he speaks on it, I’m surprised. But, you know, I don’t really do that … plus I don’t want to trigger him,” he told Bootleg Kev. “You know, the thing about that was—what I will say about Kanye is he’s the only one, on a real level, that’s given me a certain kind of respect. The only one… And it doesn’t matter because he’s the biggest one, right? He’s the only billionaire in the whole crew. It’s funny, you know? He’s the only one to pay proper respect, and he’s always been that guy.”
As Big Sean, John Legend, Talib Kweli, Soulja Boy and others know, Ye’s wrath is intense, but his respect is just as important. And according to Dame, Ye was the only one from Roc-A-Fella to recognize his genius, and champion it on a public platform.
What do you think of Dame Dash saying Ye was the member of the Roc-A-Fella crew that respected him? Is that a shot at Jay-Z? Or justgratitude for Kanye? Check out Dame’s full appearance on The Bootleg Kev Podcast below and let us know your thoughts down in the comments.