Drink Champs prides itself on being a platform that celebrates Hip Hop culture, but Keith Murray won’t appear anytime soon. The Rap legend is respected for his contributions to the culture, but his most recent interview caused chaos. Murray was a hot topic in January as portions of his The Art of Dialogue interview went viral. The rapper’s wild comments earned a wave of attention, including pushback from artists he mentioned. It made for laughs, and people fired off memes, but elsewhere, fans were concerned about his health.
There was speculation regarding what caused Murray’s behavior, but he hasn’t addressed the gossip. Some suggested Drink Champs needed to be the next platform to host a Murray interview, and Noreaga detailed his concerns. DJ EFN called Murray a “legend” in a video before Nore agreed. “Let’s also be upfront,” Noreaga added.
Noreaga’s Concerns Over Drinking & Smoking
“We’re concerned. His mental health doesn’t seem that we can put him in this environment and smoke and drink and him be [straight]. Now, if he can, we gon’ do it. We gon’ do it if he can sit here and he can smoke, he can drink, he can do all this.” EFN interjected that Murray isn’t required to partake in any vices. “The thing is, we have responsibilities,” said Nore. “We know that there’s a certain amount of people that watch us every week, every month, every motherf*ckin’ year.”
“But why would we put a Rap legend in jeopardy,” he continued. “And that’s what it’s feeling like. It’s feeling like if you come here, at some point he gon’ be like, ‘I ain’t drinkin’, I ain’t smokin’.’ At some point, he gon’ be like, ‘Give me a shot.’” They clarified that they aren’t blocking Keith Murray from the platform but are proceeding with caution.
Kanye West ‘Drink Champs’ Controversy
While this move was applauded, some noted they didn’t have the same energy for Kanye West. Ye’s appearances on the show sparked controversy after he trashed Talib Kweli, said Drake wages “psychological warfare,” and dissed several of his peers. Of those mentioned were Just Blaze, Big Sean, John Legend, Common, and of course, West spewed his political rhetoric. He also spoke ill of George Floyd and made anti-Semitic comments. Drink Champs took a few hits from those who thought they acted irresponsibly.