Peter Rosenberg is fresh off of the release of his debut album, Real Late. Whether you like the guy or not, he’s cemented himself in hip-hop over the years, and his latest project is an homage to the underground hip-hop he champions so much. In his years at Hot 97, he’s interviewed the biggest artists in the world; some before they even blow up.
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In 2009, before Drake became an internationally renowned artist, he was rocking SOBs in New York City as part of Hot 97’s Who’s Next series? Rosenberg was behind the scenes capturing footage as part of his YouTube channel which resulted in an impromptu interview with Drake, as well as Kanye West. This might actually be the only time Drake and Kanye West have ever done media together but ‘Ye’s appearance was cut short once he made it clear he wasn’t there for an interview.
During our recent interview with Rosenberg, he reflected on some of those early moments of his career. While monumental for the sake of having two now-sworn enemies in each other’s proximity, Rosenberg said that it’s simply a cringe moment for him to look back on.
“When I watch that moment, all I feel is awkward for myself. I’m just like ‘what the?’ I was so awkward. I was so new. I was so green. And, me and Kanye just have weird energy,” he explained, adding that he’s still a huge fan of ‘Ye’s music, despite the recent string of controversial statements and antics. “Him and I, our energies, it just doesn’t work. We had one interview with him, the Juan Ep interview, that was good. Any other time we’ve interacted, he’s either dissing me or it’s awkward. He thinks I’m dissing him — and I’m not saying he’s ever had any thought of me whatsoever. I’m not saying it’s something he consciously thinks about. Our energies just don’t gel.”
That’s what comes with the game, though. He’s had several awkward interviews since then but perhaps, it’s the one with Wale that takes the cake. Rosenberg explained that people just get weird when the mics go on, hence the odd interaction with Wale on Hot 97 in 2018. “I consider Wale a friend and he once showed up in a weird mood,” he said. “It’s the most awkward s*** in the world. And, I didn’t do anything. We never really talked about it. He showed up in a weird fucking mood to do press. He’s doing press and he’s doing my show and it was just fucking weird, even though we are legit good friends and I care for him. It was just a weird f***ing day.”
Despite these awkward moments, Rosenberg said that it’s the wildcard in interviews that keep him on his toes.