Aries Spears Kicks DJ Vlad Out During Heated Podcast Argument

Months of resentment finally spilled across the table during a face-to-face meeting that was meant to address a very public falling-out. Roughly 40 minutes into DJ Vlad’s appearance on Spears & Steinberg, the conversation had deteriorated enough for Aries Spears to order his former collaborator out of the studio.

The blowup came after Spears repeatedly pressed Vlad on grievances that extended far beyond the pay dispute that initially fractured their relationship. At one point, Spears asked whether Vlad considered himself a “culture vulture,” opening another argument about Vlad’s relationship to Hip Hop and the criticism he has received for building a business around interviews with Black artists and entertainers.

Vlad rejected the characterization, but the exchange became increasingly combative as both men talked over each other and returned to old insults. Spears also confronted him over a “Kung Fu Panda” joke Vlad made during their feud, growing visibly angry as the conversation shifted from business disagreements to how Vlad had publicly spoken about him. That proved to be one grievance too many. With co-host Andy Steinberg attempting to mediate, Spears eventually told Vlad to leave.

The tension was present almost immediately. Early in the episode, Spears asked whether Vlad had ever considered him a friend. Vlad said he viewed their relationship as friendly but primarily professional, while Spears reminded him that he had previously used the word “friend” to describe their connection.

Their dispute originally surfaced after Spears requested a higher fee for his VladTV appearances. Around five minutes into the new conversation, the two revisited that negotiation, including Vlad comparing Spears’s interview numbers with Boosie Badazz’s. Vlad later pulled up their April 18 text messages as they argued over who first took the disagreement public.

Spears maintained that simply mentioning the money issue did not justify the criticism that followed. He accused Vlad of going on a campaign to “smear my name,” while Vlad argued that Spears made their private business disagreement public and opened himself up to a response.

Even after Spears kicked him out, the episode was not over. Vlad eventually returned to the studio, and the conversation resumed with the same underlying disagreements still unresolved. The pair managed to finish the nearly two-hour episode, but the temporary ejection made clear that sitting across from each other did not erase the anger that had accumulated since their partnership fell apart.