N.O.R.E. Admits Issa Rae Helped Him Realize "Drink Champs" Was Getting Too Messy

Issa Rae helped N.O.R.E. realize that he needed to dial back on the gossip after she nicknamed him "Messy-eaga."

BYAron A.Oct 05, 202226.2K Views

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It's not uncommon to tune into Drink Champs and watch things go all the way left. While the podcast tied Yung Miami's Caresha Please for Best Hip-Hop Platform at the 2022 BET Hip-Hop Awards, the premise of having guests drinking on the show and spilling tea has earned N.O.R.E some significant criticism over the years. For example, the episode with Lamar Odom nearly resulted in a scrap between the former NBA star and the "Superthug" rapper.

ATLANTA, GEORGIA - SEPTEMBER 30: N.O.R.E. poses backstage during the BET Hip Hop Awards 2022 at The Cobb Theater on September 30, 2022 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Paras Griffin/Getty Images)

N.O.R.E.'s interview style can certainly be messy but it wasn't until Issa Rae hit him with the nickname "Messy-eaga" that he realized his approach to journalism may have been slightly off.

On the red carpet of the BET Hip-Hop Awards, the rapper caught up with Hot 107.9's Lore'l who asked him about Issa Rae's moniker for him.

"She actually changed me. Issa Rae doesn't know that," he said. "I saw the nickname and I was like, 'You know what? I am becoming a little bit on the gossip side when I ask certain things.' It's not that I want it to be guy talk but I do want it to be sensible, you know what I'm sayin'?"

Though he does enter into that territory of gossip regularly, he said that he realized that it might be better off to allow someone like Yung Miami to handle those questions.

"I'm trying to do better. Thank you, Issa Rae, because that's what it's about. It's about me getting better and better at my craft," he said.

Elsewhere, he admitted that Irv Gotti is still upset with him over his Drink Champs episode. Watch the full clip below.

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Aron A.

Aron A. is a features editor for HotNewHipHop. Beginning his tenure at HotNewHipHop in July 2017, he has comprehensively documented the biggest stories in the culture over the past few years. Throughout his time, Aron’s helped introduce a number of buzzing up-and-coming artists to our audience, identifying regional trends and highlighting hip-hop from across the globe. As a Canadian-based music journalist, he has also made a concerted effort to put spotlights on artists hailing from North of the border as part of Rise & Grind, the weekly interview series that he created and launched in 2021. Aron also broke a number of stories through his extensive interviews with beloved figures in the culture. These include industry vets (Quality Control co-founder Kevin "Coach K" Lee, Wayno Clark), definitive producers (DJ Paul, Hit-Boy, Zaytoven), cultural disruptors (Soulja Boy), lyrical heavyweights (Pusha T, Styles P, Danny Brown), cultural pioneers (Dapper Dan, Big Daddy Kane), and the next generation of stars (Lil Durk, Latto, Fivio Foreign, Denzel Curry). Aron also penned cover stories with the likes of Rick Ross, Central Cee, Moneybagg Yo, Vince Staples, and Bobby Shmurda.