TDE's Punch Cracks Jokes About Paying Joe Budden To Support Kendrick Lamar

BY Gabriel Bras Nevares
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TDE Punch Jokes Paying Joe Budden Support Kendrick Lamar
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - DECEMBER 12: Terrence 'Punch' Henderson attends the 11th Annual TDE Christmas Concert and Toy Drive on December 12, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Natasha Campos/Getty Images for Top Dawg Entertainment)
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TDE's Punch was recently on "The Joe Budden Podcast," where he addressed rumors about the label paying Budden to favor Kendrick Lamar.

About two weeks ago, Daylyt made some claims about the Kendrick Lamar and Drake beef's media coverage that alarmed TDE fans and haters alike. Via social media, he insinuated the label paid Joe Budden to favorably back Kendrick in the feud and in general. Budden denied this assumption, and his self-titled podcast even had the label's president Terrence "Punch" Henderson Jr. on their recent episode to talk about it.

Emanny broke the ice by asking how much Joe costs, to which Punch responded with jokes. "Oh, man, that's private, bro," he expressed, as caught by Johnny on Twitter. "That's between us. That's really why I'm up here. I'm checking on my investment," the rapper, manager, and executive continued, leading to laughter from the cohosts.

He also said he didn't bother to clear this up when Budden asked about the insinuated accusations from Daylyt. It seems like they just want to troll fans and haters and move on from the situation.

Elsewhere, Joe Budden asked Punch about Drake's upcoming album ICEMAN, wondering if he will tune in. More specifically, Joe asked him if he'll "be outside" next week when it drops, to which he responded with "Never went in the house." TDE's president said he'll listen to the project "if he gets around to it," but expressed his love for music and wants to hear what everyone's doing as a "student of the game."

"Oh, yeah, you gon' hear what ICEMAN has to say," Budden joked. However, Emanny said they're being "phony" because they reacted excitedly to Kendrick's diss tracks two years ago. "For free," Joe added. Still, Emanny posited they looked "biased at a moment," but Ice and the other cohosts pushed back on this notion. They argued Lamar was making better music in their view.

Joe Budden Addresses DJ Akademiks

This situation with Punch led to criticisms from DJ Akademiks, and that didn't stop there. He criticized Joe Budden multiple times recently, which led to the podcast host wondering if his former Everyday Struggle colleague "wants war" with him. It seems like they might just be trolling, but things could turn more divisive in the future.

Akademiks has his own beef with Punch, so his criticisms are unsurprising. Ahead of Drake's release and amid a lot of infighting in media spaces, we'll see how the lines in the sand continue to manifest.

About The Author
Gabriel Bras Nevares is a staff writer for HotNewHipHop. He joined HNHH while completing his B.A. in Journalism & Mass Communication at The George Washington University in the summer of 2022. Born and raised in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Gabriel treasures the crossover between his native reggaetón and hip-hop news coverage, such as his review for Bad Bunny’s hometown concert in 2024. But more specifically, he digs for the deeper side of hip-hop conversations, whether that’s the “death” of the genre in 2023, the lyrical and parasocial intricacies of the Kendrick Lamar and Drake battle, or the many moving parts of the Young Thug and YSL RICO case. Beyond engaging and breaking news coverage, Gabriel makes the most out of his concert obsessions, reviewing and recapping festivals like Rolling Loud Miami and Camp Flog Gnaw. He’s also developed a strong editorial voice through album reviews, think-pieces, and interviews with some of the genre’s brightest upstarts and most enduring obscured gems like Homeboy Sandman, Bktherula, Bas, and Devin Malik.

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