Joe Budden once had beef with pretty much every rapper in the game but with age, he's redirected his energy towards the corporate machine. Budden's sudden departure from Complex's Everyday Struggle over contractual disputes left him to focus on The Joe Budden that, a year later, inked a deal with Spotify.
This week, Joe Budden announced that he wouldn't be renewing his contract with Spotify as their two-year deal comes to an end later this month. Spotify made it clear they made a counteroffer that Joe refused, adding that it was their "desire to keep Joe Budden on Spotify." Joe, though, made it clear he wasn't interested and said they "undermined and undervalued" his podcast.
While he has received criticism, including from Charlamagne Tha God, Joe took to Instagram today to drive his point home. He is, after all, one of the bigger podcasters on Spotify. Sharing a screenshot of the current Spotify stock dropping, the post included a headline from Fortune, reading, "Spotify loses Joe Budden, its first big podcasting star."
Just before that, Joe shared a screenshot of a Verge article revealing a third Spotify-owned podcast, Parcast, is unionizing. The union is asking for Spotify to commit to diversity, equity, inclusion, overtime compensation, and transparency, among other requests. Joe Budden shared this screenshot with the caption, "You're crazy until you aren't."
