Nav Speaks On Beef With Akademiks & Talks Racism He's Endured In The Industry

BYErika Marie14.8K Views
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Nav

Nav recently released "Good Intentions," and to help promote the album, he recently conducted an interview where he touched on the beef he had with Akademiks earlier this year.

At the top of 2020, a brief war of words sparked between Nav and DJ Akademiks. The Good Intentions rapper tweeted, "Akademiks hop on and off d*ck so much he prolly got STDs," which caused Akademiks to release a barrage of insults and tweets about his foe. It was over as quickly as it began, and in a recent interview with Complex, Nav explained what brought on the beef.

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Nav admitted that a casual conversation he was having with his friends at home prompted him to send out the random tweet. "To be honest, I felt bad for him that I beat him that bad," he said. "He's probably really tight about it. What can I do? It is what it is. It's not like he's gonna stop anything I got going on." 

He was asked if he believes he endures racism in the music industry, and the interviewer brought up the example of Nav previously accusing Akademiks of intentionally misspelling his name. "For sure," said Nav of dealing with racism. "It's just like, [people] saying my music is for people who work in 7-11s or some sh*t like that. It's crazy... It's offensive."

Elsewhere, Nav also touched on not taking insults to heart. "What people think about don't get me paid. You don't care, I don't care," he said. "But there's an element... I feel like there's a race wall. Like, I'm hitting a wall with the race thing. Maybe 'cause I'm Indian or something, I don't know. It's cool because I feel like when I first came out, my first fans, my small following was ready for something like me and they weren't used to it. Now that I'm on this global scale, new people see it and they're like, they don't understand me." Watch Nav's interview below.


About The Author
Erika Marie is a seasoned journalist, editor, and ghostwriter who works predominantly in the fields of music, spirituality, mental health advocacy, and social activism. The Los Angeles editor, storyteller, and activist has been involved in the behind-the-scenes workings of the entertainment industry for nearly two decades. E.M. attempts to write stories that are compelling while remaining informative and respectful. She's an advocate of lyrical witticism & the power of the pen. Favorites: Motown, New Jack Swing, '90s R&B, Hip Hop, Indie Rock, & Punk; Funk, Soul, Harlem Renaissance Jazz greats, and artists who innovate, not simply replicate.