It’s all because of Dame Dash. That seems to be the recurring belief in the mind of the former Roc-a-Fella CEO. Back in December 2025, Charlamagne Tha God inked a massive $200 million deal to keep him with iHeartMedia and The Breakfast Club. Moreover, it also allows him to expand his own podcasting empire. Considering he’s been a prominent figure in the media for a long time, it makes sense he would net such a massive deal. However, let Dame tell it, he should receive more of the credit.
During an appearance on the POV Show, he reacts to the massive iHeartMedia deal and the state of podcasting as a whole. Ultimately, Dame Dash said he knew it would eventually bubble up into a larger industry. Additionally, he claims that he tried to negotiate a similar deal with Netflix in the past. Alas, they went with Charlamagne, and he says that’s for a reason.
“The voice of our culture needs to be heard, and we do have the attention span,” Dame Dash said. “But what you do notice? Because you saw Charlamagne, all of a sudden, got that deal. Can you name someone that I’ve had problems with that’s not, like, corporately backed? It seems like, as soon as someone’s beefing with me… think about it! 50 [Cent], as soon as Cam’ron got with the corporate, he started beefing, before it was Jay-Z. All of ‘em.”
Dame Dash Believes The Industry Chose Charlamagne Over Him
Dame suggested he was a sort of final boss. That if you want to make it in the industry, you have to take him out of the picture. In doing so, you apparently win big prizes in the end. “It’s a humiliation ritual, that if you’re going to get empowered by them, you got to go at me,” Dame Dash continued.
“Can you imagine if I was ever corporately told what to do? The trophy that that would be for them? What’s misleading about the Charlamagne situation, it’s called [Black Effect], but it’s owned by white people half. You use someone Black to go get all the talent from all the Black people, allegedly, it’s powered by someone white. That’s the reason why he’s the face for them.”
All of this comes on the heels of Dame Dash actively trying to fight Charlamagne. When he appeared on the Breakfast Club back in September 2025, he tried to press the media giant and escalate tensions. Eventually, though, things calmed down, and Dame predictably favored to threaten a lawsuit instead.
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