N.O.R.E and Joe Budden discussed the late Combat Jack’s podcasting business during a recent episode of The Joe Budden Podcast, dissing his practices.
The “Nothin” rapper began to big himself up as he sent shots at Taxstone and Combat for signing to Loud Speakers Network and “giving away YouTubes for free.”
“It’s probably the best audio deal in rap podcast history,” Noreaga declared at the video’s 27:20-point. “I’m keeping it 100. And we still own our IPO. I said, ‘Before me, they gave they YouTubes for free. Them IPOs, they didn’t own, only me and [DJ EFN].”
“A lot of y’all dudes was out here giving y’all YouTubes away for free,” he continued, bragging. “Y’all was signed to… what’s that sh*t, Sound? What was the sh*t that Tax and all them ni**as was signed to? What’s that label? A dude named Matt ran it. Combat, Tax, all of them was on this label giving they YouTubes away for free. I’m the first dude that had a three-deal for the same crack.”
The clip went viral, with members of the Hip-Hop podcasting community banding together to denounce the duo for their dismissive remarks.
Rapper Rah Digga chimed in with thoughts regarding the community, voicing her disappointment with the evolution of rap podcasts.
“I thought podcasting was a great way to keep Hip Hop history alive and documented by us and for us. Sadly, it has become something else,” she typed on Twitter. “Certain people just can’t be replaced. Like Combat Jack…or Alex Trebek… but I got some good references in this thread so I’ll start movin around some. Thanks guys.”
Mouse Jones, a Guys Next Door Podcast cohost, hopped online with thoughts regarding Noreaga’s boasts, calling the two men “idiots.”
“Be clear idiots. Combat Jack wasn’t ‘giving away YouTube’ for free, podcasting was brand new for that audience,” Jones tweeted out in response. “A PODCAST was audio only, so no1 really knew what to do with the visual component. W/o Tax & Combat blazing the trail that they did, NO1 would be having 3 deal shows.
“This is the definition of what a podcast was. In 2010, when Combat Jack started the platform, this was the intent. AUDIO. A youtube show was not the same thing. So this idea that NORE is 1, intelligent, or more business savvy than the undisputed podfather is absurd.”
Combat Jack, née Reginald Joseph Ossé, who was a pioneer in rap podcasting, debuted his show The Combat Jack Show in 2010. Jack set the standard for what a podcast could be, leaving behind the blueprint for other shows to use when he lost his fight with cancer in 2017.