Jay Z debuted his latest freestyle last weekend at the Tidal X: B-Sides show. In the freestyle called “Stream of Consciousness,” the business mogul defended his streaming service by flipping the dialogue and questioning consumers’ existing support of YouTube, Apple and Spotify.
The Grammy Award-winning rapper's lyrics went on to garner the attention of many fans , including his former business partner, Damon Dash.
During an interview this week with Dr. Boyce Watkins, Dash –- who has previously expressed his own displeasure over the practices of corporate America taking advantage of artists -- shared his thoughts on Jay’s decision to take aim at his new tech rivals.
“I know Jay, and as my experience with him, whatever’s winning is what he’s going to embrace,” he admitted during the interview. “So if bringing awareness to being robbed as a culture is what’s now in style… that’s what I wanted to happen… Of course, the timing of it may make it look like he’s doing it as a marketing plan, but good. Everything that he does is a marketing plan.”
“So if being independent is a marketing plan then that’s good,” Dash continued. “And bringing awareness to being robbed so he can make money is a marketing plan, as opposed to bringing awareness to selling drugs and shooting, or ‘I’m better than you because I have more money’… Like when the most commercial person is saying that – even though he’s talking about independence at the most commercial level – I still like that’s the mentality.”
Check out more of Damon Dash’s interview in the clip above.
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