By Prince Hakeem
Artists and producers walk a fine line as they seek commercial success while remaining authentic and genuine to hip-hop culture. This song and dance are not new.
It’s been happening since brand deals and corporate companies began to take a vested interest in hip-hop in the ’90s. While rappers having shoe deals and other sponsorships isn’t uncommon these days, that always hasn’t been the case. Musicians, entertainers, and fans within hip-hop have always placed a high price on being “real.” One of the most egregious insults aimed at artists is to call them a “sellout.” It doesn’t matter how wealthy or successful an artist is; having that label attached to their name will always stir up a reaction.
Producer giants Timbaland and Swizz Beatz had to deal with this in light of Verzuz teaming up with Triller. In case you missed it, Timbaland and Swizz Beatz announced that Verzuz was acquired by the Triller app’s parent company Triller Network. This deal sees them joining the Triller Verzuz management team and serving as brand visionaries.
Following the acquisition, Power actor Michael Rainey Jr had a few choice words for the two producers. He called them “sellouts.”
“Can’t ever jus have something of our own. It’s always bout the money … Cool move, but these n***as still sellouts,” Rainey wrote on his Instagram Stories.
Timbaland and Beatz clapped back at the young actor in the comments on an Instagram post that feature his remarks.
“But we own Triller,” said Swizz with a shrug and a laughing-crying face emoji.
“We own everything tell who done that,” added Timbaland.
Rainey did acknowledge what the deal with Triller means for the artists who have appeared on Verzuz.
“They made 40+ people large shareholders of Triller, so that’s wavy,” he added. “But I wish they would’ve just kept full ownership,” he wrote.
