Don’t ever say Joe Budden never did anything for you. Last spring, Joey introduced us to his girlfriend Tahiry Jose in a series of vlogs that made us feel like we were living with the couple. Tahiry was instantly appealing as a lovable Latin girl with a sharp mouth—but it was her Coke-bottle frame and sick ass-to-waist ratio that left bloggers and commenters wanting more. Whether she was getting ready to go to her bartending gig, fighting with Joey, or just standing around looking sexy, Tahiry always made for good YouTube TV.
After landing the cover of KING’s final issue, Tahiry saw her stock rise higher, even as her relationship began to deteriorate. While there were videos of disagreements between her and Joe, and even Twitter fights, not many people figured the five-year relationship was really in jeopardy, until a few weeks ago when both parties acknowledged that they were through. (Say it ain’t so, Joe!) Budden spoke on the subject briefly, but Tahiry has yet to open up…until now. In this exclusive interview with Complex, Tahiry breaks her silence on what went wrong in the relationship, how she feels about Joe as a rapper, and what she plans on doing next…
We love hip-hop. We love rappers. We especially love rappers who take insignificant slights too far, because then it gives us an excuse to chronicle their fuckery. Case in point: Raekwon and Joe Budden got into a little dust-up over the weekend at a Rock the Bells show in California. Seems Lex Diamond resurrected the static between Jersey Joe and the Wu that got started when Joey talked sideways about being a better rapper then Method Man. (Side note: Joe Budden talk smack about another rapper? Whuh?) A punch might have been thrown, an eye might have gotten a little bit swollen, and more darts might have been thrown in the ensuing bloggery. But only one media outlet was there to capture the whole thing as it originally went down*. And that’s Complex! We’re like the Anderson Cooper of this rap satire thing, maing. Hit the jump for the rest of the story.
SOUNDS LIKE: Punchline-heavy verses from the ’90s x Non-commercial production from ‘09
FUN FACT: The four MCs initially came together on “Slaughterhouse”—a track included on Joe Budden’s Halfway House. Nino Bless, who was also featured on the song, wasn’t invited to join the group because other members felt he didn’t pay enough dues.
WHY COMPLEX IS CO-SIGNING IT: There have been many hip-hop “supergroups” that looked great on paper, but never fully materialized on wax. In that sense, Slaughterhouse—consists of Joe Budden, Joell Ortiz, Crooked I, and Royce Da 5′9″—deserves praise just for putting out an actual album. In addition, more praise is due, since all four MCs deliver on the album as a unit. And let’s be clear: Slaughterhouse isn’t necessarily built for the current market. What fans can hear is exactly what you might expect—verses filled with vicious punchlines and sharp deliveries that are guaranteed to get heads nodding.
In weekend rap news, Joe Budden got into a physical confrontation with another rapper’s entourage this weekend. Okay, no sugarcoating, the beef-loving rapper got snuffed by one of Raekwon’s goons backstage on the L.A. stop of the Rock The Bells tour. Shortly after, Joey took to the increasingly ubiquitous Ustream service to tell his side of the story. Sure the Ustream factor of catching a hip-hopper getting punched may be new, but rappers have been putting hands on each (II) other for years. Keep reading to check out our brief History Of Hip-Hop Snuffs…
Few rappers start beef as often Joe Budden—and few squash beef as often, for that matter. The Jersey MC did the latter when he went for a stroll through some Jones Beach, NY shrubbery with Method Man to sort out their problems (luckily Mel D. Cole was there to snap the above photo). How touching.
You might not guess it, but rappers do have the ability to be nicer, more understanding guys than they’re given credit for, as these type of peace talks aren’t all that uncommon. There have been several in the recent years, in fact. Here are the five most heartwarming of the bunch…
Remember the summer of 2007’s #2 pop smash “Party Like A Rockstar” by Atlanta rap group Shop Boyz? The new single by hip-hop’s underdog supergroup Slaughterhouse—comprised of major label refugees Joe Budden, Royce Da 5′9″, Crooked I, and Joell Ortiz—is nothing at all like that. Nah. This shit is lyrical, B! Fuck a ringtone!
Sidenote: someone needs to tell Royce that listening to Nickelback isn’t ironic…it’s just t-t-totally lame!
When Jay-Z quipped, “I don’t wear jerseys, I’m 30 plus”, the landscape of urban fashion changed before he finished the verse. But you knew that already. Hov’s latest revelation? “I will never have a ‘record deal’ again”, he Twittered last week after news broke about his plan for releasing Blueprint 3. After Friday’s debut of the album’s street single, “Death Of Autotune”, Jay-Z further explained himself in an interview with Hot 97. “I just wanted to be totally independent and free in what I want to do,” he stated. Coming from a guy who prides himself on setting trends, we’re expecting to see every rapper following in his footsteps in the coming months. Or at least trying to.
See, deciding you don’t need a record deal anymore isn’t as easy as storing away your throwbacks in the attic. But luckily, there are some other big names who have decided to go the “independent” route whose struggle we can learn from. Take a moment to look back at some of the independent superstars who paved the way for Jay-Z…
What’s beef, anyway? Is it talking greasy about your daughter for having octuplets after already having six kids? Is it slagging on your tween pop-sensation colleague? Prolly not, but that doesn’t stop everyone and their artificially-inseminated grandmother from taking their feuds to YouTube.
If you’re gonna go the digital route, though, you might want to take a second and get familiar with the new art of war, as pioneered by the original catfighters: rappers! Read on to see the 5 best ways to win a shit-talking video battle…
Can Joe Budden live? It seems like every time you hit up a rap website there’s news of another rapper going at Jersey’s crowned rap prince. We’re only three weeks into the new year and he’s already recorded two diss tracks aimed at Saigon. They say success breeds envy, but Joey hasn’t tasted success since ‘03 when his first (and only hit) “Pump It Up” was still on the 106th & Park countdown.
Whatever the motivation behind it, rappers sure do love going at Joey. Tonight, Slaughterhouse'the rap triumvirate including Joey, Royce and Joell Ortiz' have a show at NYC’s S.O.B.’s, and with the Saigon’s penchant for disturbing the peace, we’re keeping an eye out to see if anything jumps off. So before you log on tomorrow and see another diss video, peep a quick history of all his beefs…
