DJ Akademiks claimed that 6ix9ine’s latest record deal might require him to stream content.
The livestreamer made the comments on Sunday (Oct. 26) during a sit-down interview with DDG at ComplexCon 2025 while discussing the state of rap. During the conversation, the 28-year-old rapper and streamer noted that “content is more lit than music” at the moment.
Akademiks used 6ix9ine as an example of this trend, claiming that 6ix9ine's new record deal contractually requires him to stream content.
"Someone had told me...6ix9ine just got a reup on like a record deal but his record deal the offer they sent him they said, 'Yo, you have to stream," Ak said near the two-hour and 17-minute mark in the video linked here.
He explained that labels use analytical tools to “check your numbers and how hot you are” and are increasingly focused on promoting content to increase an artist's popularity rather than prioritizing studio-driven music hits.
“They're like, ‘Yo, off of the last few months of you doing podcasts or whatever, there's an uptick in your music streams. So, if we going to sign you for more music, we're going to leverage the fact that when you do content, your streams goes up. So, we're going to force you contractually to do it,’” he said. “I'm kind of with that shit.”
Elsewhere in the conversation, DDG noted that streaming had become more lucrative than traditional label deals, saying, "For what I signed for, I made that in 30 days on Twitch … Streamers make more than rappers, a hundred percent. There's too many ways to make money."
6ix9ine has yet to comment on the purported stipulation of his record deal.
Last October, 6ix9ine reportedly signed a new record deal with Kartel Music, reportedly earning $1 million for a 10-song album and $250,000 per concert on an upcoming U.S. and Latin American tour, potentially totaling over $6 million, per TMZ. Streaming obligations were not mentioned in the report.