On the latest episode of Drink Champs, 2 Chainz opened up about what led him to leave Ludacris’ record label prior to releasing his debut solo album.
As part of the duo Playaz Circle alongside Dolla Boy, 2 Chainz was signed to Ludacris’ Disturbing tha Peace. By the time the rapper formerly known as Tity Boi released his solo debut Based on a T.R.U. Story in 2012, he had signed to Def Jam. Speaking with Drink Champs, he explained what compelled him to leave after Luda helped kickstart his career.
At around the 2:40:00 point of the interview above, as pointed out by Revolt, 2 Chainz said he went from drug dealing to rapping after friends encouraged him to pursue his talent. “I just started growing as an artist, I started growing as an individual. … It was amicable, you know what I’m saying,” he said at the 2:44:00, noting his fame was steadily increasing by the time he decided to leave.
“I woke up and called [Ludacris] and said, ‘I don’t want to be on the label anymore.’ Then they said, ‘You can’t do that. You can’t just get off a label like that.’ … They thought I was about to go sign with Cash Money because I had a strong relationship with Tune at the time,” 2 Chainz continued. “I been around ’Cris, I been around Wayne, and then I’m learning I can really do this on my own. … I paid [Ludacris] to get out, they get a point on my first three albums. I paid Luda the 100 grand and I gave him a point on each of the three albums. I just dropped my seventh album. I’m on my eighth album that I’m ’bout to drop now—and the 100,000, I mean very humbly, I got it on me now.”
This isn’t the first time 2 Chainz has referenced paying his way out of that deal. On an episode of Everyday Struggle in 2017, he said he got a lawyer when he wanted to leave. “I had to pay [Luda] $100K per album, and I think, some other little. I’ve made $100K so many times, [so] it was a pretty good deal to get out of it.”
Luda publicly revealed he makes money off 2 Chainz’s solo albums back in 2013 as well.
Elsewhere on Drink Champs, at the 1:53:00 point, the So Help Me God artist said he’s still on good terms with everyone at G.O.O.D. Music despite the issues that the likes of Kid Cudi, Big Sean, and more have expressed. “I love Sean, I love Ye, I love Pusha. I fuck with Cudi. Everybody else is a part of my journey anyway,” he said, with N.O.R.E. noting he tends to avoid drama. “Some things are more serious to people than others. I think some of the things that I maybe went through before my music career conditioned me to have thicker skin if an artist don’t want to answer my text or do a song for me.”
Shortly after, he said he’d be down for another Verzuz in the near future. “I would love to do another Verzuz—they turned up now. I think early on, Verzuz was trying to feel each other out because it started off with producers, then it started off with people just playing music. Now, people do shows. So, I think we all saw Verzuz grow,” he said. 2 Chainz previously went up against Rick Ross, for whom he has “a lot of respect.” When it was suggested he go up against previous Drink Champs guest Big Sean, he replied, “We got different types of music, but we maybe came into the game around the same time.”
Near the start of the interview, at the 23:00 point, 2 Chainz spoke on an upcoming deluxe edition of Dope Don’t Sell Itself. “It’s like four [or] five tracks that I’m adding because my project was only 30 minutes long on purpose,” he said, revealing Justin Bieber will appear. (The two previously collaborated on the remix of Bieber’s song “Boyfriend” with Mac Miller and Asher Roth.) The track with the Biebs isn’t his only exciting collab on the way, as he said he’s got material coming up with Gucci Mane and a project produced by Statik Selektah.
2 Chainz also addressed his 2020 argument with comedian Jack Thriller, which ended with the rapper shouting, “Don’t ever mention me again in your life, n***a.” He clarified that he’s got no issues with Thriller now, although he still doesn’t think he’s funny.
“That was a rare moment of me being out of control,” he told the hosts. “I don’t got no problem with bro, he’s a comedian. He’s not funny to me, and I love comedians. I really do. I think I was just caught off-guard, so I probably thought n***as wanted some smoke.”
Watch the full episode of Drink Champs above.
