What's Really Going On With Damon Dash And Jay-Z?
Damon Dash and Jay-Z are one of the most prominent cases of besties falling out in the music industry. Co-founders of Roc-A-Fella records alongside Kareem Burke, the rap icons launched Jay-Z's debut album "Reasonable Doubt" under the label in 1996, per Hot New Hip Hop. Dash took a risk because, as Jay-Z divulged to MTV in 2009, "nobody would sign me."
Now, 102 songs on the Billboard Hot 100 chart (and four No. 1's) later, Jay-Z no longer has Dash in his corner — not since the early 2000s, according to Hot New Hip Hop. Many trace this back to managerial disputes between the two over Roc-A-Fella. Although Dash told MTV (via HNHH) in 2004, "It's Roc-A-Fella for life. I would never pass the torch or leave any of my artists," he ended up selling the 50 percent remaining shares of the label to its parent company, Island Def Jam, per the outlet. Shortly after that, the "99 Problems" rapper was appointed president of said-parent company and the two have seemingly been on the outs since.
Dash clearly still held bitterness in 2019, explaining on No Jumper that Jay-Z was "all about the bag. We all know that ... It's just that the people he does it to don't have Beyoncé next to 'em." Biting words, and sadly, it looks like a June lawsuit by Jay-Z has revealed the former friends and partners' feud is going strong. Read on for the latest drama unfolding in their saga.
Damon Dash accused Jay-Z of bullying in a messy NFT dispute
Jay-Z's Roc-A-Fella label sued ex-business partner Damon Dash on June 20, accusing Dash of trying to auction off Jay-Z's debut album, "Reasonable Doubt," as an NFT "to the highest bidder," as TMZ wrote. Although the auction was called off, Roc-A-Fella's lawsuit claims Dash is "frantically scouting for another venue to make the sale." Dash quickly fired back, telling TMZ that as a one-third label owner, he was actually trying to sell his share. "Under the terms of the deal ... the buyer would buy my share of Roc-A-Fella Records and Jay-Z will have exclusive administration rights," Dash told the outlet.
Dash then elaborated to Page Six on June 21 that the lawsuit was "a whole lie," adding, "They just said that I tried to sell an NFT of 'Reasonable Doubt' and ... it's not true. ... I'm not running around to different places ... I've been working with one platform and that's SuperFarm. And the thing is I own a third of Roc-A-Fella Records and I can sell my third if I feel like it."
Then, Dash took a personal turn. "Jay himself tried to buy my third and it was a cr***head deal," Dash said, referencing what he told TMZ was "too low" a number offered to him in March. "It's a case of corporate versus independent and how they try to bully me," Dash continued, saying Jay-Z has "'only one man to eat' syndrome."
This may be one of Jay-Z's "99 Problems."