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Joe Budden Blasts Sexyy Red & Bruno Mars Collab as “Degenerate Pandering”

Honk Magazine

Joe Budden has always been someone who thinks out loud, and he certainly showed that on an episode of The Joe Budden Podcast, where he shared what was definitely some unpolished commentary about the new pop meets ratchet fusion track Fat Juicy & Wet, a provocative union of Sexyy Red and Bruno Mars. But don’t be fooled by the Twitter screw-ups. While some chatter online wrongly traced his comments to a fictional track called Hoochie Coochie, Budden’s actual criticism runs a lot deeper than song titles. Fat Juicy & Wet is a symptom of something larger and more insidious. “It feels like they’re just pushing the Black community this cartoon version of itself,” he said, questioning the motivation behind the record itself. “This is not music, this is music in a thong, this is marketing.”

His main point is how much the track relies so hard on tropes and stereotypes, swapping real art for shock value and clickbait. Budden focused his outrage on Bruno Mars’s participation, calling out the pop-soul icon for his old-fashioned charm and slick production. But Mars appears to drop his usual polish on this record, matching Sexyy Red’s raw and risqué style, and it doesn’t feel organic to Budden. “Bruno masquerading around in Sexyy Red’s universe isn’t world building, it’s costuming,” he argued. “This reminds me of seeing politicians pull out hot sauce bottles in Black churches. Familiar. Hollow. Calculated.” It’s not that Budden doesn’t like collaboration or pushing boundaries. But he has a problem when the boundary-pushing feels like more box-checking.

Check out this article: Sexyy Red Stands Tall Amid Criticism, Claiming Title as “Most Hated Female Rapper”

When art becomes a stereotype buffet, neatly packaged for mass consumption, Budden says it’s time to hit the brakes. Regardless of whether you view his take as tough love or straight-up mean, there’s no disputing Budden’s passionate interest in raising culture, not watering it down. His words prompt a larger discussion about when inclusion crosses the line to become a joke. As Sexyy Red swims through headlines and Bruno Mars tries something new sonically, Joe Budden’s watching, and he’s not afraid to call a spade a spade.

Entertainment

Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl Halftime Show Just Swept The Emmys

Bad Bunny in Los Angeles, California, 2019
Photo: Glenn Francis / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Bad Bunny is officially an Emmy winner — and not just once. At Saturday’s Creative Arts Emmys, his Super Bowl LX Halftime Show swept every single category it was nominated in, all seven of them, making it the most-decorated nominee of the night.

The headline win was Outstanding Variety Special (Live), a category the show became only the third halftime show ever to claim. From there it just kept going: music direction, choreography, sound mixing, lighting design, technical direction and camerawork, and directing all went home with the Puerto Rican star’s team. There’s technically an eighth trophy with his name attached, too, though it won’t land in his hands — the “Saturday Night Live” episode he hosted last season separately won Outstanding Makeup for a Variety, Nonfiction, or Reality Program.

The sweep is good news for Jay-Z as well. As an executive producer on the halftime show, he now has two Emmys to his name, having previously won for producing Kendrick Lamar’s Super Bowl LIX performance in 2025 — the show that, until Saturday, held the record for most Emmys won by a Super Bowl performance.

Bad Bunny wasn’t the only one having a night. Sabrina Carpenter picked up her first Emmy as a performer and executive producer on “The Muppet Show,” edging out Taylor Swift’s “The Eras Tour | The Final Show” for Outstanding Variety Special (Pre-Recorded). The Billy Joel HBO miniseries “And So It Goes” won for sound mixing on a nonfiction program, and 50 Cent’s Diddy documentary “Sean Combs: The Reckoning” took home picture editing honors. A big weekend for live spectacle, all around.

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Celebrity

Young Thug Reflects on Rich Homie Quan Bond After Emotional Message From His Affiliate

Fans remain touched by the bond between the late Rich Homie Quan and Young Thug, especially since the two artists never had the chance to reconcile before Quan’s death fully.

Rich Homie Nard recently urged Young Thug to forgive Quan and put their past issues behind them, and Thug responded. Nard shared the message on Instagram, reflecting on how close Thug and Quan had been in earlier times and asking Thug to show the same understanding to the late rapper that he had shown to others. Thug responded in the comments, making it clear his feelings toward Quan were still strong.

He also addressed the history between the two artists, denying that he said anything negative about Quan. He remembered Quan saying publicly that he was gay and that his children even asked him about it. Thug was stubborn, though, about how much he loved Quan.

The exchange offered another glimpse into a complicated relationship that has been a topic of discussion among fans for years. While the full context behind Nard’s post and Thug’s reply isn’t entirely clear, it reminds readers of the love Thug still seems to have for his former musical comrade.

Young Thug and Rich Homie Quan were one of the defining rap duos of the 2010s, before they fell out around 2015. The artists themselves didn’t consistently fuel the public feud, but conflicting solo agendas and reports of tension tied their fallout together.

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Thug has addressed the controversy around Quan at various points over the years, and members of Quan’s family have also come forward to dispute aspects of his stories. Their relationship has a complicated history, partly because of those earlier exchanges.

Read More: Lil Uzi Vert Shows Off Boxing Skills While Building Momentum for Next Album

However, Thug’s recent comments have been more about his ongoing beef with Quan than the old beefs. His comment that Quan was his brother forever was a bitter reminder that the two never got to resolve their differences before Quan died.

The exchange also sparked renewed curiosity about what could have been if circumstances had been different for fans who followed their journey from their rise as a duo to their eventual separation.

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