Don’t Quote Me

The crew sits down to break down the absolute madness from the NBA Finals. We tackle the big question on every New York fan’s mind: Has Jalen Brunson officially solidified himself as the greatest Knick of all time after this 2026 run? Plus, with his massive contract extension kicking in, should the San Antonio Spurs to look into trading De'Aaron Fox, after his finals meltdown?

The mental health conversation in hip hop is long overdue, and today, we’re keeping it 100. In this episode of Don’t Quote Me, we aren't just analyzing the culture, we are telling our truths. The industry often glorifies the hustle, but we need to talk about the cost of that grind. We’re discussing why the current approach isn’t working, why the silence is dangerous, and why the culture needs to change.  This is an unfiltered look at the realities of mental health in hip hop and a call to action for the industry to do better.

Timestamps:

0:00 Intro (DMX)

4:08 Suicide Prevention

6:17 Choosing Your Friends

8:14 Opening up to Women

10:48 Is Hip Hop Culture Toxic?

15:12 Get Comfortable Being Yourself

17:12 Detach from your Phone

18:20 Men & Women Getting on the Same Page

26:44 Helping Yourself Before Others

28:30 Podcasting is Therapy

32:08 Choosing your Friends

38:26 How MJ Helped Drect

In this episode, the pod sits down to break down the most explosive weekend in hip-hop this year. We dive straight into Jay-Z breaking his concert silence at the Roots Picnic, Eli's deep-rooted issues with Jay's latest moves, the ongoing friction between Sauce Walka and Drake, and the true cultural impact of Dame Dash. Plus, we dive into Diddy’s surprising new tape, the heavy-lyricism debate of 38 Spesh vs Jadakiss, and how modern podcast interviews are completely manufactured to create fake celebrities.

Timestamps:

0:00 Happy B-Day Eli

4:06 Jay-Z’s Roots Picnic Freestyle

12:00 Eli Has An Issue with Jay-Z…

26:08 Jay-Z vs Drake

42:08 Sauce Walka vs Drake

49:34 Dame Dash’s Impact

55:18 Diddy’s New Tape

1:02:40 38 Spesh vs Jadakiss

1:16:07 Interviews Making Celebrities

Bay Area legend Mistah F.A.B. joins the show for an unfiltered, high-level hip hop debate! In this episode, we dive deep into his legendary battle history with Royce da 5’9", the truth about writing hits for major artists, and why the Bay Area doesn't always protect its legends. We also tackle some of the biggest debates in the culture: Is the Clipse overrated? Who wins the ultimate athlete-rapper battle between Dame Lillard and Shaq? And what really happened with 2Pac in Oakland.

In this episode, the pod sits down with Skinny and Scales of the legendary Nappy Roots to trace their journey from rapping in Kentucky to becoming multi-platinum icons. We talk everything from the early days of signing to Atlantic Records and going platinum in just 8 months, to the importance of A&Rs and the shift from technical rhyming to making records that move the culture.

Timestamps:

0:00 Intro

2:53 Rapping in Kentucky

8:03 Signing to Atlantic Records

12:53 Importance of A&Rs

16:12 Music Influences

20:31 Technical Rhyming vs Feeling

26:03 Battle Rapping

32:30 Hit Records

38:20 Working with Anthony Hamilton

42:21 Chitlin Circuit

50:50 Working with Kanye

53:58 Andre 3000 Story

1:00:00 Having a Black-Owned Brewery

1:08:17 Surviving Robbery

MJ, PC, Wolf & Eli break down the newest drama surrounding Offset and Lil Tjay's beef over a gambling debt.

MJ, Eli, Wolf & PC talk about the biggest headlines in hip hop right now.

In this episode, the pod sits down with Poison Pen (of Rebel Armz, Team Homi fame.)  He talks everything from the transition between Indie and Commercial Rap to the era of The Tunnel, and the real history of bringing Battle Rap back to New York.

We chop it up about the wild reality of seeing Fat Joe and Big Pun terrorize the Lyricist Lounge, his personal Eminem story, and the hilarious truth behind Taylor Swift joining Team Homi. Plus, we get into his Brooklyn Mt. Rushmore, meeting Nas and Biggie, the Chino XL vs 2pac situation, and tell some legendary rap stories you won’t hear anywhere else.

Timestamps:

0:00 Intro

6:01 Indie vs Commercial Rap

8:32 Fat Joe’s stories

13:33 Tunnell

15:17 Bringng Battle Rap Back to New York

19:18 Rebel Armz

21:21 Pen Bet Against Drect 😂

26:41 Fake DJ’ing

30:15 Craziest Battle Rap Moment

34:25 Meeting Biggie

37:15 Brooklyn Mt. Rushmore

40:18 Meeting Nas

45:11 Chino XL vs 2Pac

50:18 Eminem Story

55:55 Taylor Swift is in Team Homi

59:14 Most Underrated Rappers

"I don’t know that battling needs to be a part of the culture anymore." - Jay-Z.

Hov just broke his silence in a massive GQ cover story, and he’s coming for the foundations of the game. He claims breakdancing is dead, and now he’s questioning if Battle Rap even belongs in Hip Hop anymore. Is this "growth," or is the billionaire mogul officially out of touch with the streets? The DQM crew goes in on this one.

Is the Lil Wayne "Top 10" conversation officially closed, or are we trippin? On this episode of Don't Quote Me, the cast gets into a heated debate over the "Time Capsule" argument - which rappers will actually be talked about 100 years from now? Plus, Eli compares NBA YoungBoy’s cultural impact to Eminem, and we break down why the Nicki Minaj discourse has finally reached a boiling point.

Timestamps:

0:00 Intro

1:30 Cast Intros

03:38 TI vs Lil Wayne

16:09 The Time Capsule Argument

29:50 Meek Mill is Missing

32:29 YOU HATE NICKI MINAJ!

42:53 The Last Dragon (Battle Rap)

1:05:38 Social Media Messed Everything Up

1:08:18 Definition of a Superstar

1:22:344 Eminem vs YoungBoy

1:27:08 Have You Ever Lost a Good Woman?