T-Pain Exposes DJ Khaled “Brother” Game, Labels Want Spotify Raise, DEI Money Vanishes for Pods In this solo episode, Loon breaks down why T-Pain’s “nobody is your brother” rant on Shannon Sharpe hit harder than people think, what it really means when DJ Khaled uses “brother” like a promo code, and how the family word gets weaponized to cloak bad business in music and media. From Ace Hood’s seven-figure exit from We The Best to labels quietly pushing Spotify to raise prices while keeping artist splits the same, Loon explains why music is still on a rookie contract, how Netflix vs cable exposed the new “add-on hustle,” and why AI plus streaming turned fans into secret investors. Then he pivots to podcasting: DEI checks drying up, black creators getting cut when the government paperwork changes, the Joe Budden universe, “sous-chefs” getting bravado off someone else’s work, and why pods like Need to Know and Bigger Picture struggled once DEI budgets disappeared. Loon lays out why he refuses pity-party money, how he’s retraining his audience to pay for value, and what it means for the future of It’s Up There Podcast. 00:00 – Intro, holidays & “fish sandwich vs fishing rod” 03:12 – T-Pain on Shannon Sharpe: “Nobody is your brother” 03:53 – DJ Khaled, the “brother” promo code & being used 08:13 – Weaponizing the family word in music & business 10:28 – Roc La Familia, mob names & fake “family” labels 12:35 – T-Pain’s legacy vs putting people on 15:05 – “If they make the sea, I make the sail” – Loon’s method 15:25 – Ace Hood vs DJ Khaled: 7-figure exit from We The Best 17:02 – Clip: Ace Hood explains the million-dollar number 20:43 – Connecting T-Pain, Ace Hood & Khaled’s sweet spot 22:11 – Labels push Spotify to raise prices 24:21 – Netflix vs cable: devaluing live TV & changing behavior 27:03 – Add-on hustle: subscriptions as the new cable 27:39 – Artists still hustling like it’s the 80s 29:34 – AI, labels & training models on artist voices 31:13 – Labels renegotiate subscriptions, not artist splits 33:45 – Streaming, secret shareholders & rookie contracts 35:11 – Knife vs pie: who controls splits in music 35:38 – Podcasting leaves its rookie deal 36:55 – Bigger Picture & Need to Know podcast cancellations 38:36 – Clip: DEI money stops and ads dry up 40:33 – Joe Budden universe & sous-chef bravado 43:19 – DEI, pity parties & token black shows 45:10 – Joe Budden, Flip, Surf & chemistry challenges 47:32 – Changing customer behavior vs artists standing still 49:56 – Dark time for pods & Loon’s long game 50:32 – Tease for the future of It’s Up There Podcast T-Pain said “nobody is your brother,” then brought up DJ Khaled by name. We unpacked that, Ace Hood’s 7-figure exit, labels pushing Spotify to raise prices without changing splits, AI training on artist voices, and how DEI money stopped and a lot of black pods folded when the checks dried up. Drop your thoughts: 1️⃣ Have you ever had the “brother/family” word used on you in business? 2️⃣ Should labels be able to raise prices on Spotify without changing artist splits? 3️⃣ Do you think DEI helped black creators, or just made us temporary line items? Full uncut audio and extra solo episodes live on Patreon: https://patreon.com/ItsUpTherePodcast Tap into the Discord (Looniverse) here: https://discord.gg/3AwsHfDcJB Join Our Its Up There Podcast Clip Channel now https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCEh6Wk40kcNcMJ4t_jtmluw Discord https://discord.gg/GJKXMWQS For all exclusive interviews & more content not here click here https://www.patreon.com/itsuptherepodcast 🚨Unreleased Interviews https://www.patreon.com/itsuptherepodcast 🦺All Merch Options teespring.com/its-up-there-podcast-merch 🎧LISTEN ON SPOTIFY: https://open.spotify.com/show/4Jheeb8FxYVDRo8khyrz36?si=e339dD2JRte2MYX2Uon3BQ 👀 SUBSCRIBE HERE:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCl_GorAVekpEVDlk1Yc8giw 👂 LISTEN ON APPLE PODCASTS: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/its-up-there-podcast/id1317524092?uo=4 👣FOLLOW ITS UP THERE PODCAST HOST : INSTAGRAM | fogfo_looney TIKTOK | https://www.tiktok.com/@fogfo_looney PATREON| https://www.patreon.com/itsuptherepodcast SUBSCRIBE TO Youtube Channel ➡️ https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCl_GorAVekpEVDlk1Yc8giw WATCH MORE ➡️ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JwNIuOcAtoo&list=PLnwwxLxHiDWayq4HPgNYUtsAGvqe3liOO

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.