T-Pain Accuses DJ Khaled of Disloyalty
R&B artist T-Pain has publicly criticized DJ Khaled for what he perceives as disloyalty, intensifying the ongoing rift between the two former collaborators.
Insights from Over Two Decades in Music
During a recent episode of Club Shay Shay, host Shannon Sharpe inquired about T-Pain’s lessons learned throughout his more than 20 years in the music industry. T-Pain responded candidly, stating, “Nobody is your brother. Nobody. Everybody’s your brother while they can use you. That is the quickest and most consistent thing that I’ve learned through this whole thing.”
Specific Allegations Against DJ Khaled
T-Pain specifically called out DJ Khaled, saying, “I’ve had fucking DJ Khaled and everybody tell me, ‘I’m your brother.’ Do not believe that shit!” He acknowledged Khaled’s adeptness at navigating the industry but clarified, “It’s not [just] a DJ Khaled thing — that’s just the first person I can think of.”
He elaborated on his experiences, reflecting on how he has supported many artists throughout their careers, only to feel that his efforts were not reciprocated. “Everybody is like, ‘Oh my God, thank you so much. You’re my brother’ … And then none of that shit was reciprocated. None of that shit meant anything,” he stated.
Advice on Relationships in the Industry
T-Pain offered advice on navigating relationships in the music business: “When people tell you how much you mean to them, don’t grab onto that. When people tell you how much they can mean to you in return, that’s the shit you [should] gravitate towards.”
Past Collaborations and Fallout
T-Pain and DJ Khaled collaborated on several major hits during the mid-2000s to early 2010s, including tracks like “All I Do Is Win,” “I’m So Hood,” and “Go Hard.” However, their relationship began to deteriorate in 2013 when T-Pain felt sidelined in favor of another artist, Future.
In a 2013 interview with VIBE, T-Pain remarked, “Future is on right now. Khaled deals with who’s hot at the time, so of course he don’t need T-Pain when he got another T-Pain. It’s not really a big deal for him to switch people.”
Social Media Misunderstandings
A subsequent Instagram post from T-Pain, which appeared to criticize Future regarding his collaboration on “Bugatti” with Ace Hood, further strained his relationship with Khaled. T-Pain recalled, “Future didn’t get mad … He ignored the whole thing … And then Khaled hit me like, ‘That’s what you doing?’”
T-Pain reflected on a conversation with Khaled, where he was told to reconsider his actions. “He was like, ‘Look back at the video.’ I looked back at it and I was like, ‘Okay, I don’t have a rebuttal for this.’ I was like the worst fucking friend ever. Khaled was like, ‘Take the post down! You used my artist in a smear campaign!’ And I was like, ‘[sighs].’ I kinda still stand by what I said.”
Ongoing Tensions
T-Pain concluded by stating, “The whole thing was a miscommunication and that’s why me and Khaled, to this day, don’t fuck with each other.”
