Joe Budden has slammed Bruno Mars’ recent collaboration with rising artist Sexyy Red on the track “Fat Juicy & Wet” during the recent edition of his podcast.
The outspoken rapper and media personality did not hold back, criticizing what he perceives as a formulaic approach to attract Black listeners while questioning the sincerity of this style shift for commercial success.
“Will it work? Yes. They’re gonna pay for this to work,” Budden remarked, expressing his confidence that the song would likely succeed due to the star power behind it, including Lady Gaga’s cameo and the support of music mogul Larry Jackson.
However, Budden was quick to point out that the success of the track would be determined by its reception, particularly in different cultural spaces.
“Where it will work is a whole different thing. I don’t know if Gary, Indiana is playing this in the strip clubs out there. I also don’t think it was made for that,” he added, signaling a disconnect between the track’s creation and its intended audience.
The real friction, however, comes in Budden’s critique of the formula used to appeal to Black listeners versus white audiences.
While he made it clear that he wasn’t trying to bring race into every conversation, he argued that as he matures, he’s come to see how often race factors into the way music is made and marketed.
“This song is formulaic and I have a problem with the formula used to attract Black listeners versus the formula used to attract a white audience,” Budden stated.
Budden’s comments center around the contrasting ways artists like Bruno Mars and Sexyy Red target different demographics. He pointed to the raw and explicit nature of Sexyy Red’s music, which often resonates with a street-level audience, typically using provocative language and themes.
“When it’s time to sell a mixtape or get shit poppin’ in the hood at ground level where you need it to be, it’s a whole bunch of, ‘Pull my tampon out, f.uck me in the a.ss raw.’
It’s the raunchiest, nastiest shit that works because we like that shit,” Budden said, referencing the kind of aggressive and unfiltered language that is often seen in rap’s underground scenes.
Budden also drew a parallel between this strategy and the tactics used by political figures, particularly calling out Donald Trump for his use of divisive rhetoric to connect with Black communities.
“Bruno Mars said, ‘P.ussy so good, make me wanna gangbang and throw up a set.’ I’m sick of — my same point last week with Donald Trump using his mugshot to relate to Black people, this is the same thing to me!”
Budden emphasized that he finds it troubling when mainstream artists rely on shock value and stereotypical imagery to appeal to Black audiences, rather than embracing authenticity or true cultural connection.
In his closing thoughts, Budden expressed a desire for a future where Black culture isn’t commodified in such a reductive way.
“I want there to be a day where white people, or Bruno Mars and his people, don’t feel like in order to attract us, they need to start talking about gangbanging,” Budden concluded.
