"You number 2 performer in the whole hip-hop" — DJ Akademiks urges Travis Scott to not tolerate Pusha T's diss

DJ Akademiks recently discussed Pusha T's diss against fellow rapper Travis Scott on Clipse's latest song, So Be It. The track, released with a music video on June 17, is the second song from the duo's upcoming LP, Let God Sort Em Out.

On So Be It, Pusha T and No Malice take turns rapping over the Pharrell Williams-produced beat, with the former taking aim at Travis Scott in the third verse. While Pusha did not mention Scott by name, he alluded to his 2023 album, Utopia, and his relationship with his former partner, Kylie Jenner.

Following this, DJ Akademiks unpacked the situation in his recent Rumble livestream, where he seemingly urged Scott to fire back at Pusha T, saying:

"Don't let motherf**king Pusha T talk to you like that. N***a, i went to your concert, you number 2 performer in the whole hip-hop, what the f**k these n***as talking to you about? You do stadiums. This n***a doing bedegas. You do festivals. This n***a is doing airplane bathrooms. Don't let these n***as talk to you like that. Travis, make an example out of n***as."

In the livestream, Akademiks described himself as an instigator. He also seemingly texted Kanye West a screenshot of Pusha T mentioning him during his recent GQ Magazine interview to "wake it up."

However, the media personality later clarified that he was "just talking s**t" and "having a good time."

Pusha T elaborated on why he dissed Travis Scott

On June 17, Pusha T and No Malice dropped their new song under their hip-hop group Clipse, ahead of their upcoming album. The black-and-white music video featured the brothers trading verses back and forth.

One particular section that caught people's attention was Pusha T's final verse, where he seemed to be dissing another rapper with the lyrics:

“You cried in front of me, you died in front of me/ Calabasas took your b***h and your pride in front of me/ Heard Utopia had moved right up the street/ And her lip gloss was poppin’, she ain’t need you to eat."

According to Billboard, many initially assumed the barbs were aimed at Pusha's former collaborator and G.O.O.D Music labelmate Kanye West. However, Pusha T clarified the verse was meant for Travis Scott in an interview with GQ Magazine, published on June 17.

During the interview, the rapper explained the incident that sparked the verse, referencing Travis Scott's 2023 song, Meltdown, from his album Utopia. Pusha T stated that Scott visited Pharrell Williams in Paris, where the latter had been working with Clipse on their forthcoming album.

Pusha continued that Scott played parts of Utopia for them and filmed their reaction, but he omitted playing Drake's verse in Meltdown at the time.

The Canadian rapper had taken shots at Williams in the track, where he mentioned melting down the producer's chains he had bought through the Joopiter auction site. Additionally, Williams has been credited with working on Utopia's other tracks.

“The true context of that is we were in Paris, literally working, and he was calling to play P his new album. He came to [Pharrell’s] studio [at Louis Vuitton HQ, where Clipse recorded most of Let God Sort Em Out]. He interrupted a session. He sees me and Malice there," Pusha T said.

He continued:

"He's like, ‘Oh, man, everybody's here,’ he's smiling, laughing, jumping around, doing his f**king monkey dance. We weren't into the music, but he wanted to play it, wanted to film [us and Pharrell listening to it]. And then a week later you hear ‘Meltdown,’ which he didn’t play. He played the song, but not [Drake’s verse].”

Pusha T called Travis Scott a "wh*re"

In the GQ interview, Pusha T implied that Travis Scott always took a neutral ground whenever it served him, mentioning two other instances he noticed the rapper doing the same.

Pusha claimed the first instance was when Scott let Drake diss Kanye West in his song Sicko Mode despite his close ties with Ye.

Pusha noted the second instance was when Scott encouraged Metro Boomin and Future to play a portion of Like That during Rolling Loud in 2024, despite his frequent collaboration with Drake. For context, Kendrick Lamar's verse in Like That kicked off the rap battle between the two rappers in 2024.

Pusha added that, in his opinion, Scott had "no picks, no loyalty to nobody." The Clipse rapper also called Scott a "wh*re," saying:

“So, that's where my issue comes in—like, dawg, don't even come over here with that, because at the end of the day, I don't play how y'all play. To me, that really was just like…he's a wh*re. He's a wh*re.”

Pusha continued that while neither he nor Pharrell Williams cared about Travis Scott's behavior, the diss originated because it was about the "principle of it." He continued:

“Somebody brought Meltdown to my house. To P's house, actually… I mean, I don't give a f**k. P don't give a damn. But it's like…it's the principle of it. It's the principle of what I'm saying. That filthy quality that they have about themselves, that lack of loyalty. Travis really has that. He's proven. I just named three people that he does that type of behavior with. I'm just not one of them. Dog, I ain't with that.”

The Clipse's forthcoming album is scheduled for release on July 11. The duo had previously released the lead single, Ace Trumpets, on May 30.

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