Charlamagne tha God – Art Imitating Life, or Life Imitating Art?  When a Dis is a Miss

Rap music is a special, unique, and easy to identify.  It’s also incredibly difficult to write.  The goal is to capture every thought, find the right angle, make it personal, put it all together, and then practice until it’s perfect. So when a new album drops, fans are eager to listen to the music and understand the words.  Deciphering the lyrics allows this this genre to open to multiple interpretations.  But some lines are easier to understand than others.

Recently, the award-winning artist Eminem released an unanticipated album, Kamikaze, wherein he seemingly attached The Breakfast Club host, Charlamagne tha God, renowned radio host and author, who is popular for not holding his tongue about his views on pop culture and social issues. But his recent critical remarks about rapper Eminem’s use of a homophobic slur towards another fellow rapper gave him increased notoriety and fame.

In the new album, when referencing the 2018 BET Cypher (an awards show), Eminem, as his alter-ego Shady hurls, “So finger-bang, Pootie Tang, Burger King/Gucci Gang, dookie, dang/Charlamagne gonna hate anyway, doesn’t matter what I say/Give me Donkey of the Day/What a way for 2018 to get underway/But I’m gonna say everything that I wanna say/Welcome to the slaughterhouse, bitch! (yeah).”  On another track, Shady raps, “One last time for Charlemagne/If my response is late, it’s just how long it takes/To hit my fuckin’ radar, I’m so far away/These rappers are like Hunger Games.”

But Charlamagne – the “Hip Hop Howard Stern” – didn’t take any of this as an insult.  He really didn’t consider it a dis, and instead obversed that Eminem must have been stewing over these words for months because while the award show took place in January, the surprise album wasn’t released until nearly September.  He’s gone on record saying, “It’s always cool when you get immortalized on records. I am just happy that I have gotten to the level where rappers who can actually rap say my name in records, regardless if it’s a diss or not. Early in my career, I was only being dissed by Chingy. Now I’m being dissed by Eminem. Life is great.” This is part because Charlamagne has often considered Eminen one of the greatest lyricists ever.

Other members of industry were targets of Shady’s wrath including Joe Budden, Tyler The Creator and Drake.

Charlamagne Tha God, known legally as Lenard Larry McKelvey, is a compelling media personality. At 40, he has authored Black Privilege – a New York Timesbestseller – besides authoring Shook One. He is also an influencer in Social Media and owner of CTHAGodWorld LLC. Thus, he is well acquainted with the celeb world and political discussions.  And that’s why he knows that using your talent to call out enemies, “frenemies,” or anything in between often gives them the credibility and the platform the original songwriter is trying to eliminate: there is no such thing as bad publicity.

An artist may be insulting you, but the truth is at least your name is on everyone’s mind. And we call all learn something from Charlamagne, the way he handled this situation, and apply it to our daily lives, both professionally and personally. For example, in business when you provide a quality product or service, reading reviews online from an anonymous stranger who is critical of your business in public forums or on social media is frustrating. You’ll worry about how it will impact other sales. A false review by someone looking to vent about something beyond your control — a disgruntled employee, a customer caught doing something unethical, like returning used goods and expecting a refund, a competitor seeking to tank your brand image – can be especially troublesome. Regardless, you can benefit from bad feedback using some simple techniques like Charlamagne.

First, you need to know how to handle the situation. Negative comments – or a dis in rap song – do not make anyone happy, but the worst thing you can do is to just ignore them. You also shouldn’t respond immediately out of anger. Wait until you’ve regained your calm and then respond professionally and responsibly.  A good response later is better than a poorly worded response now.

Second, shift the narrative and take the high road.  This kind of response shows your audience who you are as person, not what your critic claims you to be. No matter how harsh the criticism, a responsible and positive reaction will show everyone else that you and your brand are trustworthy. As a result, you will lower the risk of losing followers and increase your chances of acquiring new ones.  As Charlamagne said, “It’s always cool when you get immortalized on records. I am just happy that I have gotten to the level where rappers who can actually rap say my name in records, regardless if it’s a diss or not. Early in my career, I was only being dissed by Chingy. Now I’m being dissed by Eminem. Life is great.”

Finally, in the music world, some ideas don’t click with consumers.  Tastes vary. So, like Charlamagne, if you find you’re getting you’re getting negative feedback because people find a new campaign or soundtrack annoying or take what you said the wrong way, try using humor. Charlamagne has stuck to his guns, saying: “I don’t hate. I tell the truth. That’s not hatin’ me sayin’ ‘Revival’ was wack ’cause clearly Eminem thought ‘Revival’ was wack, too.”

What this story teaches us is that it’s always wise to address bad publicity rather than ignore it. Empathizing and communicating with an audience can counter bad reviews by showing listeners you’re ready to take responsibility and make amends. You can spin pretty much any negative commentary in your favor. Even Charlamagne did this: he is a known critique of Eminem’s Revival album. He says it was trash but affirms that Kamikaze is a good album. And, ultimately, the Breakfast Club co-host rates Eminem as one of the greatest living legends in the lyrics world.  So a shout out from him affirms Charlamagne’s place in the hip hop world and raise his own standing in the hip-hop industry.

Follow Charlamagne tha God on Facebook and Twitter today.

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