Baby, This is Keke Palmer: “Migos, Marriage, and Moving Forward with Offset”

Podcast: Baby, This is Keke Palmer
Host: Keke Palmer | Guest: Offset
Date: October 7, 2025
Episode Theme:
Keke Palmer sits down for a deeply personal and wide-ranging interview with Offset, exploring his journey from child performer to global rap superstar, his evolution as an artist, the Migos legacy, family life, the challenges of fame, battling addiction, and the realities of high-profile relationships and divorce. The conversation ranges from music, fashion, and personal growth to transparency about mistakes, fatherhood, grief, and hope for the future.

Main Discussion Points & Insights

1. Offset’s Musical Journey and Solo Evolution

• Offset discusses evolving as an artist, experimenting with new sounds and drawing inspiration from icons like Michael Jackson and James Brown.
  • “I just always get into, like, a character or some inspiration when I'm working on a new project…music is a better place for me to put it at…It’s expression of feeling on this album fully, though.” (02:22, Offset)
• Touch on the Migos' impact on music and culture, including their signature flow and their influence on even pop stars.
  • “What y’all did also changed pop culture at large, from the way people sing on the track.” (07:05, Keke)
  • “The flowers ain't always been given…But I know what I did…It's known, though.” (07:28, Offset)
• On discovering the “Migos flow” and Takeoff as the originator:
  • “It really came from Takeoff…he was just naturally doing it…Then we just stayed in that pocket.” (09:15, Offset)

2. Migos, Business, and Brotherhood

• Offset shares why Migos disbanded was less about personal differences and more about business challenges and creative growth.
  • “I made the decision to go solo because…things on the business side wasn't turning to my favor…I wanted a bigger piece. Not from them, but from the business.” (10:26, Offset)
• On Takeoff’s role and impact after his passing:
  • “He was the glue…the glue to everything…he would humble that at all times.” (12:07, Offset)
• Reflections on grief, loss, and possible responsibility:
  • “I never really said this. Like, I felt like some responsibility was on me. Because what if I didn't go solo?…Maybe we wouldn't even been right there or in that place, because I just know how we move when I'm around.” (13:07, Offset)

3. Navigating Group Dynamics, Public Scrutiny, and Fame

• Offset and Quavo post-Takeoff:

  • “It's just better for us to be on our own, different things now…With success on both sides, could bring things back. But I don't know. It’s hard.” (14:25, Offset)

• On public speculation and handling negativity:

  • "We don't even talk...Whatever the people say, it goes either way. The negativity stick. So I try not to feed into it…" (15:53, Offset)
  • "If I drop an album dissing 10 people…I get more streams than if I just drop a clean album." (15:53, Offset)

• Change in approach to artistry:

  • “When I first started… I was getting in trouble a lot…When we first started, I was locked up and they [the group] was pushing because we already had the foundations.” (19:20, Offset)
  • “Now…I'm super creative. I want to make sure I'm getting a message across with everything I do.” (20:34, Offset)

• On artist mystique and social media:

  • “There’s no mystique to being an artist no more...People want you to show them everything.” (22:13, Offset)

4. Fatherhood, Growth, and Personal Accountability

• Fatherhood as a core value:

  • “Fatherhood is great. That seems [like] the best thing.” (26:02, Offset)
  • “When you wrong, you wrong…School first…My kids don't play with me because… I have conversations with my kids, no matter the age…I'm your support.” (28:29, Offset)

• Advice to Keke as a new mom:

  • “Raising a little black boy, you gotta be rough with him…He needs to understand how to deal with the police…He should play sports…Once he gets about 7, 8, you got to cool it down.” (29:03, Offset)

• How becoming a parent changed him:

  • “At that young age…you go in survival mode for that kid…But I knew I wasn’t going to be no deadbeat. I wasn’t playing about that.” (30:34, Offset)

5. Marriage, Divorce, and Real-Life Lessons

• On marriage, separation, and public scrutiny (re: Cardi B):
  • “It’s not finalized. I'm ready for it to be over with. Just so…that be a louder story than what we really love to do, which is music and art.” (31:49, Offset)
  • “If I could rewrite the book, it would have never been public. Because when it’s public, it’s opinions, then they’re watching everything.” (33:41, Offset)
• On accountability and regret:
  • “I should respect her way more…I made bad decisions as a man…Stepping out…We got so much our kids to live for. I was being selfish.” (34:24, Offset)
• On the pain of social media fallout:
  • “The narrative be nasty sometimes on me, and it don’t be that…It feel like you getting bullied…so I just tried to defend myself.” (34:49, Offset)

6. Addiction, Healing, and a New Chapter

• Offset opens up about overcoming codeine addiction—four years sober.
  • “I had to put that cup down, man…A lot of people think people do drugs to be cool, but they do it because of pain.” (35:54 + 36:08, Offset)
  • “It was to cope with the job…you get tricked, like ‘Oh, I can’t make music without the drugs.’ That’s cap. For me, that's cap. It becomes an addiction.” (36:25, Offset)
  • Tells powerful story about his son noticing his “different colored” soda, which led him to quit. (37:43, Offset)
• Gratitude for family keeping him grounded:
  • “My mama goin’ tell me, hey buddy, you’re that wrong every time…I try to surround myself with people around me that’s gonna put me in my place.” (39:29, Offset)

7. Looking Forward: Music, Rumors, and Staying True

• Album themes and creative direction:
  • “I’mma just keep it real…just being raw with stuff, but it ain’t so specific on my relationship. I’m touching on other things…about the business, the group.” (40:20, Offset)
• On persistent rumors (Sweetie, business, Migos):
  • “No, man…I feel like it was something deeper than that for the split of me and bro…That was just a thing I think people was trying to tear my situation down.” (41:01, Offset)
  • “The lengths people go in our industry…to enmesh themselves in your personal life, to get outcomes in business…are great.” (41:56, Keke)
• Striving for authenticity as the next evolution:
  • “I'mma give you me.” (42:37, Offset)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “He was the glue…the glue to everything…He just kept us as one.” (12:07, Offset)
• “I should respect her [Cardi] way more… I was being selfish. I can say that as a man. I’m a grown man.” (34:24, Offset)
• "A lot of people think people do drugs to be cool, but they do it because of pain." (36:08, Offset)
• On artistic pressure: “After the number one, it became more of a job…when all of it was fun and it just was an organic thing.” (08:29, Offset)
• On today's fame: “There’s no mystique to being an artist no more…Now it’s like people want you to show you everything.” (22:13, Offset)
• Advice for Keke as a new mom: “You gotta be a little rougher…He should play sports…Once he gets about 7, 8, you got to cool it down.” (29:03, Offset)
• On group splits: “If I did [reunite Migos], it would be on my time… I love my creative freedom.” (11:45, Offset)
• On accountability: “I was being selfish, you know what I mean? And I could say that as a man.” (34:24, Offset)
• The story of his son and codeine: “He was like, ‘Why yours a different color than mine?’ It killed me. I was like, oh no, I gotta get off this. That’s what touched me.” (37:43, Offset)

Timeline & Key Timestamps

• 02:22 Offset on drawing inspiration and expression through music
• 03:09 Discussing new single, rumors, and friendship with Anok
• 06:08 How Migos was formed and their early grind
• 07:28 Migos' impact on music and credit for their influence
• 08:22 On “Bad and Bougie” and how success changed everything
• 10:26 Why Migos disbanded: business frustrations and solo path
• 12:07 Takeoff’s role as the group’s glue, impact of his loss
• 13:07 Offset’s sense of responsibility after Takeoff’s passing
• 15:53 Social media rumors and the “negativity stick” in modern fame
• 19:20 Offset’s troubled teen years and evolution as an artist
• 20:34 Shift to a more detail-oriented, intentional artistry
• 22:13 Loss of artist mystique in the age of social media
• 26:02 On having six kids and fatherhood legacy
• 28:29 His parenting style and advice for raising Black boys
• 30:34 How early parenthood changed him and avoided repeating past mistakes
• 31:49 Status of Offset and Cardi B’s divorce; pressure of public scrutiny
• 34:24 Offset’s public accountability for relationship mistakes
• 35:54-36:25 Quitting codeine and confronting pain/addiction
• 37:43 The pivotal moment his son noticed his use
• 40:20 Album themes and approach post-divorce
• 41:01 The truth about rumors regarding Sweetie and Migos split

Fun & Memorable Game Segment (“Sorry to this Man”)

• 42:55-45:43
  Offset plays “Sorry to this Man,” guessing iconic tracks from one-second snippets. He nails Outkast’s “B.O.B.,” stumbles on some James Brown, and has a fun, lighthearted moment with Keke.

Tone & Interplay

Authentic, emotionally open, and conversational, with Keke Palmer’s signature warmth and humor putting Offset at ease. Offset is candid about struggles and honest in self-reflection, balancing insight with vulnerability and wit. The episode’s mood is a mix of nostalgia, hard-won wisdom, laughter, and hope.