The Joe Budden Podcast — Episode 875 | "5%esque"
Date: November 5, 2025
Host: Joe Budden & The Joe Budden Network
Guests/Crew: Flip, Ish, Mark Lamont Hill, Big Parks, et al.
Main Theme & Purpose
This episode weaves together the crew's hilarious takes on current events, pop culture, music industry controversies, and personal stories, all with their signature mix of banter, insight, and wild tangents. Key themes include the mess of election day and voting, streaming and industry issues (notably the Spotify bots lawsuit), hip hop's need for infrastructure, the Drake and Kendrick dynamic, body/dad-bod jokes, AI in music, and lots of “show your receipts” masculinity and vulnerable moments.
Key Discussion Points & Insights
1. Election Day, Voting, & Black Engagement (00:30–14:00)
- Banter starts with election day: A lot of jokes about who’s voting, who isn’t (most didn’t), and why.
- Mark Lamont Hill hits at voter apathy:
“There are a lot of people who are Democrats who might be a little skeptical ... Mamdani's gonna win sizably.” (06:38)
The group discusses Cuomo, Sliwa, Trump, predictions for NY elections, and the strategic political deals (real or not). - Non-voting jokes abound:
Joe: "You gotta vote if you wanna be a politician." (05:08)
Ish: “I used to run around in my mind just to seem like I’m a tough guy... That shit is expunged!” (01:16) - Angela Rye gets a shoutout for political involvement and support.
2. Halloween Antics & Celebrity Costumes (18:00–26:00)
- Haunted house tales: Ish admits to being scared, using women as a shield.
- Debate about Halloween costumes' boundaries: Bringing up Winnie Harlow's Whitney Houston impression and Megan Fox as Jackie Kennedy—was it in poor taste?
- Mark's quote:
“If you getting dressed for Halloween, you gonna ask yourself, is this a good idea? It’s probably not.” (23:57)
- Flip: "There's a lot of white titty love going on up here today." (23:06)
3. Drake & Spotify Bot Lawsuit Deep Dive (26:18–36:47)
- Mark breaks down RVX's lawsuit against Spotify for fake streams:
- Drake not being sued, just used as an illustrative artist; places streams come from (lots of VPNs, free Spotify tiers).
- The damage to “middle class and lower artists”—explained by the pooling of streaming revenue.
- Mark:
“They showed a time period... looking at just Drake’s music…where somebody would be listening for 23 hours. Unusual inflations.” (27:45)
- Big Parks:
“They're essentially taking money out of the pockets of people with lower numbers.” (29:25)
- Joe draws analogy to his own podcasting experience on Spotify, questioning fairness, and predicting more class action lawsuits in the future (35:40).
- Memorable moment:
Flip: “All these tech companies are relying on inflated information and data to rise up their stock price.” (35:56)
4. The Hip Hop Board/Game Changers (43:21–48:09)
- “If you had a hip hop artists’ union or board, who’d be on it?”
- Names include: DJ Premier, Chuck D, 9th Wonder, Master P, Eric B, Punch/Top Dawg, Luke, Kevin Lyles, Nas, maybe Jay Z/Dre (“are they too close to the bank now?”).
- Mark:
“...at some point you run out of feel.”
- Point: Hip hop needs a board for artist rights, fair business, and representation from all regions and eras.
5. World Series — Sports Wrap-Up (48:44–55:55)
- Mark and Joe go in-depth on the drama of Game 7, Toronto's heartbreak, the Dodgers' rise, Nike's "sequel" commercial, and whether the "Drake curse" is real.
- Mark:
"And Ohtani didn't bomb them in game seven...They did it at the end of the game, which is what I loved." (51:55)
- Funny sidebar on Nike's sports branding (did they pre-tape Drake vs. Kendrick victory spots?).
6. AI in Music — The Existential Threat (64:49–77:00)
- Joe stumbles onto an album he enjoys, only to realize mid-download that it’s AI-generated.
- He plays a (generally well-received) AI track.
- Flip & Parks debate: Is AI a tool for those lacking the skill (songwriters using AI vocals), or is it a threat to music careers as tech advances?
- Joe:
"You can't just go steal Whitney's voice, Luther's voice." (66:32)
- Mark:
"At some point, podcasting and journalism and paper writing ... all that shit is going to be gone if it goes down this road. And that just scares me." (72:23)
- Discussion on possible regulatory, compensation models—and whether fan connection to the person will keep human music afloat (74:45).
7. Personal & Relationship Drama (80:01–104:42)
- Dejounte Murray rants online about his ex:
- Group overviews his posts about being lied to, co-parenting drama, feeling used (“tried to pay any dollar for a production team, for content ... I'm a real man...”) (81:32–85:07).
- Mark:
“Stay off the Internet with this shit. ... You just don’t come off looking good when you do this.” (86:27)
- Transparency about past petty internet behavior:
- Joe: “When I did Suck A** shit at 25, they said, look at this Suck A** n****.” (92:09)
- Group shares their “petty tweets” & moments of relationship insecurity.
- Breakups & timing:
- Rumors of Big Sean/Jhene separation spark a discussion about knowing when to move on:
“It don’t take ten years to know if you want to spend your whole life with somebody.” — Joe (102:32)
Mark: “How long does it take? About seven. Seven and a half.” (102:38)
- Rumors of Big Sean/Jhene separation spark a discussion about knowing when to move on:
- Joe on loyalty:
“I judge people off of how we are in the foxhole. Word.” (160:59)
8. Vulnerability — Royce da 5'9" Health Reveal (157:32–162:54)
- Joe and crew react to Royce's Rolling Stone interview discussing his lingual dystonia and challenges recording.
“As a recording artist... this is one of the scariest things I’ve ever imagined somebody dealing with.” — Joe (158:24)
- Flip: “He can be a mouthpiece, no pun intended, to help someone else…”
9. Tracy Morgan’s Love Life & The Kidney Question (123:39–130:21)
- Mark shares Tracy Morgan’s new relationship (he’s been through a lot — divorce, major payout, kidney transplant).
- Would you stay with someone forever if they gave you a kidney?
- Group consensus: huge gratitude, probably financial support, but no, that isn’t a permanent obligation.
10. Politics, Obama Dunks, and Dying Villains (131:43–155:34)
- Obama’s charm on the Jersey campaign trail:
“You look cute, girl. But I’m married. Michelle’s fine, too.”
- Group jokes on who could get away with such lines (Mark: “You can’t teach that charisma, bro.” (132:40))
- Dick Cheney’s death — To celebrate?
- Mark takes victory laps over Cheney’s passing, listing war crimes, Halliburton ties, unapologetic.
- Debate: Is it ever right to celebrate a death?
“If your happiness is predicated on that, then rock out.”—Big Parks (106:27)
11. Streaming, Content, and Platform Beef (115:07–121:38)
- Joe brings up a content creator drama drawn from bodybuilding YouTubers: When does self-promotion on a shared platform become a conflict?
- Crew debates “what’s fair”—is it exploitation, or collaboration?
12. Jokes, Banter & Body-Shaming Tangents (110:32 onward)
- Extended, escalating roast battle between Joe, Parks, Mark, and Ish about working out, body types, and whose physique is “badder.”
- “You look like Vinnie Chase.”
- “Your body’s not nice for two months. You ugly naked.” (112:27)
- “You let a put the Nair down there…” (131:33)
- Ish: “Yo, watch your mouth, that’s my wife.”
- Recurring inside joke about tickle fights and metrosexuality.
Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments
- Joe: “If I got more numbers, I want to be paid more than more of these people... Don’t put me in that pot.” (29:07–30:41)
- Mark Lamont Hill: “My loudest voice isn’t always for the person who’s the worst. Sometimes it’s for the person being protected the most.” (153:21)
- Flip (re AI): “It’s hard to be that critical when we have been copy-pasting music for the past 30 years.” (74:47)
- Ish (on relationships): “She’s not gonna change unless they wanna change. And you have to look within what you might be missing in the home.” (85:26)
- Mark (on Obama’s charm): “You can’t teach that. You can’t duplicate that.” (132:45)
- Joe (on hip hop ‘board’): “If y’all were making y’all’s hip hop board... who would be on your board?” (43:21)
- Royce da 5'9" shout-out: “You are one of the strongest people I know. So even though this seems like the toughest battle in the universe, I think you got this.” (157:44)
- Comedy/Body shaming: “You wear tank tops in the pool. You wear shirts and hoodies in the pool. Don’t talk to me again.” (111:32)
- Jokes on Oprah-esque “Best crew in the world!” (16:32)
Timestamps for Important Segments
- 01:14 — Ish on voter apathy and his mother roasting him over voting rights
- 06:14 — Mark breaks down Trump/Cuomo/Sliwa dynamics in NY mayoral race
- 26:18 — Drake, Spotify, RVX lawsuit, and bots
- 43:21 — What would a hip hop artists’ union look like?
- 48:44 — Dodgers-Blue Jays World Series recap and “Drake curse”
- 64:49 — Joe tries AI music, crew debates AI, art, and business
- 81:31 — Dejounte Murray’s social media relationship drama
- 102:32 — Big Sean/Jhene breakup, “How long does it take to know?”
- 123:39 — Tracy Morgan relationship, “Would you stay with a person forever for a kidney?”
- 131:43 — Obama on campaign trail, what can only a true charmer get away with
- 149:13 — Dick Cheney’s legacy, is it right to celebrate villain’s death?
- 157:32 — Royce 5’9” reveals neurological battle
- 160:59 — Joe on loyalty and “foxhole” friendships
- 166:04–179:45 — Sleepers/music picks (Joe: Yae Ali; Flip: Big L; Parks: J. Howell; Mark: Olivia Dean)
- 181:41 — Closing banter, future topics, jokes, and sign off
Tone & Style
The original trademark tone is irreverent, boundary-pushing, often self-deprecating, brutally honest, and deeply inside-jokey. Emotional moments (like the Royce reveal) are allowed to breathe, breaking up the dense comedy and pop-culture commentary.
Summary for New Listeners
This riotous episode is a prime cut of the Joe Budden Podcast’s style: thoughtful and combative, weaving the ridiculous and the profound. It’s current events, therapy, music biz masterclass—and barbershop roast—rolled into one. The roundtable is at its best on industry issues (Spotify's streaming mess, hip hop needing a union), but also dives deep on masculinity, relationships, and digital culture. Personal stories, scandalous anecdotes, and unpredictable jokes abound. If you ever wondered what it sounds like when a crew of music-loving, deeply opinionated friends argue, roast, and “tickle-fight” their way through the headlines—this is your episode.