Billboard Unfiltered closes out January with another jam-packed episode talking all things Grammy Award predictions, Snoop Dogg’s inauguration performance backlash response, DJ Akademiks’ Twitch ban and more.
Snoop Dogg was criticized by many fans for his involvement with the D.C. Crypto Ball following Donald Trump’s inauguration earlier this month and he brushed off the haters. “For all the hate I’m going to answer with love, I love too much,” he said. “Get your life right, stop worrying about mine.”
On the public relations side, senior charts & data analyst Trevor Anderson believes Snoop took a major hit. “I don’t know if Snoop needed to do this,” he said. “You know who your fan base is… I don’t think Snoop needs a bag that bad. He was just getting paid a gazillion to be on the Olympics coverage.”
Staff writer Kyle Denis wasn’t surprised at Snoop’s decision to be involved with the Crypto Ball, but did call it “disappointing.”
“Knowing what his previous stance was… To see him go back on that was disappointing,” Denis added. “If the bag seems to be over where 47 is, that’s where people are going to go… I understand Trump pardoned ‘Harry O’ — Death Row co-founder — but you don’t gotta lick the boot 24/7.”
DJ Akademiks was reportedly banned from Twitch following a conversation with a 15-year-old streamer where he made inappropriate comments that were taken as grooming and subsequently went viral on X and IG.
Ak responded to the Twitch ban and promised to make it right while going off on other streamers such as Plaqueboymax, who condemned his comments. “I never need to be on Kai, Max, Adin’s stream,” he said. “I don’t need to be on anybody’s stream. I got my own thing going on.”
Deputy editorial director Damien Scott believes Akademiks has very little to fear with his platform moving forward. “Number one, he’s built this audience that doesn’t care what we consider to be moral norms,” he said. “Brands are gonna be tough for him. Even on YouTube, I’m sure his reach is going to be limited… He doesn’t really need a platform, he can go off and do something on his own and a good chunk of the audience will follow him there.”
Kendrick Lamar leads all rappers with seven nominations and many believe he’ll be taking home plenty of hardware on Sunday (Feb. 3) at the 2025 Grammy Awards, which kicks off a busy month as he’ll be heading to the Super Bowl the following week.
“I think the brother is going to take home five,” deputy director of R&B/hip-hop Carl Lamarre said of Lamar.
Scott thinks Doechii’s Alligator Bites Never Heal is going to win best rap album. “I’m shocked at how well it’s been received,” he said. “It’s a good pick. It comes from a house that is known for producing super high-quality.”
While “Not Like Us” is favored to win best rap performance, Denis could see GloRilla’s “Yeah Glo!” pulling off the upset. “She got that momentum. That song is a hit, it’s a banger,” he said. “The only way I see [Kendrick] losing is if he splits enough votes between ‘Not Like Us’ and ‘Like That.’”
Find all of the crew’s Grammy predictions plus more much in the episode below.
