Rapper DaBaby claimed he’s being blackballed because of his latest album acquiring lower sales than his previous work.
Despite the hype, DaBaby received from the first track on his album, “Boogeyman,” it wasn’t enough to beat his previous projects’ first-week sales. “Baby On Baby 2,” the sequel to his 2019 album “Baby On Baby,” collected 16,000 units in the first week, which was no match for the 124,000 units he generated with his 2020 album “Blame It On Baby.”
He took to Instagram to downplay that the album wasn’t as successful as his others and blamed it on him being ostracized.
“Not bad for da BlackBalled Baby,” he wrote.
DaBaby wasn’t the first to blame the business for intentionally causing his album not to do so well. DJ Akademiks blamed Apple Music’s Global Editorial Head of Hip-Hop and R&B, Ebro Darden.
“Da Baby last project in 2020, ‘Blame it on Baby,’ sold 124K first week,” Akademiks argued on Twitter. “His new project, after being blackballed by Ebro, Apple Music, is scheduled to do less than 20K. Now yall understand my Ebro convo…DSP’s control who is hot and who is not. Fall out of favor with them..UR DONE.”
Da Baby last project in 2020 ‘Blame it on Baby’ sold 124K first week. His new project after being blackballed by Ebro, Apple Music is scheduled to do less than 20K. Now yall understand my Ebro convo…. DSPs control who is hot and who is not. Fall out of favor with them.. UR DONE
— DJ Akademiks (@Akademiks) September 28, 2022
“Apple Music is not the only platform,” his other tweet read. “Based on this dummy’s logic, Da Baby should be doing well on the platform HE works for. Is it?”
Apple Music is not the only platform.
Based on this dummy’s logic, Da Baby should be doing well on the platform HE works for. Is it?
— Kojo Ebro Odogwu (@oldmanebro) September 29, 2022
Akademiks isn’t the only one. Rapper Meek Mill tweeted that he believed DaBaby was being blackballed.
They blatantly black balling da baby .. not my business but ima observer 👨🏾🔬
— MeekMill (@MeekMill) September 29, 2022
Others blamed the rapper himself, claiming that his music sounded the same and that his unsolicited opinions got him in this predicament. After all, he began “Boogeyman” by claiming he slept with Houston rapper Megan Thee Stallion and disrespected her boyfriend, Pardi.
People acting like DaBaby is blackballed when in reality his music isn’t good enough to overcome the negative press at this point (public spat with Danileigh, HIV comments at RL, pillow talking about Meg by name). You can only be the villain when the music is undeniable.
— 500 🏎 (@Kameron_Hay) September 29, 2022
Dababy did this to himself😭Constantly over sharing his unneeded opinions, just blatantly being misogynistic and homophobic. Not to mention the music just not doing what it did. Blaming everyone else when in all actuality he Blackballed himself
— tay🦋🌻 (@__taaayyylor) September 30, 2022
Ain’t nobody tryna listen to 30 different versions of ‘Suge’. DaBaby blackballed himself.
— NUFF (@nuffsaidny) September 29, 2022
DaBaby aint blackballed. We saw his album. We said nah 🤣
— Cold Stone Cream Austin (@YungSaddyZaddy) September 30, 2022
DaBaby is not blackballed. He just hasn’t evolved musically in the last three years. People got bored of him. That’s all
— BlackySpeakz (@BlackySpeakz) September 30, 2022
