Russ is standing firm on his critique of Roc Nation’s distribution model, and he wants fans to understand one thing: it’s business, not beef with Jay-Z.
During a February 24 appearance on The Truth Hurts with hosts Jeff Weiss, Rosecrans Vic and Free, the independent rap mainstay addressed backlash surrounding his comments about Roc Nation charging artists 15 percent for distribution. Russ framed the issue as simple arithmetic.
“It wasn’t a knock at Roc Nation or Jay Z,” he said. “It was just look — this is a self-uploading distro service. That’s it. There’s a million of these and it’s all the same shit.”
For Russ, the sticking point is ownership. In an era where artists can upload music themselves and retain full royalties, he questions the incentive to surrender a cut.
“There’s places where you can do it and keep 100%, so why would you give 15%?” he asked.
Russ Addresses Recent Jay-Z’s Roc Nation Distribution Comments
When confronted with the prestige argument — “Yeah, but it’s Roc Nation” — Russ didn’t flinch. “What, do you think you’re going to get a Jay Z feature tomorrow? Are you fucking slow? What are you talking about?”
He likened Roc Nation’s distro arm to platforms such as TuneCore and DistroKid, arguing the mechanics are identical despite the branding.
“It’s literally TuneCore, DistroKid but just under the umbrella of Roc Nation,” he said. “You think that, well shit though like I bet you go to the Brunch though… you’re falling for it.”
Still, Russ acknowledged the strategy behind the move. “The independent scene is making up such a high market share so it makes sense RN wants to get in on that,” he explained, calling it “the fastest growth part of the business.”
He also revealed that Jay-Z sent messages to him through journalist Brandon “B.Dot” Miller four or five times, signaling that the commentary reached the top. Even so, Russ insists his stance remains rooted in principle: in today’s landscape, ownership outweighs optics.
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