Lord Jamar is publicly opening up about his past relationship with Stove God Cooks, revealing that he once managed the rapper and helped facilitate his deal with Babygrande Records.
During a recent interview with Quiet Part Out Loud, Jamar pushed back against the narrative that Stove God has been trapped in an exploitative contract situation, claiming the rapper’s current issues stem more from refusing to fulfill obligations tied to the agreement than from the deal itself.
“Yes, I did,” Jamar said when asked whether he played a role in Stove God landing at Babygrande. “I have knowledge of the deal. He’s not in a bad deal.”
According to Jamar, Stove God eventually decided he no longer wanted to work with him or Babygrande founder Chuck Wilson, despite receiving advances and support through the label arrangement.
“He could have been out of this deal if he would have just delivered his projects,” Jamar said. “But he took the money, took the advance, and didn’t deliver.”
Jamar also claimed Stove God’s frustrations with management were indirectly aimed at him, especially after previous interviews where the rapper referenced management-related problems surrounding his career. The former Brand Nubian member described investing years into helping develop Stove God’s career before the rapper’s breakout success.
“This dude didn’t make a dollar in rap before he met me,” Jamar said, later adding that he introduced him to artists like Busta Rhymes and Roc Marciano while also helping reshape his image and stage name. Despite the criticism, Jamar repeatedly praised Stove God’s talent throughout the conversation.
“He’s talented as f***,” Jamar said. “If Lord Jamar says you dope, I don’t care what it is… I know talent when I see it.”
Still, he admitted feeling betrayed over how their relationship eventually ended, alleging that Stove God stopped paying him management money after receiving his advance from Babygrande.
“He got the deal, got his advance, and then didn’t break me my money,” Jamar claimed.
Jamar also addressed reports that Stove God attempted to release music independently through EVEN, a direct-to-consumer platform, despite still being under contract. According to Jamar, Babygrande blocked the release because the label still owned rights connected to the deal.
Throughout the interview, Jamar defended Babygrande founder Chuck Wilson, arguing that Wilson is being unfairly portrayed as the villain because labels typically do not publicly discuss artist disputes.
“It’s easy to make the label seem like the bad guy,” Jamar said.
He also suggested Stove God’s issues with the label now appear personal rather than business-related.
“I feel like he just don’t want Chuck to get paid off anything he does,” Jamar said.
