Rapper DaBaby made headlines last summer when he made homophobic remarks during a performance at the Rolling Loud Festival in Miami and then refused to apologise. The ensuing controversy harmed his career and reputation, and he now estimates that the incident cost him $100 million in revenue.
The figure comes from a recent interview DaBaby did with “Ebro in the Morning” on Hot 97 in New York. And the rapper claims responsibility for everything that occurred:
Rapper DaBaby had a brush with infamy in the summer of last year, when he made homophobic remarks during a performance at the Rolling Loud Festival in Miami and then refusing to apologize for them. The ensuing controversy did damage to his career and his reputation, and now he’s estimating that the incident cost him some $100 million in lost revenue.
The figure comes from a recent interview DaBaby gave with “Ebro in the Morning” on New York’s Hot 97 radio station. And the rapper says he’s taking accountability for everything that happened:
“I take accountability for everything, every single bit of it. You get what I’m saying at the end of the day, but most importantly knowing on hindsight, when you get to a certain level in this business, you held accountable for different levels of things.”
DaBaby claimed that the incident cost him $100 million in lost revenue from cancelled concerts and record deals in a single year, portraying himself as a cautionary tale for other young artists:
“I’m not into all the conspiracy theories and such until you see it really cost a ni**a $100 million in a year.”
In a separate interview with Big Boy on 92.3, DaBaby gave a slightly lower estimate:
“I would have had $20-30 million before the ball dropped.”
I had $30 million in shows scheduled before December 31.”
It’s painful regardless of the exact amount, whether it’s $20-30 or $100 million in losses. Speaking with Erbo once more:
“I cheated myself out of millions of dollars. Millions. So, young artists coming in, take me as an example when you pop.”
It’s impossible to say whether DaBaby truly lost $100 million in potential earnings, especially given the domino effect of missing out on so much concert and festival exposure on record sales and online streams. However, according to the AfroTech story on DaBaby’s comments, we do know that he had a number of high-profile performances cancelled following the incident, including scheduled gigs at festivals such as Can’t Wait Live!, Day N Vegas, the New York City Governor’s Ball music festival, the iHeartRadio Music Festival, Music Midtown, and others in one year.
No matter how you calculate the numbers, it’s undeniable that the controversy cost DaBaby some very lucrative opportunities. And only time will tell if he is able to make a successful comeback.