DJ Akademiks is weighing in on what he sees as a major shift in hip hop culture, arguing that today’s rappers are no longer the main attraction for young fans.
During a recent livestream, the outspoken podcaster suggested that artists have unintentionally boosted the rise of online creators by chasing streaming numbers and internet visibility.
“Rappers made a huge mistake in the last two years,” Akademiks said. “When they were chasing numbers, they all went to streamers.”
According to Akademiks, appearances alongside creators like Kai Cenat, Adin Ross and N3on helped elevate streamers far more than the rappers themselves. He pointed to Tory Lanez appearing on Ross’ livestream years ago as an early example of that trend.
Akademiks says rappers lost popularity by chasing numbers and running to streamers, which only ended up giving streamers more clout while rappers got little back pic.twitter.com/S4DASuGzpO
— FearBuck (@FearedBuck) December 24, 2025
“The end result is that it helped the streamers more than it helped the rappers,” he said, adding that audiences are now gravitating toward long-form personalities rather than short songs that can feel unpredictable.
Akademiks believes artists have “handed their audience over” by prioritizing clout over craft. “We’re buying into personality,” he said. “Now rappers have to show up to streamers’ bedrooms to get attention back, and fans are making a hard choice.”