Method Man has revealed he’s yet to receive a check for streams of his music. During an interview with Wale Ogunleye, Head of Sports & Entertainment at UBS, released on HOT 97’s YouTube channel, the legendary rapper claimed he had never received any money from streaming platforms for his music — despite his success as a solo artist and as a member of Wu-Tang Clan.
After Wale asked him to grade the music industry currently, the 53-year-old awarded it an F.
“Took them too long to adjust to streaming,” he explained. “To a point where they’re drowning and fighting, trying to tread water right now. I don’t think it’s really working out because the way the industry, or rather the way music is received, has changed so much that they either have to adjust or get the hell out of the way.”
After discussing concerns over artists’ rights with the rise of AI, Method Man made the jaw-dropping claim of never receiving royalty payments from any streaming service.
“I mean, I think it goes way deeper than that, especially when it comes to IPs [intellectual property] for artists that came from my era. Because honestly I’ve never gotten a streaming check for any of my music.” he stated.
He added: “Like I said, I’m still trying to figure it all out because there may be someone who can make a perfect mix of the two where — I’m not saying to accept it, but at least make art out of it, and that’s what I’m always for, the creative part.”
Method Man’s claim is a startling one, given the volume of music he has on platforms like Apple Music and Spotify, the latter of which boasts more than 3 million monthly listeners turning into Meth alone and 5.6 million monthly Wu-Tang Clan listeners.
While Method Man criticized the music industry, he believes recording artists are excelling and deserve an A grade.
“The things that we’re getting now as far as music as a whole, it’s so many different genres that are crossing into other genres,” he said. ”I just seen sexy red at a country music concert. That right there says a lot.”