N.O.R.E. Says He Should’ve Edited Ye’s Deleted ‘Drink Champs’ Interview ‘A Lot More,’ Reveals Diddy Told Him Not to

N.O.R.E. opened up about his fallout with Ye (formerly Kanye West) following his explosive Drink Champs interview in 2022, which was removed from REVOLT’s platform due to the scrutiny surrounding West’s controversial comments about George Floyd and the Jewish community.

Explore

Diddy

Kanye West

N.O.R.E

See latest videos, charts and news

Noreaga joined The Jason Lee Show on Wednesday (April 15), where he went in-depth about the backlash from the interview, making edits to Ye’s comments for the first time in Drink Champs history and receiving a call from Diddy — chairman of REVOLT at the time — who told him to leave the interview as is.

Related

Ye Postpones Upcoming France Gig ‘Until Further Notice’ Following Wireless Festival Ban

‘You Would Not Believe It’: Peter Hook Is Thrilled With Joy Division/New Order’s Rock Hall Induction

Bella Kay Joins Billboard U.K. Live at The Great Escape Festival 2026: See Full Lineup

“I feel like I should’ve took out a lot more with the Ye interview. I felt like Ye and me was friends,” he said. “I wish I edited it more.”

He recalled taking out a part where West made an analogy between assassinated Civil Rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. and George Floyd, who was killed by a police officer in Minneapolis in 2020. “It wasn’t how Ye said it, it was how Ye delivered it,” he added. “If I left that part out of the interview, it would’ve been horrible for Black people.”

Jason Lee explained that he was one of the first people N.O.R.E. called for advice following the controversy and a phone call from Diddy, who wanted to leave everything Ye said in the interview.

“Puff called me. I did not understand the Jewish part of the conversation and I did not understand the George Floyd part of the conversation,” N.O.R.E. said. “It was so much other things that happened, it went over my head. Puff called me and was like, ‘Hey, I think we should edit this one.’ I’m saying, ‘We’ll take your part out.’ He’s like, ‘Not my part, my part can stay. You sure you want these other parts to stay?’ … [Diddy] said, ‘I do not suggest that.’”

He continued: “It wasn’t about Kanye’s delivery or his statements, it was we felt like we were the Howard Sterns. If you edit us, then you’re messing up our creative content… Me looking in retrospect was like, ‘Damn, the George Floyd thing was wrong.’”… I should’ve listened to my own material. Had I listened to it, I would’ve been saying, ‘I could take this part out.’”

Days following the interview, REVOLT removed the Drink Champs episode from its platform due to the backlash toward West’s antisemitic remarks. “I can say antisemitic s–t and Adidas cannot drop me,” Ye boasted during the interview.

N.O.R.E. issued an apology and Ye’s spiral continued throughout October 2022, which saw him continuing to spew antisemitic rhetoric on various platforms and social media. Businesses like Adidas, Balenciaga, Gap and Universal Music Group quickly severed ties with the rapper.

Over three years later, West is dealing with the consequences of his actions, which included selling a swastika t-shirt and releasing a song titled “Heil Hitler” in 2025.

Looking to repair his relationship with the Jewish and Black communities, Ye issued an apology in The Wall Street Journal in January and met with a rabbi in November 2025.

On Tuesday (April 14), Ye postponed his June concert in France due to backlash from government officials opposing his performance. Earlier in April, West was banned from the U.K. due to his history of antisemitism after being tapped to headline Wireless Fest in London this summer, which is now canceled.

Watch the full interview with N.O.R.E. below. Talk about Ye takes place around the 12-minute mark.