DJ Akademiks recently speculated on Kendrick Lamar’s stance with talent agency Wasserman after Chappell Roan cut ties with the agency due to the CEO’s name appearing in the recently released Epstein file. Wasserman Music is one of the biggest talent agencies in the entertainment industry, whose client roster includes Kendrick Lamar, SZA, Coldplay, Ed Sheeran, Tyler, the Creator, and Lorde, among others.
For those uninformed, Casey Wasserman, the CEO of Wasserman Music and Chairman and President of the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games, was named in the Epstein files the DOJ released on January 30, 2026, which included his 2003 emails to Ghislaine Maxwell, Jeffrey Epstein’s co-conspirator and associate. Maxwell is currently in prison after being found guilty of charges including s*x trafficking of a minor.
On February 9, 2026, Chappell Roan took to her Instagram Story to release a statement announcing her departure from Wasserman Music, writing that she holds her teams “to the highest standards and have a duty to protect them as well.” DJ Akademiks reacted to this news in a subsequent Rumble livestream and speculated whether Kendrick Lamar would follow suit.
The media personality pointed out that Drake, previously repped by Wasserman Music’s agent Brent Smith, dropped the agency in November 2025. For context, Smith also represents Lamar, who was involved in a contentious rap battle with Drake in 2024.
“Chappell Roan said ‘Peace out!’ Kendrick, it is your turn. Kendrick is represented by Wasserman’s hip-hop agent, Brent Smith. Drake left this agent a couple months ago, and now he solely represents Kendrick Lamar. The news came out a few months before the Epstein List came out that Drake dropped the booking agent and severed ties with Wasserman Music and Brent Smith…because, we can all imagine, you don’t want to have the same booking agent as your opp,” Akademiks said.
Akademiks further suggested that being part of the Wasserman might clash with Kendrick Lamar’s “notable high morals” and “values,” saying that the rapper who made his “biggest song of his career about p*dophile” would “in no way, shape or form” stand for this.
The song Akademiks is referring to is Not Like Us, Lamar’s Grammy-winning hit that he released during the diss battle with Drake, where he publicly called the Canadian rapper a “certified p*edophile.”
“Kendrick has been a person of notable high morals. Chappell Roan already dipped. And I think he’s up next. So, again, we can only go by his own words, and what he stood for in the past, I’m hearing that Kendrick Lamar, after making the biggest song of his career about p*dophile would in no way, shape or form…” he said.
DJ Akademiks added:
“The n***a who’s on the Epstein list is the company that booked Kendrick’s tour. I don’t think Kendrick aligns with those values, or it could have been just performative, maybe he just hated Drake.”
Exploring Chappell Roan’s statement about leaving Wasserman Music
The recently released Epstein files included Casey Wasserman and Ghislaine Maxwell’s flirtatious emails to each other in 2003. One email from Wasserman saw him asking Maxwell when he would see her “in a tight leather outfit?” In another email dated April 2033, Maxwell told Wasserman, who was married at the time, that she knew how to give a massage that would “drive a man wild.”
In another email, Maxwell asked Wasserman if the weather would be foggy during the time they were scheduled to meet, “so that you can float naked down the beach and no one can see you unless they are close up?” Wasserman replied, “or something like that.”
According to the Guardian, Casey Wasserman released a statement on January 31 addressing the emails, saying he “deeply regrets” his correspondence with Ghislaine Maxwell.
“I deeply regret my correspondence with Ghislaine Maxwell which took place over two decades ago, long before her horrific crimes came to light. I never had a personal or business relationship with Jeffrey Epstein. As is well documented, I went on a humanitarian trip as part of a delegation with the Clinton Foundation in 2002 on the Epstein plane. I am terribly sorry for having any association with either of them,” he said.
Despite the statement, many artists represented by Wasserman Music called for Casey Wasserman to step down as the CEO. Artists such as Orville Peck, Wednesday, and Beach Bunny announced their decision to sever ties with the company, with Chappell Roan following suit.
Chappell Roan announced her decision on Instagram Story on February 9, 2026, saying that “no artist, agent or employee” should be expected to defend “actions that conflict so deeply with our own moral values.”
“As of today, I am no longer represented by Wasserman, the talent agency led by Casey Wasserman. I hold my teams to the highest standards and have a duty to protect them as well. No artist, agent or employee should ever be expected to defend or overlook actions that conflict so deeply with our own moral values. I have deep respect and appreciation for the agents and staff who work tirelessly for their artists and I refuse to passively stand by,” Chappell Roan wrote.
Chappell Roan further added that artists deserved representation that “aligns with their values and supports their safety and dignity,” saying that her decision “reflects [her] belief that meaningful change in our industry requires accountability and leadership that earns trust.”
Kendrick Lamar has yet to comment on Casey Wasserman’s name appearing in the Epstein files as of this article.
Edited by Juhi Marzia
