PATREON EXCLUSIVE | The Human Experience (feat. Eric Benet and T.I) | The Joe Budden Podcast

Eric Benét observes a significant decline in the reverence for musical craft, contrasting the tactile experience of buying albums with the fleeting nature of streaming. He notes that the abundance of music, lack of industry filters, and reliance on technological crutches like autotune in live performances have diminished both artistic quality and consumer appreciation. The physical act of purchasing an album fostered a deeper connection and willingness to engage with an entire body of work, a sentiment lost in the instant-skip culture of streaming.

Benét details how in 'the day' people would spend money on albums, 'sift through the crates,' and read liner notes, creating a 'reverence for the art.' He contrasts this with today's environment where 'if you don't like something at first listen, you don't never got to go back.' He also criticizes the use of 'technological crutches on stage' and the ability for artists 'plucked from obscurity' via TikTok to perform without true live vocal ability. (00:11:30 - 00:16:15, 00:34:31 - 00:35:47)

Eric Benét shares how his record label initially marketed him as 'sexy and suave,' leading him to suppress his natural 'goofy' personality. However, embracing his authentic self on platforms like TikTok later in his career led to a significant resurgence in engagement and popularity. This highlights a shift in audience preference towards genuine personality over manufactured images.

Benét states, 'when I was first signed to Warner Brothers... their whole thing was, 'Okay Eric, we love you... but we're going to market you as sexy and swave.' He later realized, 'I'm just being myself. And lo and behold, that's what people wanted.' He laments, 'if I knew all y'all put my charisma in a bottle 20 years old, right? I might be doing stadiums.' (00:29:18 - 00:30:24)

Both hosts and Eric Benét express concern over a perceived decline in general knowledge, vocabulary, and critical thinking among younger generations. They attribute this to over-reliance on digital devices, algorithmic information feeds, and a reduction in real-world social interaction, which historically fostered intelligence and curiosity. This decline is seen as correlating with a similar degradation in artistic quality and appreciation.

Benét questions, 'there should be like certain general knowledge that they should know whether it's geography, whether it's vocabulary or or just general knowledge information or who's the vice president.' He notes, 'They can't tell time on an analog clock.' The discussion links this to 'eliminating our intelligence, we're also eliminating our our curiosity, our strength.' (00:31:42 - 00:34:31)

T.I. describes his extensive entrepreneurial ventures—real estate, clothing lines, restaurants, film, TV, and podcasting—as driven by an 'ADHD' mind constantly generating ideas. While financial success is a byproduct, his primary motivation is a deep desire to engage in 'dope shit' and contribute to culture and community, rather than a fear of being without. This passion-driven approach allows him to pursue diverse projects, even those that initially cost him money, like comedy.

T.I. states, 'I have so many thoughts and ideas. I I think so many things about the things that I see, things that I feel are missing from... the culture, from the community, from society.' He adds, 'I just want to do dope shit, bro. I just want to be a part of dope shit.' He also notes, 'I lost money doing that [comedy] shit. But I still do it and I'm going to do it again because I love it.' (02:11:14 - 02:12:33, 02:21:35 - 02:22:20, 02:22:40 - 02:22:57)

T.I. expresses a unique perspective on fame, feeling that his financial success, while substantial, does not fully align with his level of notoriety. He notes that true financial freedom allows famous individuals to 'pay their way around the nuisance of that fame,' a luxury he feels he hasn't fully achieved, as he still performs everyday tasks like pumping gas and grocery shopping.

T.I. states, 'I feel Yes, I am. I'm very famous, but I don't feel that my... my finances have met the fame.' He explains, 'when people whose money match their fame they they they can pay their way around the nuisance of that fame... I'm not there yet... I still pump my own gas. I still... do my own grocery shop.' (02:07:18 - 02:08:36)