Akademiks and Maino are knee-deep in a fiery back-and-forth after the Brooklyn rapper unleashed a flurry of insults on the Let’s Rap About It podcast — all triggered by Akademiks cracking jokes about Fabolous’ latest fashion choices.
The whole thing kicked off when Akademiks, during a livestream, poked fun at Fab for rocking a headband in 2025, calling the look outdated. Maino, who’s been tight with Fab for years, didn’t waste time clapping back on his podcast with Jim Jones, Dave East, and Fabolous right there with him.
“Akademiks, I know you not talking,” Maino snapped in a now-viral clip. “You got the audacity to be speaking on what n***as is wearing?… You built like a dike […] a wet bag of laundry […] a jar of relish.”
He kept the jokes coming, roasting Ak’s “chicken nugget” build and brushing him off as someone who has no business critiquing rappers’ style.
Akademiks fired right back in a heated livestream, hyping himself up as a pillar of today’s hip-hop media and insisting Maino isn’t anywhere near his level when it comes to talking on the mic.
“You couldn’t win a rap battle,” Ak shot back. “Don’t come over here thinking you could win a battle on these microphones… I’m Jay-Z, Kareem, Wilt, Michael Jordan, and Tom Brady rolled up in one. You can’t fuck with me.”
Ak doubled down by saying he carved out a lane that didn’t exist before him, bragging that he helped make traditional radio “obsolete” and pointing out that he never tried switching to rap when things got shaky in his career.
He blasted Maino and other rappers-turned-podcasters for jumping into a space he claims to have built. Ak also fired back at Maino’s fashion jokes by pulling up old photos of Maino’s own questionable outfits.
“You’re not giving me a fashion lesson,” Ak said. “This the drip I was supposed to take?”
Even though Ak claimed much of his rant was just “trolling,” things took a darker turn when Maino posted a separate video accusing Akademiks of far more serious behavior. In the clip, Maino brought up old allegations and resurfaced recordings, accusing Ak of misconduct and inappropriate conversations with a minor — claims Ak has previously addressed, denied, or disputed publicly.
“You got too many things going on,” Maino said. “The only thing that belongs to you on the internet is your titties and that bottle of Hennessy.”
What started as playful shots over Fabolous’ headband has now spiraled into a deeply personal feud, far beyond style jokes or podcast banter.
