Aubrey O’Day sat down with Creators Inc. Podcast host Andy Bachman and got candid about some of the more complicated experiences she had in the music industry.
During the Sept. 3 episode, the former Danity Kane member reflected on the industry she came up in, claiming that certain career opportunities came with strings attached — and some very specific price tags.
“There was all kinds of pay for play,” O’Day, 42, told Bachman. “I was given an offer from a very huge star that’s on tour right now, and probably one of your favorite artists ever. $50,000 for a f**k from one of them, and he’ll be on my first single, sign me to his label, and do my first single.”
The MTV alum also recalled another artist, whom she described as currently touring with “two other guys that are very famous,” making an even bigger offer. “I think it was like $150,” she said, before quickly correcting herself. “No, sorry. $150,000. The other one was $50,000. I would take neither of that, by the way.”
O’Day did not name either artist, but she said the offers came through someone she identified as her manager at CAA at the time. “It was f**king nuts what was going on there,” she said, while explaining that she did not want to “put CAA out there” because it is “a whole new organization” today. “But yes, I got many calls from many rappers that were like, ‘We got a single waiting for her.’”
The comments came as Bachman and O’Day discussed the gatekeepers who once controlled access to the music industry. O’Day claimed some of them “played dirty,” adding, “There was a lot of dirty play going on that they still need to be investigating federally.”
O’Day rose to fame during that era on MTV’s Making the Band 3, eventually becoming one of the five original members of Danity Kane. The group’s first two albums both debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, but her initial run with the group ended in 2008, when she was removed by Sean “Diddy” Combs.
Meanwhile, Bachman has been shaping Creators Inc. Podcast around conversations spanning music, sports, Hollywood and internet culture. The show cracked Apple Podcasts’ Business top 15 in July, featuring guests such as Offset, Ice-T, Ryan Garcia, Blueface, Sophie Rain, Blac Chyna and Donna Mills.
O’Day is not the only woman in music to speak about sexual pressure being tied to career opportunities. In 2017, former Pussycat Doll Kaya Jones alleged that women could be propositioned by industry figures while their professional futures hung in the balance.
“If you are accepting an opportunity sleeping with your boss or bosses, or being propositioned it will go further if you do this,” Jones told Inside Edition. “What is the difference between a job opportunity and cash? I don’t really see a difference.” Pussycat Dolls founder Robin Antin strongly denied Jones’ broader allegations.
Lady Gaga has also discussed the power dynamics she faced early in her career. In 2021, she recalled that when she was 19, an unnamed producer told her to take her clothes off. Gaga said she refused and walked away, only to be threatened that her music would be destroyed.
