Episode 96 starts off with the cast responding to their viral Dot Era/Drake clips on TikTok, as more people begin to realize that Kendrick Lamar’s post-beef GNX album is now widely referred to as the Dot Era. From there, a major discussion unfolds about Global Hip-Hop & R&B Superstars who currently qualifies and whether this level of global dominance and title can continue in the future given today’s musical landscape. For the purposes of this convo, a “Global Superstar” means someone with massive notoriety inside and outside of North America, consistent sales, sold-out arenas (or larger) across multiple continents, and true worldwide recognition to the average person. As “the Drake cast,” the crew also breaks down the recent dismissal of the defamation case vs UMG, shares their thoughts on Taylor Swift’s record-breaking 4 million first-week sales for The Life of a Showgirl, and debates whether Doechii’s drop in Spotify monthly listeners is odd or just normal side effects of music promotion. They also revisit Ticketmaster’s CEO claiming ticket prices “aren’t expensive enough,” then take a moment to pay respect to D’Angelo following his passing. The episode closes with a look at Timbaland’s AI experiment (which dropped the same day as the D’Angelo news) and a wild conversation sparked by Cam Newton asking women to list their past flings.