DJ Envy Blasts Desus & Mero Then Walks Out Of His Own Interview (Video)

Two top forces in modern media are The Breakfast Club and Desus & Mero. These video talk-shows and interview platforms have helped give Charlamagne Tha God, Angela Yee, DJ Envy, Desus, and Mero household-name status as cultural pundits. Podcasts, books, traditional television shows and appearances, and endorsements have followed.

Those worlds converged this morning, in what may be better described as a collision. Desus & Mero recently made light of DJ Envy’s marriage to Gia Casey on their show. In a video clip replayed at the top of The Breakfast Club episode’s interview, Desus and Mero can be heard editorializing Casey and Envy’s recent appearance on The Real. As the profiled couple of 25 years reportedly faced the possibility of divorce (including seeking the counsel of attorneys), they decided to stay together. In the self-proclaimed “Bodega Boys” show, Desus Nice suggested it was “DJ Envy checks” that kept the bond together.

Upon their introduction on the Power 106 show, Envy introduces Desus & Mero as “D*ckhead and P*ssy.” From the beginning, it is clear that there is no joking to be had, as the Desert Storm DJ’s frustration is palpable.

“First of all, you owe my wife an apology,” says Envy. “When you insinuated that she was there for a check.” He adds that Gia has been with him since he was 15 years old, has made more money than him at points during their relationship, and been fully supportive of his career. In the clip, Mero makes light of the family approaching divorce. “How do you prep your kids? ‘Your dad ain’t sh*t,'” mimics the New Yorker over Casey’s words, recreating a frustrated family meeting.

Desus tells Envy, “It was a joke.” The DJ replies that it is fine to joke about him, but it crosses a line when the commentary extends to his family members. “You can talk about me, all day. You can make jokes. But when it comes to my wife and my family, it’s a little disrespectful, and you should know that, ’cause you’ve got a wife and kids.” Envy may have been particularly infuriated about the comments, because it was not the first time his wife was dragged into the muck by an on-air personality. In 2006, Star, now of Everyday Struggle, was arrested then fired from Power 105, after making threats amid lewd remarks about Envy’s wife and family during a radio beef. At the time, Envy was at HOT 97.

While Envy may have had heightened sensitivity to comments like those Desus because of past experiences and the rancor they might have caused in his household, the point that he continues to make over the next several minutes is that while public figures are fair game for criticism, it stops there. Envy alludes to what appears to be an unspoken code amongst commentators, entertainers, athletes and others in the public eye, that family and friends are off limits. Coincidentally, in a Breakfast Club interview with comedian Michael Blackson recorded on the same day as Envy’s dust up with Desus and Mero, Blackson shared that comedians have the same code. Blackson, who is embroiled in a public feud with Kevin Hart over comments Blackson made about Hart’s recent infidelity, said even though comedians can be savage with one another, “we don’t touch family. We don’t touch kids. We don’t touch friends.”

Once they really Envy is serious,  both Desus and Mero apologize, with Desus saying, “I’m sorry. I thought we was cool.” Envy agrees, but seemingly has no time for excuses. As the interview goes on, featuring laughing from Desus, Mero, and Charlamagne, a disengaged DJ Envy removes his headphones and walks out at the 5:45 mark. Angela Yee tells the guests that “any mention of his wife is going to set him off.” Meanwhile, Charlamagne appears to laugh at the exit.

The episode is the latest in a handful of storied confrontational Breakfast Club interviews. In the past, Beanie Sigel and Birdman have been among the guests in recent years who have aired grievances with the hosts over remarks on their show. As the interview continues without Envy, the subject repeatedly comes back to their comments about the DJ’s wife and the tense exchange they just had.

Desus and Mero continue to make light of the situation by apologizing to seemingly everyone they’ve ever offended in life, in a way that seems to be mocking Envy and his sensitivity. Through their smiles, however, it is apparent they are a bit tight about Envy’s behavior, with Desus openly saying as much. At one point, they say that the matter should have ended (at least on air) once they apologized, but Envy continued to pursue it. Later in the conversation, Desus also explicitly calls out The Breakfast Club for developing a reputation for setting up their guests. “You think this was good for anybody?,” he asks of Angela Yee. He continues, “You think when this goes viral it’s going to make Breakfast Club look good? Are people going to want to come up here now or are people going to be like ‘Nah. Y’all ni**as is setting ni**as up?'”

His questions raise an important issue. When is it appropriate to air grievances with someone on a public forum, whether it be TV, radio, social media or otherwise? In his interview with The Breakfast Club, Blackson suggested that true conflict should be handled offline. Whatever the case may be, it seems the days of discreet disagreements are waning.