Videos by According2HipHop
Joe Budden and Charlamagne The God are two of the loudest voices in hip-hop media. The two of them have forged two different paths. Charlamagne has aligned himself with media giant iHeart, while Joe has elected to go the indie route. And while both of them have taken two completely different routes, both of them remain two of the biggest earners in the podcast space.
Highest-Paid Podcasters List Features Budden & Charlamagne
According to a post from JBTVCommunity on X, Charlamagne and Joe Budden both made the Forbes list for the highest paid podcasters. Charlamagne landed in the top-10 with an eye-popping $27 million earned in the podcast space this year already. Budden came in at the number 15 spot with $20 million in earnings.
Congrats to @cthagod & @JoeBudden for making the Forbes Highest Paid Podcasters 2026 list. pic.twitter.com/Kcy8CdpM5Y
— JBTV Community (@JBTVCommunity) July 30, 2026
Charlamagne and Joe have had their issues in the past. But one thing about their relationship is that the respect has never dwindled.
Earlier this year, Charlamagne signed a reported $200 million deal with iHeartMedia. He will continue his role as host of the morning program and will also look to elevate his Black Effect Podcast network to new heights. Despite the reported tension between him and Charlamagne, Budden appears to be more proud of him than anything. Especially considering that they both came from humble beginnings.
“It got me thinking about just even the history between him and me and where we both are,” Budden said. “Like someone got a picture of me and him in a South Carolina radio station in 2001 and 2002 looking dusty and bummy, just two talented n****s passionate about something. I like it. He probably got it, but we don’t speak.”
Both of the media personalities have made an undeniable impact in the podcast space.
