Shyheim says Fat Joe and Funk Flex tried to blacklist him when he was 15

Shyheim, the Staten Island rapper known as the Rugged Child, is calling out Fat Joe and Funkmaster Flex over what he describes as an effort to shut him out of the industry when he was a teenager. In a statement posted on Facebook, he wrote: "In the 1990s, two grown men were on the phone discussing how to blacklist a 15-year-old kid and prevent him from accessing opportunities.

Shyheim, the Staten Island rapper known as the Rugged Child, is calling out Fat Joe and Funkmaster Flex over what he describes as an effort to shut him out of the industry when he was a teenager.

In a statement posted on Facebook, he wrote: "In the 1990s, two grown men were on the phone discussing how to blacklist a 15-year-old kid and prevent him from accessing opportunities. Let that sink in. A child navigating an industry dominated by adults, politics, egos, and power plays. Welcome to the music industry."

The post appears to point back to a 2017 conversation on Flex's #WeGotaStoryToTell series, where Fat Joe talked about getting Big Pun onto Flex's compilation. According to a report on that interview, Flex had been turning down Wu-Tang crew affiliates, and Shyheim and King Just were mentioned as examples. That supports a conversation about access, but it doesn't by itself show a coordinated effort against Shyheim, and AllHipHop noted the two weren't on the phone in that clip.

Fat Joe, who dropped a Tiny Desk concert the same day, and Funk Flex have not responded. Shyheim's account is his claim.