Drink Champs’ N.O.R.E. on Why He Refused to Pay Rihanna $15k and It Cost Him Millions 

Rapper-turned-podcaster N.O.R.E. has shared a candid story about one of the biggest missteps of his career. It all boiled down to the emcee being cheap, and that miscalculation may have cost him millions.

What Being Cheap Cost Him

During a recent episode of his hit “Drink Champs” show, which featured 8 Ball & MJG, the hip-hop veteran revealed huge music misstep he made in his career.

The Queens native once passed on an opportunity to feature a young Rihanna on the remix of his 2004 Reggaeton hit, “Oye Mi Canto,” being stingy with his budget.

At the time, Rihanna was a rising artist introduced to him by Ty Ty, Jay-Z’s best friend, but the cost of her feature proved to be a sticking point.

“A friend of mine name is Ty Ty. He sends me bottles of Yamazaki whiskey all the time,” N.O.R.E. explained. “But he brought me this girl, one time. And he said to me, ‘I want her to do the remix to ‘Boricua… Morena’ [the chorus of the Billboard slammer].’ I was like, ‘No problem.’”

The “Superthug” emcee went on to say, “Then he goes, ‘But she wants 15 grand.’ I had a million-dollar budget, and I basically was like, ‘That’s too much.’ You know what I mean?”

“I f—ked up,” he would confess. “That girl wound up being Rihanna. Biggest mistake of my career.”

At the time, N.O.R.E. was not only riding high off his success as both a solo artist and a member of Capone-N-Noreaga, with hits like “Nothin’” and “Banned From TV,” but expanding his band. “Oye Mi Canto” featuring Nina Sky and Daddy Yankee was at the height of its success, peaking at No. 12 on the Billboard Hot 100 and helping to bring reggaeton into the mainstream.  

It was the first song in its genre to be featured on MTV and BET, according to the star in an interview with Billboard.

While he previously worked with notable artists like Pharrell Williams, striking it big by identifying hit musicians before mostly everyone else, the missed opportunity to collaborate with a then-newbie Rihanna remains a painful “what if.”

“Now you think about it—that $15 grand could have made me $5 million,” he admitted. “But I couldn’t think like that.”

Shortly after he fronted on the Bajan bombshell, Rihanna released “Pon de Replay” in 2005, which soared to No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100, outperforming “Oye Mi Canto.” The banger marked the start of her meteoric rise, as she quickly became one of the most influential and successful artists of her generation.

With chart-topping hits like “Umbrella,” “We Found Love,” and “Diamonds,” Rihanna’s career transcended music, turning her into a billionaire thanks to her ventures in beauty and fashion. Her net worth now exceeds $1.4 billion, a stark contrast to N.O.R.E.’s respectable but more modest $5 million.

Over her career, she has been featured on a few artist’s tracks like Calvin Harris, T.I., twice with Eminem, and D.J. Khaled, but never doubled back to perform with Noreaga again. She hasn’t even appeared on his hot show, though her boyfriend and children’s father, A$AP Rocky, has.

The story serves as a stark reminder about the value of recognizing talent and thinking long-term. While $15,000 felt like too much for an unknown artist at the time, the decision cost him not just millions but also the chance to be part of Rihanna’s legendary career. It’s a powerful lesson in trusting your gut and investing in potential, even when it comes at a price.

Sometimes, the biggest risks are the ones worth taking.