Who is F1lthy? Playboi Carti’s producer denies DJ Akademiks’ “I am Music” Kendrick Lamar creative director claim

During a Rumble livestream on March 13, 2025, DJ Akademiks told his viewers that Playboi Carti allegedly revealed to him that fellow rapper Kendrick Lamar was the creative director of Carti's upcoming album, I Am Music, reportedly scheduled for release on March 14.

However, DJ Akademiks' claim was refuted by F1lthy, the record producer behind Playboy Carti's upcoming album, who took to X on March 14 to write:

"Kendrick fam but he is NOT the creative director of this album. This Carti album."

For the unversed, F1lthy, whose real name is Richard Ortiz, is a record producer from Pennsylvania who has been active since 2012. He earned his breakthrough in 2014 after he was introduced to Sickboyrari.

According to Genius.com, he gained mainstream success after working on Playboi Carti's 2020 album Whole Lotta Red. his beats are recognizable via his signature tag, "Wake up, F1lthy."

Aside from being a record producer, F1lthy is the co-founder of the creative music production and clothing company, Working on Dying and is also on Carti's record label Opium's roster.

Along with Playboi Carti, F1lthy has worked with artists like Five Finger Posse, Bladee and Dizzy Santana. The record producer has also expressed an interest in working with 21 Savage and Soulja Boy.

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Exploring DJ Akademiks' claims about Kendrick Lamar being I Am Music's creative director

The situation unfolded after DJ Akademiks hosted a livestream on Rumble on March 13, where he claimed Carti had revealed that Lamar was the album's creative director.

This conversation came about after the media personality claimed Drake had allegedly recorded a guest verse for Carti's album.

DJ Akademiks speculated that the alleged verse would not make it into Carti's album if Lamar was the LP's creative director, considering their highly-publicized rap beef in 2024.

"Kendrick is creative director of the whole shit. So that's what when I heard what Drake said I was like, 'Oh s**t, this s**t is fire.' So I don't know if this is making it. I remembered he said Kendrick's creative director, I'm like, 'Yeah that s**t ain't making it'," DJ Akademiks said.

He continued:

"That s**t ain't making it. Hell, no. Ain't no way Kendrick's gonna be like, 'Yeah I'm gonna hear this Drake song and put it...' F**k no. You get what I'm saying? That n***a say he the biggest hater, he still hating."

Playboy Carti revealed a list of artists featured on the upcoming album ahead of its release on March 13, which included Young Thug, Future, Travis Scott, The Weekend and Ty Dolla $ign.

However, one detail that caught fans' eyes was a name that was blacked out from the list.

Speculations arose about who this surprise guest could be, with DJ Akademiks claiming that Kendrick Lamar provided a verse for I Am Music in his recent livestream, saying:

"Buckle up, y'all. That n***a talking s**t again."

Carti dropped the album's tracklist ahead of its release, which saw Kendrick Lamar's name featured on the track Good Credit.

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DJ Akademiks also claimed that Playboi Carti played him the whole album a day ahead of its release. On March 13, 2025, the media personality took to X to dub the upcoming LP a "CLASSIC DAY 1," writing:

"CARTI JUST CALLED ME AND PLAYED THE WHOLE ‘I AM MUSIC’ ALBUM. ITS GON BE CALLED A CLASSIC DAY 1. IF IM LYING UNFOLLOW AND BLOCK ME."

I Am Music, originally scheduled for release at midnight EST on March 14, was delayed by three hours, with a 3 am EST release time. I Am Music is now out on Spotify, however, it has yet to be released on Apple Music at the time of this article.