In its 15 years of trajectory, Vlad Tv, led by its general manager, Dj Vlad, has become a hit in the American urban genre. His signature interviews have turned the Ukrainian native into a representative character of Hip Hop culture in the United States.
They have also allowed him to gain a cultural cache and rank within this culture. With over 5 million followers on YouTube alone, Vlad Tv has become one of the biggest platforms for Hip Hop lifestyle information.
Vlad and paying for interviews
As unethical as it may sound, Dj Vlad asks his interviewees a series of questions. This has been confirmed on several occasions over the past few years by Dj Vlad himself in 2019 when he interviewed podcaster Adam 22 for Vlad TV.
Criticism did not stop coming his way, seen by how unethical it is considered by the community to pay someone for an interview, especially because of how this payment could affect the realism of the interview and what is said in it.
However, Vlad affirms that this is searching to change a bad, historically imposed mentality. A thought of antiquity where it is frowned upon that statements are affected by charging to be interviewed.
How much does Vlad TV pay for interviews?
According to statements made by DJ Vlad for Variety magazine in 2022, usually thousands of dollars are discussed when negotiating for interviews. More specifically, figures currently hover around 100,000 depending on the interviewee.
This is to make sure that the interview is an open book to discuss any topic the interviewer is interested in. Thus eliminating certain prejudices or limits regarding what can be asked during the interview.
Both the interviewee and Vlad TV benefit economically as well as one another by the scoops obtained. This follows a no-holds-barred format where comfort is sought above all else.
Contract to regular guests
The program’s regular guests or constant podcast participants usually sign work contracts with Vlad TV. Likewise, agreements are made with a certain number of established programs in a similar way to the way actors and movies are handled.
An example is a working relationship between the rapper Lil Boosie and the program. Rapper Lil Boosie has been the most interviewed person in the program and has several virtual clips from those interviews.
Criticism of the ethics of paying for interviews
“You either pay for it, or there’s no way you can have it” are some of DJ Vlad’s statements in response to criticism. His name and reputation in the Hip Hop world have been affected by the consideration of a lack of realism behind his programs.
It has also been confirmed that the production team will have to contact you to appear in an interview on Vlad TV. There are no confirmed cases of people who have paid to publish their content on the platform or are being interviewed themselves.
What is certain is that this is a model that has led Vlad and his program to succeed for 15 years now. Keeping him as a representative of Hip Hop culture and a voice of value when it comes to giving scoops.
No-Face Interview Model
One of the main characteristics of Vlad TV’s interview format is that, in most cases, the interviewer does not show his face. This is to maintain an old-fashioned format that focuses on the interviewee and their reactions.
Although there are specific chapters where Vlad’s face is shown, this has only happened on rare occasions. Although at a certain point, this also became customary due to Vlad’s privacy and the decision not to expose much of himself.
In general, participants of the interviews described them as therapeutic sessions. This is due to the intimacy they are conducting and how the interviewees can unburden themselves in the interviews. Likewise, Vlad seeks to make the interviews akin to a chat between friends.
References
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“Boosie Blad on How They Worked out a Money Issue like Bosses.” Vlad TV, https://www.vladtv.com/article/277509/boosie-vlad-on-how-they-worked-out-a-money-issue-like-bosses.
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Ju, Shirley. “As VLAD TV Turns 15, Its Founder Has His Pulse on the Beat of Hip-Hop – Variety.” Variety, Variety, https://variety.com/2022/music/news/vladtv-vlad-lyubovny-founder-interview-1235228593/.