Charlie Puth Joins in on Criticisms of Ellen DeGeneres’ Record Label

Charlie Puth is joining in on the criticism leveled at Ellen DeGeneres’ eleveneleven label. The “Attention” singer reflected on the early years of his career at the label on the Rolling Stone Music Now podcast, saying he “didn’t hear from anybody” at the now-defunct label after recording his first EP, echoing Greyson Chance’s allegations of mistreatment at the label’s hand last month.

“We both have different experiences, me versus Greyson,” Puth continued. “But I do agree with him that nobody was really present, certainly after the creation of my first demo EP. I didn’t really hear from anybody after that. Not putting any blame just on one person, but from a collective, all the people that were in that room, they just disappeared.”

DeGeneres’ eleveneleven was launched in 2010 alongside Mike Hamlin, and the company closed by 2012. Puth said he doesn’t mind his early songs never being released, as he doesn’t know “how good they are” so early in his musical career. Despite his experience with DeGeneres, Puth said he’s always gotten along well with the daytime host. “People describe Ellen as rude. I’ve never experienced that,” he said. “Maybe she likes me.”

Chance previously made headlines after he claimed in an interview with Rolling Stone that he was “completely abandoned” by DeGeneres and the label after signing in 2010. “I’ve never met someone more manipulative, more self-centered and more blatantly opportunistic than her,” Chance said last month in the interview.

Chance would later reveal in a TikTok that he is still “grateful for [DeGeneres] giving me a start,” and explained, “But I’m more grateful for myself for the moments when I got dropped and everything went awry when I was a kid. I’m thankful to 15-year-old me, who picked up the pieces and kept on going and kept on fighting.” Chance added, “I’m so continuously inspired by people who tell the truth and muster up the bravery to tell the truth when it’s difficult, when it’s non-convenient, and when it’s pain-staking. That’s why I did this, because I needed to tell the truth and now it’s finally out there.”