‘Love & Hip Hop’ Star Quits Over ‘Exclusivity’ Clause: Safaree Speaks Out

Safaree Samuels says he’s done with the Love & Hip Hop franchise. Having appeared on the New York, Miami, Atlanta, and Hollywood franchises, he made the announcement during an interview with the We in Miami podcast, noting his decision is due to the show’s exclusivity demands.

“I walked away,” he said, per AllHipHop. “They filming. I didn’t even sign back on. I woulda did it again, but these lawyers and everybody, they be wanting to have all these exclusivity rights. And it’s like you can’t have me tied down and say, ‘OK, only here. You can’t do anything else.’ You gotta pay me to sit.”

Despite the exit, he’s excited to pursue new ventures. He’s a Jamaican rap artist. “With Love & Hip Hop, I just don’t like that there’s people who watch it [and] they really feel like they know me,” he explained. “I be places and people see me and they’ll be like, ‘Behave yourself! Stop!’ What? Get the hell out [of] my face, lady. These people be really holding on to s— they see.”

He’s grateful for his time on the show, noting, “I can’t even front on the amount of doors that it opened up for me and opportunities and the extra eyes,” he said. “At first, I really was not trying to do it. And then when I got on and I kinda felt like I took it over, that s— helped a lot.”

Samuels joined the show amid his breakup with his longtime ex-girlfriend, rapper Nicki Minaj. He’s known for helping her pen some of her biggest hits. He’s had multiple relationships on the show, most notably with his ex-wife, Erica Mena. The two share two minor children, a daughter named Safire; and a son named, Legend. 

They split amid claims Samuels abandoned Mena during her pregnancy with their son. Despite reconciliation attempts, the relationship was too toxic to save. 

Mena was fired in Season 10 after calling a Black co-star a “blue monkey,” which is a racial slur. She’s since blamed production for using her and continuing filming only to fire her amid backlash.