Meagan Good as Jason Lee backs Joe Budden, Charlamagne list
meagan good was part of the conversation around the 6th Annual Hollywood Unlocked Impact Awards in Beverly Hills, where Jason Lee used the red carpet to draw his line in modern media. He put himself on a personal Mount Rushmore and named Charlamagne Tha God, Angie Martinez and Joe Budden alongside him.
Jason Lee's media four
“Charlamagne Tha God and me,” Lee said when asked to build his hypothetical monument, adding Angie Martinez and Joe Budden to the list. The Hollywood Unlocked founder was not describing legacy in vague terms; he was naming the voices he считает have had outsized impact on the current media landscape.
Lee also called Budden “undeniably a force,” which lands as a sharper endorsement than a polite red-carpet compliment. He added that he and Budden “don't align on everything,” a useful reminder that recognition in independent media does not require agreement, only relevance.
Black-owned media power
Lee linked the ranking to ownership, independence and the business of building something that lasts. He pointed to Lemuel Plummer and Byron Allen as examples of creators who build infrastructure rather than simply create content, and he singled out Angelica Nwandu of The Shade Room and the late journalist Robin Ayers as other media entrepreneurs shaping the space.
That framing matters because Lee was not talking about celebrity chatter from the sidelines. He was placing independent Black media operators inside the same conversation as the most visible voices in the business, which is a cleaner read on influence than follower counts or trending clips.
Joe Budden, not peace talks
“World peace with Joe Budden is the least of my worries,” Lee said when asked how he would make peace with Budden if he ruled the world for a day. The line fits the moment: Lee was not chasing reconciliation theater, he was making a public case for what he sees as the real pecking order in media.
Lee has also been active in another high-profile entertainment dispute, recently defending Rihanna after backlash over her brief interaction with Tyla at the 2026 Met Gala. For readers tracking where independent media influence is heading, his Mount Rushmore answer is the more revealing statement: it puts ownership and audience power ahead of celebrity etiquette, and it puts Budden firmly inside that frame.
