DJ Khaled drew several stars to his own star dedication on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The ceremony, held on Monday on the 6200 block of Hollywood Boulevard, was attended by several of Khaled’s key collaborators and supporters, including the moguls Shawn “Jay-Z” Carter and Sean “Diddy” Combs; artists Fat Joe, Teyana Taylor, Jeezy and N.O.R.E.; label executives Sylvia Rhone (Epic Records), LA Reid (Hitco), Ethiopia Habtemariam (Motown), Tunji Balogun (Def Jam), LaTrice Burnette (Island), Jeff Harleston (Universal Music Group) and Mark Shimmel (Dick Clark Productions); along with Cool & Dre,Reggie Saunders of Nike and Wayne Barrow.
In introducing the rapper-producer, Fat Joe complimented Khaled’s all-orange look before recalling memories of how they first met and grew into friends.
“When I met him, he made me move out of New York to Miami,” Joe began. “Just to be close to him … that energy was so infectious. When I think of Khaled, I think of love. That’s the only reason why you see the heavyweights here like you see them.”
Indeed, Khaled was surrounded by love as his family — wife Nicole Tuck and their two children — looked on proudly.
Added Fat Joe: “In hip-hop, for a long time, we haven’t really embraced fatherhood. Nobody has done it like Khaled. And music-wise, there’s nobody with a greater ear.”
Diddy followed up with a speech honoring Khaled’s growth and star power. “You are the definition of, if you wanna make something happen, you gotta put in that work and make it happen,” he remarked. “I’ve seen you from when we didn’t have nothing, from when we were just coming out from the mud.”
Recalling a pivotal conversation, Diddy shared: “I remember that day when you told me, ‘They don’t believe me, Puff.’ I was like ‘Khaled, what are you talking about? You’re doing great, you’re the vice president of A&R.’ And you were said, ‘But they don’t believe me.’ … I remember from that day, you worked all the way up. … You’re a pioneer; you’re an icon and a brilliant businessman. But most importantly, you’re a great friend to all of us here — a great father, a great husband, and one of the greatest people I’ve ever met. Your energy and your work ethic is unmatched, we celebrate you for everything.”
As Khaled took the podium, he got emotional. “God put me on this earth to be a light” he said. “They didn’t believe in us, but God did.”
He went on to shout out Motown, his Roc Nation management team, his label and, of course, himself. “There’s only one Khaled, that’s all I gotta say.”
The Grammy-winning artist ended his speech with his personal motto: “We the best — it’s not just me it’s we.”
Before exiting he said, “And I just want to make it super clear: We are just getting started, anything you’ve seen me do before, just imagine that to the most trillionth power ever cause I’m not stopping, I’m making more music.”
The event concluded with Khaled posing for photos with his star — which he made sure to decorate with Air Jordans from his collaboration with Jordan called We The Best collection.
DJ Khaled’s five latest albums have topped charts including “I Changed a Lot,” “Major Key,” “Grateful,” “Father of Asahd” and, most recently, in 2021 for “Khaled Khaled.” Khaled is the 719th star in the music recording category of the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
