Ari Lennox Finally Left Dreamville Records, Here’s Why It Was Long Overdue

Uh oh, there’s some bad news for Dreamville fans. The music label’s leading lady, R&B singer Ari Lennox, is making a major move after nearly 10 years of being signed to Dreamville Records. But if you’ve been paying attention to Lennox’s ongoing battle with the label, then you know it was only a matter of time before things hit the fan.

The singer just dropped her new single, “Soft Girl Era;” in the song’s credits, Dreamville is no where to be found. Instead, only Interscope Records — the umbrella label to Dreamville — is listed. The move comes only months after Lennox’s very public feud with both music groups.

“I’m tired. I’m so tired,” she said in October. “I don’t know what else to do.” Her words were coupled with a post to her Instagram story which read, “Interscope and Dreamville have been playing with me all month and i’m so exhausted...Not one person at those labels ever knew how to market or protect me.”

The drama between the singer and Dreamville goes back further than you think. She first joined the label in 2015, becoming the first woman signed to Dreamville— co-founded by rapper J. Cole. Under her deal, Lennox dropped multiple records like “Pressure” and her most popular hit, “Shea Butter Baby” featuring Cole himself.

But over the years, things between Lennox and the label turned sour after her label mates like JID and Bas rose to the spotlight while it seemed no one was really pushing for Lennox’s success, according to the musician. This was on top of receiving hate from sexist and racist commentators.

The “Speak to Me” artist eventually took a break from social media and music, and came back with a new sound, new aesthetic and even lost some weight. Everything was looking up until this past October when she told fans she wanted out of her Dreamville deal.

Clearly, there’s more behind-the-scenes drama that the public has been kept away from, but despite the mess, there’s reportedly no beef between Lennox and Dreamville. The split was “friendly and drama-free” with “no bad blood,” according to reports from TMZ.

This past April, Lennox performed at the Dreamville Festival, which celebrated its final year in 2025. While on stage, the “BMO” singer expressed her gratitude to fans and her fellow musicians. “Thank you for making my dreams a reality,” she said.

Lennox now has a fresh start, and we’ll be keeping an eye out to see what she has in store.