Tag Archives: African American

Mountain Dew Drops Lil Wayne Over Emmett Till Controversy

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Lil Wayne’s apology for his Emmett Till lyric wasn’t enough to save his endorsement deal with PepsiCo‘s Mountain Dew. The company has officially dropped the rapper. The father of four teamed with the brand for an extensive DeWeezy Ad Campaign, announced last year. The split was said to be “amicable.”

From the Associated Press:

PepsiCo said in a statement late Friday that Wayne’s “offensive reference to a revered civil rights icon does not reflect the values of our brand.” It declined to provide any further comment. A publicist for Lil Wayne, Sarah Cunningham, said in a statement that the split was due to “creative differences” and that it was an amicable parting. “That’s about all I can tell you at this time,” the statement from Wayne’s publicist said. The controversy erupted after Wayne made the reference to Till on Future‘s song “Karate Chop” earlier this year. He refers to beating someone during a sexual act and says he wants to do as much damage as was done to Till.

On Future’s “Karate Chop” remix, Weezy’s disrespectfully compared having s-x with a woman to the beating Till received in 1955. The 14-year-old was visiting family in Mississippi and was attacked for whistling at a White woman. Till’s mother famously refused to have a closed-casket service, letting the world see how her son’s face had been brutally dismembered by the White suspects cleared for the murder. Earlier in the week Wayne offered an explanation for the rhyme after Till’s family announced a plan to pressure Mountain Dew to fire him. Falling short of completely apologizing, the YMCMB rapper released a statement saying in part that he had “tremendous respect for those who paved the way for the liberty and opportunities that African-Americans currently enjoy.” Since he never actually used the word “apology,” “apologize” “sorry,” or anything close, the Till family rejected the statement.
via:hiphopwired

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Emmett Till Family Rejects Lil Wayne’s Apology

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Lil Wayne‘s “apology” to the family of civil rights icon Emmett Till was NOT REALLY AN APOLOGY … in fact, it fell way short … a rep for the Till family tells TMZ.
Earlier today, Wayne fired off a letter to the Tills … to “acknowledge” the hurt he caused the family when he compared Emmett’s violent death with the violent way he has sex with women. Nowhere in the letter did Wayne say he was sorry for what he did. Now, Airickca Gordon-Taylor – Executive Director, Mamie Till Mobley Memorial Foundation and Till Family Representative — tells TMZ the family does not view the letter as a formal apology. ”While it’s commendable that he has vowed to respect the legacy of Emmett Till and his memory to ‘not use or reference Emmett Till or the Till family in his music,’ this statement falls short of an apology, as none is mentioned.”


via:tmz

Knicks Guard J.R. Smith Ordered To Pay $48K For Black Jesus Pieces

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J.R. Smith needs to pay his bills. The Knicks guard has been ordered to pay $48,000 for a pair of Black Jesus pieces and other jewelry. It’s not a bill collector telling Smith to pay up, it’s a judge.

Reports TMZ:

Don’t mess with Black Jesus … or YOU WILL PAY … just ask Knicks stud J.R. Smith, whose A$$ just lost a $48,000 lawsuit involving a diamond necklace that features an Afro-American rendition of the messiah. A jewelry company called Lemmerman’s sued Smith, claiming he ordered a bunch of bling back in 2010 — including a diamond chain, two Black Jesus pendants and some earrings — totaling $25,500 … but never paid. We’re told one Jesus pendant and chain cost roughly $15,000 alone. Lemmerman’s sued for $48,101 — which includes the jewelry bill plus interest and attorney’s fees — but Smith never responded to the suit … so a judge ruled in Lemmerman’s favor. Smith has now been ordered to pay the $48,000 asap … or else. Calls to Smith’s people weren’t returned.

via:hiphopwired.com

Morris Chestnut Covers ROLLING OUT Magazine and Talks The Best Man Sequel & Kissing Halle Berry

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Chestnut is one of the most celebrated and respected African-American television and film actors of the last decade, it’s no stretch of the imagination to say Morris Chestnut has enjoyed a successful career. Whether he was quickening the heartbeats of teenage girls everywhere as the doomed teenage father Ricky Baker in the 1991 cult classic “Boyz N the Hood”, or the sexy groom-to-be Lance Sullivan in the 1999 film “The Best Man” or even as the self-centered yet lovable Tracy Reynolds, NBA Star in the 2002 kid friendly “Like Mike”, Morris Chestnut wins his audience over every time.

via:gumbumper.com

Is Kanye West’s New Album Called Rich Black American?

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Kanye West is no stranger to hoaxes when it comes to album details. Today’s big rumor courtesy of social media is the existence of Rich Black American.  

After a photo sprung online of what looks like Kanye West’s next solo album, Twitter has been ablaze of Yeezy’s next solo project. While the supposed feature guest lineup would include artists such as Pusha T, Frank Ocean, Beyoncé, Florence Welch, Skrillex and Big Sean, not everything here is as dismissive as most rumors like these would seem. Skrillex has been quoted in the past stating that he would be working with Kanye on his next solo album as well as Frank Ocean. Moreover, a song titled “Perfect Bi**h” appears on this album, a song Yeezy stated in earlier tweets that is about his current girlfriend and future mother of his child, Kim Kardashian. Mr. West was previously the victim of another online hoax involving album details when a website called Black American Psycho with a release date went viral. That website turned out to be nothing but a farce. This picture might be in the same vein as that website, but until it is disputed we won’t know for sure. Check back for more details.

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via:hiphopdx.com

Uncle Luke Calls Spike Lee A “Scheming Uncle Tom” Over Django Unchained Comments

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Not that Luther “Uncle Luke” Campbell has anything to do with Django Unchained, but he’s still pretty upset at Spike Lee for blasting the film. Campbell penned an opinion editorial for the Miami Times and lashed out at the acclaimed director’s views, while praising Django-director Quentin Tarantino for his “brilliant” project. “Screw Spike Lee,” Campbell writes. “Quentin Tarantino’s Django Unchained is a brilliant flick that more accurately depicts the African American experience than any of the 15 movies about black culture Lee’s directed in his lifetime. It’s why the movie took home a Golden Globe award for best screenplay over the weekend and why it was recently nominated for four Academy Awards, including Best Picture.” According to the one-time Miami mayoral candidate—known for his explicit music, videos, and adult films—the Brooklyn native is just jealous. “Lee needs to get over himself. He’s upset because Tarantino makes better movies. The man who put Malcolm X on the big screen is Hollywood’s resident house negro; a bougie activist who wants to tell his fellow white auteurs how they can and can’t depict African Americans. “He complains that Tarantino uses ‘n*gger”‘too much (100 times) in Django Unchained, but show me a white man in the 1800s who wasn’t dropping n-bombs left and right.” Campbell closes out his overly emotional rant by concluding that Lee is mad that Samuel L. Jackson’s character is a “conniving and scheming Uncle Tom,” just like him.

via:hiphopwired