Dee-1 has pointed out what he calls “selective outrage” in Hip Hop, noting that it can send mixed signals to younger listeners.
In an interview with The Breakfast Club that aired on Friday (March 1), the New Orleans rapper shared his thoughts on the things people in the Hip Hop community choose to be angry about.
“We got a lot of selective outrage in the Black community in general,” he began. “A lot of selective outrage. If a white person says the N word one time — all it take is one time for them to say it — and we at they top. We on they head: ‘Oh, no. You said the n-word?’ We tryna cancel you. We ain’t never let you forget that.
“But if artists, when they rap about murdering people in 50 percent of their songs, but in the other 50 — or in 80 percent of their songs — and in the other 20, they’re talking about economic empowerment and positive stuff, should that be okay? We’re content with a state of lukewarm-ness …That’s confusing to these kids.”
Listen to “Jay, 50, Weezy” MC discuss modern Hip Hop at the 10:48 mark below:
He also noted that the students he teaches struggle to relate to anything outside of the music they hear.
“I’m with the kids on a daily basis,” the 38-year-old added. “I’m a college professor currently, in addition to being a rapper … I’m seeing that these kids who ain’t from the trenches at all, now their identity is rooted in, ‘Well, if I’m Black, I gotta be able to relate to this type of music to even feel like I’m authentically Black.’
“And that’s because that’s what’s getting pushed … We made it from that, we shouldn’t have to be glorifying that stuff. There’s a difference between narration and glorification.”
Elsewhere in the interview, the rapper discussed his own struggles with mental health, specifically after his part in the 2014 BET Hip Hop Awards Cypher.
“Right after that BET Cypher, I started going to therapy, bro,” he shared. “I was signed to RCA at the time. You on the BET Cypher and you think your life about to change after this night … Nothing changed after that night. After that, I felt like I blew my shot.
“It started messing with me mentally to where I was like, ‘Damn, I kinda don’t even wanna be here no more. Not in the industry, but on this Earth … When I started realizing I was having suicidal thoughts behind feeling like I’m professionally a failure, I realized I couldn’t separate David from Dee-1 at that point. And that was unhealthy.”
Editorial note: Anyone struggling with suicidal thoughts or their mental health is encouraged to call the toll-free 24-hour Suicide and Crisis Lifeline by dialing 988.
this is just stupid shit most likely taken out of context. since when is any white man “cancelled” for singing along to a rap record? where is this national of poor downtrodden “cancelled” men who said “the n word” along with 2Pac?
this is just stupid shit most likely taken out of context. since when is any white man “cancelled” for singing along to a rap record? where is this nation of poor downtrodden “cancelled” men who said “the n word” along with 2Pac?
the only white guys who paid the price were saying mean things in public on camera. Saying I’ll fight all you so and so’s not the same as being in the crowd at a rap show or frat party. haven’t seen anyone cancelled for saying the “n word” to a rap song at a frat party or semi private corporate event
A news anchor got fired for jokingly saying “fo shizzle nizzle”. Is that taken out of context? Plain ridiculous is what it is. Snoop even calls white people “n@gga” in front of the camera FFS…. If that’s not hypocrite I don’t know what is. Stop being so hypersensitive about a word you catapulted into the mainstream yourself. And you can already stop yapping about slavery too, it serves no purpose other than making black folks looking like trick mark victims.
What are you talking about? It’s happened multiple times. The most obvious example is when Kendrick Lamar invited a fan on stage to partake in a song then publicly humiliated her because she used the N word as part of his own song. Or when The Source tried to destroy Eminem for being disrespectful to black women yet that same year they had Sugar Free who is an actual pimp on their front cover and even interviewed him about it. Sorry but there are a lot of double standards in hip hop. Rappers will spend all day threatening to murder each other then start screaming black lives matter at any white person that will listen. Look out your window. I don’t even like Dee 1, but you’re a good example of someone being selectively outraged.