Social media was up in arms after the airing of the November 1 episode of ABC’s Nightline, which featured an explosive interview with Lil Wayne. During the six-minute segment, reporter Linsey Davis asked him about the Black Lives Matter movement and he went on an angry rant about how it has nothing to do with him. “I’m a young, Black, rich motherfucker,” he said. “Don’t come at me with that dumb shit. My life matters.” After the interview aired (to Lil Wayne’s disapproval), he fired his publicist and blamed it on being “disoriented.”
Naturally, people were furious at his blatant disregard for such a glaringly sensitive topic, including longtime friend and collaborator T.I. In a lengthy Instagram post shared on Saturday (November 5), the Atlanta superstar wrote, “I don’t know what you goin thru, or what you are attempting to avoid but this sh*t is absolutely unacceptable You’re disrespecting yourself, bringing shame on your family name and tarnishing your legacy.”
He goes on to point out, “Our people are being oppressed!!! We are being hunted,captured & slaughtered out here daily!!! You have to get outta that bubble that you’ve been living in & get out here & educate yourself on what’s going on around US. I’m always here to share whatever knowledge or understanding I may have to assist your growth & development, but u MUST STOP this buffoonery & coonin’ you out here doin.”
T.I. has released a handful of politically-charged projects this year, including the Us Or Else EP, which he cleverly hashtagged at the end of his post. Whether or not this was a publicity-seeking stunt, genuine concern for his friend or a combination of both is debatable, but whatever the case, T.I. certainly made his stance obvious.
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There is only one tweet posted on Wayne’s account a few hours after T.I. went on his Instagram rant. While it’s unlikely he was directing the tweet at T.I., Weezy definitely felt the burn of criticism on Twitter and felt propelled to respond.
Check out T.I.’s Instagram video above and the original Lil Wayne interview below.
