It’s one thing not to support rappers because of their offensive lyrics, but when his or her money slows up, it’s time to zero in on the problem and demand change.
Shortly after Rick Ross’ little-too-late apology got him dropped from Reebok, Lil Wayne tried to amend friction with the Emmett Till’s family over his verse in “Karate Chop.” However his unapologetic apology to the Till Family wasn’t recieved well, and PepsiCo canned his endorsement deal with Mountain Dew. “While it’s commendable that he vowed to respect the legacy of Emmett Till– this statement falls short of an apology, as none was mentioned,” the beverage brand explained.
As expected, several hip-hop entities dissed both Reebok and PepsiCo for pulling the plug on rappers’ commercial growth, but they’re refusing to see this as a lesson learned. It’s one thing to lose an endorsement for reasons out of your control, but when will rappers realize that just because you have the power and money to say whatever you want, you still have the respect and intelligence not to?
There are a myriad of topics that can be discussed and millions of words to express them. If you want to reference history, educate us on Assata Shakur or Stokley Carmichael (or Emmett Till) instead of diluting the fact that history was changed at the expense of their lives. Respect your mothers, aunts, sisters and daughters enough to change the direction in which you rap about women. We’ve been over this before, no?
This is a great time for rappers to challenge themselves and start discussions of important issues, not ratchetry. It’s obvious that things won’t change overnight and many consumers will continue to support the MCs who’ve built their careers on controversy. But with teenage gun and drug violence completely out of control and young females walking around pregnant, popping mollys or twerking, it’s necessary that the biggest voices in one of the top genres of the world help to change how young kids view themselves and their society.
Rappers have unmeasurable amounts of power, and they don’t even know it.