Lalah Hathaway came under serious fire from the Black Greek community when she donned an Alpha Phi Alpha hat and wore it online. Ever since the photo hit the web, fans have been divided about whether it was appropriate for Hathaway to wear the the hat. Now, Hathaway is finally speaking out on the controversy and giving fans an explanation about the photo.
The drama all began last week when Hathaway posted the controversial image on her Instagram page and captioned it with “#daughterofAlpha #daughterofsoul.”
Some fans immediately began blasting the singer in the photo comments, saying she has no right to wear the hat since she’s not an Alpha. However, others defended her saying that she was paying homage to her father, famous soul singer Donny Hathaway, who was an Alpha.
This week, “The Real” released a clip from an episode which will air in May, in which Hathaway addressed the controversy and explained how the photo came to be:
Loni Love: You were wearing the Alpha Phi Alpha hat with the letters on it and some people were upset because they said you weren’t a member of the fraternity.
Lalah Hathaway: Yeah.
Loni: But since this is The Real, we’re going to give you a chance to speak your piece about it.
Lalah: Yeah. Well, my father was an Alpha.
Loni: Um hum.
Lalah: Aside from that, I really don’t much about the whole fraternity/sorority thing.
Loni: Right.
Lalah: Because I was a music student and we just, it just wasn’t my thing. So, a lovely man gave my mother the hat at a show and it’s so not a stretch if you know anything about my father or me that we like hats.
Tamera Mowry-Housley: Ah.
Lalah: And that there’s Instagram and so, he loved this thing so much that I put it on my head and took a picture of it and I had no idea.
Loni: Okay.
Lalah: I had no idea the scandal that it would cause.
Loni: Really, because it’s Greek.
Lalah: It’s a big deal. You’re not supposed to wear something if you’re not clearly I’m not in a fraternity.
Jeannie Mai: Exactly.
Lalah: You’re not supposed to represent for something that you’re not a part of.
Adrienne Bailon: I had no idea…
Lalah: Who knew? I didn’t know either.
Adrienne: But a lot of people didn’t know that if you’re not in the thing you may not know.
Loni: Right.
Adrienne: But, see that’s good. Now you’re telling somebody.
The episode also features an appearance from Snoop Dogg, as well as a performance from Hathaway of the song “Ghetto Boy.” Check your local listings to tune-in when “The Real” airs in your area.
