From what little we know of Frank Ocean’s home life, the Blonde singer has always spoken and sung about the strained and dysfunctional relationship he has with his father, whom he claims walked out of his life when he was just a youngster. Ever since Ocean made it big as an international singing sensation, their relationship has seemingly gotten worse. Now, news reports have revealed that Ocean and his father’s relationship has hit an even sadder low with the news that the singer’s father is suing him for several million dollars.
According to reports, Ocean’s father, Calvin Cooksey, filed a $14 million libel lawsuit against his son, claiming that a famous Tumblr post from Ocean painted him as transphobic and homophobic.
The post that Cooksey speaks of is Ocean’s famous Tumblr post that was written in the wake of the tragic anti-gay Pulse nightclub shooting from last year. In the post, Ocean wrote, “I was six years old when I heard my dad call our transgender waitress a f—– as he dragged me out a neighborhood diner saying we wouldn’t be served because she was dirty. That was the last afternoon I saw my father and the first time I heard that word, I think, although it wouldn’t shock me if it wasn’t.”
In a statement, Cooksey denies that this incident ever took place and he claims that Ocean told “a lie” in the post and is “us[ing] his father as an instrument for personal connection in order to sell records.”
“I have never discriminated against anyone transgender or heterosexual or homosexual,” Cooksey wrote in a statement, according to news reports. “The events that defendant describes on June 21, 2016, that I called a transgender waitress F—– NEVER HAPPENED … The defendant is a scam artist, a fraud and a hypocrite who deceive[d] the LGBT community on June 21, 2016, for the financial success of [Ocean’s album] Blonde.”
Cooksey concluded by calling his son’s post a “publicity stunt in the wake of the Orlando attack.” Cooksey argues in the lawsuit that Ocean’s post cost him “future financial opportunities in the film and music industries,” including his plans to move forward with a manuscript for a crime thriller film titled “Part of the Game.”
This isn’t the first time that Ocean’s father has filed a lawsuit. Back in 2014, Cooksey filed a massive $142 million defamation suit against Russell Simmons, saying that Simmons’ site, Global Grind, branded him a “deadbeat dad” and cost him nine figures in future income. Unfortunately for Cooksey, he lost his court battle that same year.
If history repeats itself, Cooksey may lose this lawsuit as well, especially since we assume that Ocean will fight this case with all of his celebrity might.
What do you think of Ocean’s dad suing him? Let us know in the comments.
