Over the past year, legendary Brand Nubian rapper Lord Jamar has become more well known for his homophobic statements about Kanye West than for his lyrics. Now, the ’90s MC is back in the headlines for not only claiming that hip-hop can never be anything but anti-gay but also questioning whether homosexuality can elevate humanity.
In a recent interview with XXL, Jamar spoke about the growing number of white rappers in hip-hop, especially Macklemore, and claimed that they brought along with them elements of society that don’t jell with hip-hop, or at least his idea of hip-hop, including themes of homosexuality and the idea that homosexuality is OK in hip-hop.
“I don’t think he cares about gays one way or the other, but he knew that would be a great way to get attention and a great way to blow up. In the climate we’re in right now, you’ll get a nice pat on the back for something like that. And I’m like, if that’s the way you feel, [then] cool, but to use a hip-hop song to promote it? That’s where I have a little problem about it,” Jamar said about Mackelmore’s pro-gay hit “Same Love.”
“[Hip-hop] is not that. It started as a culture for alpha males, especially black and Latino males in the inner city. … It’s not about being homophobic; nobody is running or screaming down the street when they see a gay person. Nobody is trying to beat them up or anything like that. But at the same time, we’re not trying to promote that within hip-hop, because this is not a gay music. If you like that kind of music, make your own genre.”
Despite previously claiming to have no problem with homosexuality outside of hip-hop, Jamar then extended the scope of his ideology to the rest of the world and questioned whether homosexuality is good for humanity.
“I’m just trying to understand how man on man or woman on woman, which doesn’t create life, is actually an elevation for the species. I understand the elevation of species as far as understanding and loving your fellow man no matter what — I get that and dig that. That’s a good thing. But, as far as the actual act, it’s just debatable. … To be heterosexual is to be anti-gay, to keep it real. Gays will look at heterosexual stuff and say, ‘Ew, that’s disgusting,’ the same way a heterosexual person would look at that and say, ‘Ew, that’s disgusting.’ ”
We’re still scratching our heads about how Jamar could even think that he’s not homophobic, but, more importantly, we’re just disturbed at the amount of ignorance and hate spewing from his mouth. Last time we checked, being straight had nothing to do with being anti-gay. It simply means you’re straight. But clearly being a raging homophobe has a lot to do with being anti-logic and anti-humane. – nicholas robinson
