Grammy award winning singer Kanye West has responded to rumors that he is gay. You have to admit, the times are a changing when the artist doesn't just say, "I'm not gay," but also goes on to decry homophobia. I do have to say though, that the rumor mill has pinned West as a closet case for a while now - and usually where there's smoke there's fire. Do I know? No. Do I care? Not really. But it would be nice for a major black recording artist to come out of the closet...
Although hip-hop superstar Kanye West may shy away from the gangsta persona embraced by his peers, it doesn't mean he is afraid to stand up for himself. During a recent interview in New York City with Hot 97 radio DJ Angie Martinez, West responded to implications made by fellow rapper Beanie Sigel that West is gay, reports the Black Entertainment Television cable network.
In an interview conducted earlier this year for the upcoming DVD Beef IV, Sigel criticized West's fashion sense and advised the rapper to "come out of the closet." West, in turn, denied that he is gay, adding, "It's so disrespectful." He then expressed his distaste for the homophobia that is prevalent in hip-hop culture.
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3 Comments
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First off, is it just my browser (firefox) or does everyone get double quotes? I always see the blockquoted stuff twice.
Secondly, and more on topic, I would love to see Kanye or Oprah just say "So what if I am? What would that change?"
paula | July 31, 2007 8:10 PM
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Kanye offers us a lyric that shows the n-word can be used inoffensively (at least I think so): Ain't sayin' she's a gold-digger // But she ain't messin' with no broke niggers ... thus criticizing the exploitive intentions of a certain type of female, rather than attacking the race of the financially successful black man.
Paula's second point is right on. (Her first point is also ... Bilerico, will the double-quoting problem get fixed one of these years?)
In today's media world, almost every really big male celebrity gets his sexuality questioned sooner or later. The best response I remember came from Tom Selleck (and I'm paraphrasing): "My sexual response is about as heterosexual as a man's can get ... but if I were gay, I'd be honest about it." Whether someone is gay or straight, the most we can expect is complete honesty.
A. J. Lopp | August 1, 2007 2:56 AM
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The double quote issue is Firefox only and only in one version of the browser (the new one, I think.) The folks from Firefox are aware of the problem, and say it will be addressed in their forthcoming update to the browser.
It only happens on blockquotes that include a quotation mark. It's VERY annoying, I know - and I apologize. We're working on it with Firefox.
Bil Browning | August 1, 2007 8:48 AM
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