No Homo(Phobia): Newly Pro-Gay Hip-Hop Artists and Their Questionable Rap Sheets

It’s no secret that Jay-Z isn’t exactly a socially progressive saint, but for all his shortcomings as a potential leader in the black and hip-hop community, it’s encouraging to see that he came forward to support President Obama’s stance on same-sex marriage. And in the wake of Jay-Z’s comments, T.I. and 50 Cent have recently, if not ardently, explained that they’re not against gays marrying in the United States. But for all the reasons to celebrate popular rap icons “coming out” about equality, hopefully these rappers recognize that their stances not only make them admirable as allies, but also accountable as artists.

During the CNN interview in which the rapper denounced marriage discrimination, Jay-Z even went so far as to liken homophobia to racism, which–whether or not you agree with the comparison–says a lot about how much he’s willing to empathize with those oppressed for their sexual orientations. Even more noteworthy is that he took on a pro-gay stance while many of his mainstream rap peers have embraced and encouraged homophobia with their rhymes. All in all, no one expected Jay-Z to comment on President Obama’s gay marriage announcement, much less do so with such sensitivity. But he did exactly that, and clearly so, saying that when it came to discrimination against gays, he “always thought [of] it as something that was holding the country back.” But if “always” is the right phrase to use for how long he’s respected the dignity of gay people, then his music has made him a hypocrite for some time:

Too many faggot niggas clocking my spending/
Exercising your gay-like minds like Richard Simmons -”Two 22′s” (1996)

Now I ain’t down with who like me, or who like you/
That’s gay, I ain’t into liking dudes no way -”La-La-La” (2002)

Furthermore, in his 2009 hit, “Brooklyn (Go Hard)” Jay-Z included a lyric that–while perhaps not explicitly homophobic in and of itself–seemed to reasonably imply that he didn’t give a damn about the plight of the LGBT community. In the song, Jay-Z raps the line, “Boom bye bye, like Buju, I’m crucial.” The lyric is a reference to the song “Boom Bye Bye” by Buju Banton, a single notorious for its explicit endorsement of murdering gay men.

Likewise, while it’s a better-than-nothing credit to 50 Cent that he offered tepid support of gay marriage in a Vibe interview, it’s also important to consider that the’s put out anti-gay content himself:

I mean these niggas got mohawks, they wearin’ skinny jeans man/
I think these niggas is faggots man, for real man/
They with the rainbow club, man – “C.R.E.A.M. 2009″ (2009)

Further, during the same Vibe interview in which 50 Cent argued the validity of gay marriage, the rapper also said: “We need organisations for straight men. We do. We need organisations for straight men in the case you’ve been on the elevator and somebody decides they want to grab your little buns.”

T.I. offered his own progressive view about gay marriage during a RapFix Live interview with radio and TV personality Sway, saying that since gay marriage doesn’t affect him, it isn’t his place to oppose it. But just last year, after Tracy Morgan’s homophobic rant resulted in public outcry, T.I. said to Vibe of gay activist groups:

“They’re like, ‘If you have an opinion against us, we’re gonna shut you down.’ … That’s not American. If you’re gay you should have the right to be gay in peace, and if you’re against it you should have the right to be against it in peace.”

Worse has been said about the gay community, but the rapper’s argument indicated a failure to consider the full context of the situation, or the larger problems it implied. Morgan’s rant had included a bit about stabbing his son to death if he acted too gay, or feminine, for his liking. It’s hard to believe that T.I. would leap to a white comedian’s defense if the comic spoke about violently murdering his son for acting too “black.”

Overall, Jay-Z, 50 Cent and T.I. all seem to be moving in a progressive direction, and they are to be applauded for their statements supporting gay rights. And it’s possible that they’ve all evolved since they’ve made their worst mistakes or missteps regarding the dignity of the LGBT community. But now that they’ve publicly said that they believe gays should not be discriminated against, they have a new obligation, whether through their lyrics or their public statements, to start acting like it.