Yung Joc Won’t Perform for LGBTQ Audiences, Citing “Lustful Eyes”
Rapper Yung Joc said he wouldn't perform for LGBTQ audiences for money, citing his discomfort and disagreement with LGBTQ identity.
Rapper Yung Joc said he would turn down $250,000 if it meant having to perform in front of an LGBTQ audience, citing his discomfort with gay people and gender nonconformity.
Speaking with celebrity and urban news site VladTV, the former Love & Hop-Hop star was asked about rapper Boosie Badazz’s claim that he had turned down a quarter of a million dollars to perform at an LGBTQ event.
He then defended Boosie’s decision, arguing that it may show that the rapper isn’t willing to compromise his personal views or beliefs in exchange for monetary compensation.
“Let’s be clear here,” Yung Joc said. “If you’ve never had a quarter of a million dollars, then this seems hard to believe. If you don’t understand what a quarter of a million dollars really looks like in today’s society, then it would be hard for you to believe.
“If you understand the foundation of not being bought, then it’s not hard to believe. So, we’re dealing with somebody who’s seen $250,000. He’s seen that hella times over. That’s nothing, bro.”
Yung Joc then returned to the question, arguing that he couldn’t be bought and echoing anti-LGBTQ “groomer” rhetoric by claiming LGBTQ people are projecting their identities onto children.
“You can’t buy me because I already don’t agree with it,” Yung Joc said. “I’m standing strong and firm on this: I don’t believe in that shit. If you choose to do that, that’s you. Just don’t project it to my kids. Don’t project it to the youth. Let these kids get a chance to become who they are before you pushing this lifestyle on them.”
Yung Joc said he has never been offered $250,000 to play a show, but even if offered such a sum, he wouldn’t accept the money to perform for an LGBTQ audience.
“I’m not mad at them,” he said of the LGBTQ community. “It’s not that I have nothing against the LGBTQ people. But I just may not understand. I may not be in the know enough to feel comfortable enough to do this. Because I don’t want to start doing that. Maybe I don’t want to be comfortable with this lifestyle. Is that okay? Is that okay to say?
“I may not be comfortable rapping this song, and this man is looking at me with lustful eyes with his nipples out, with lipstick on, rapping my lyrics to me,” Yung Joc added.
He also suggested that if a performer is uncomfortable with LGBTQ identity or visibility but performs for a paycheck, they may be guilty of hypocrisy.
“It may just not be enough money for you, for what you believe in, your outlook on it, your thought process on how it could tarnish you and your brand. Because this is something you say, ‘Oh, you don’t support,’ but then you’re willing to go get their money. Makes you a hypocrite, and that could be something big to Boosie, you know what I’m saying?” he said.
Boosie Badazz has previously been criticized for making anti-LGBTQ comments in interviews, criticizing former NBA player Dwayne Wade for supporting his transgender daughter, and various tweets calling gay rapper Lil Nas X homophobic slurs and threatening violence against him.
In an interview with The Danza Project last month, Badazz claimed he had been offered a quarter of a million dollars to perform at an LGBTQ event. He said he had “nothing against” the LGBTQ community but doesn’t believe in homosexuality.
“A lot of people get that [misunderstood]…. They act like I hate them,” Boosie said. “No. My assistant is gay. This man deals with millions of dollars for me. I trust gay people more than regular people.”
He also noted that his past comments about Wade’s daughter had earned him criticism from the LGBTQ community.
“I shoulda said it in a better way or something like that,” he said. “I don’t have no problem with nothin’ nobody do. I just don’t agree with it.”
Support Metro Weekly’s Journalism
These are challenging times for news organizations. And yet it’s crucial we stay active and provide vital resources and information to both our local readers and the world. So won’t you please take a moment and consider supporting Metro Weekly with a membership? For as little as $5 a month, you can help ensure Metro Weekly magazine and MetroWeekly.com remain free, viable resources as we provide the best, most diverse, culturally-resonant LGBTQ coverage in both the D.C. region and around the world. Memberships come with exclusive perks and discounts, your own personal digital delivery of each week’s magazine (and an archive), access to our Member's Lounge when it launches this fall, and exclusive members-only items like Metro Weekly Membership Mugs and Tote Bags! Check out all our membership levels here and please join us today!
You must be logged in to post a comment.