Saweetie comes out swinging for LGBT+ rights: ‘We have to call out what we’re uncomfortable with’
Saweetie attends the 2021 BET Awards at the Microsoft Theater on 27 June 2021 in Los Angeles, California. (Getty/Aaron J. Thornton)
Saweetie has come out swinging for the LGBT+ community by condemning homophobia in rap and advocating for “respect”.
The 28-year-old rapper is the latest to address the fallout that followed DaBaby’s vile, homophobic remarks at the Rolling Loud festival.
Speaking to People, the “Best Friend” hitmaker said she believes it important that “we all respect each other” because that is how she was raised.
“We all bleed the same,” she said, referring to her LGBT+ fans. “We’re all human beings.”
She continued: “I was raised in a household that believes in respecting everyone, no matter who they are, no matter what they do, because at the end of the day, we’re all equal.”
Rapper Saweetie performs onstage at the 2019 BET Hip Hop Awards on 5 October 2019 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Aaron J. Thornton/WireImage,)
Saweetie added that it is important to “call out what we’re uncomfortable with” and to “call out what we stand for and for what we believe is right”.
She spoke weeks after DaBaby made comments about “sucking d**k” in the parking lot and people dying from HIV and AIDS or “any of them deadly sexually transmitted diseases that’ll make you die in two, three weeks”.
His remarks led to him being dropped from several music festivals, including Lollapalooza. DaBaby eventually apologised to the LGBT+ community for his “misinformed” and “hurtful” comments, but the apology has since vanished from his Instagram feed.
The backlash against DaBaby has sparked passionate debate about hip-hop and homophobia.
Many rappers, including Megan Thee Stallion, have come out in support of queer people.
Earlier in the month, the “WAP” megastar told People it was “about time” that rap tackles anti-LGBT+ hate.
DaBaby performs on stage during Rolling Loud at Hard Rock Stadium on 25 July 2021 in Miami Gardens, Florida. (Getty/Rich Fury)
“Representation is really important, and it is really crucial for us all to have compassion and acceptance of every human,” she said.
Lil Nas X, perhaps the most famous gay man in hip-hop, has been frank about his experiences.
In a recent interview with Variety he declined to comment on the DaBaby controversy, admitting: “The honest truth is, I don’t want to speak on a lot of the homophobia within rap because I feel like this is a very dangerous playing field. It’s more for my own safety rather than anything else.”
One of the most legendary queer rappers, Da Brat, has argued that the industry has come a long way since her ’90s heyday.
“Now it’s 2021 so it’s a different vibe, totally, and people are 100 per cent supportive,” she told TMZ.
Other musicians and entertainers to speak against DaBaby include Dua Lipa, Elton John, Madonna, Azealia Banks, Laverne Cox and now Saweetie.
