Photo: Greedhead/Camp & Street.Hold the unicorn, y'all. There is a rumbling in the rap world that has it feeling like pre-2012. Basically, for the sake of getting too light in these here loafers, Lord Jamar, a member of Brand Nubian, has some deep-seated emotions toward the queer tip rap has been on. "In order to preserve a culture, there are certain guidelines and boundaries that have to be there," Jamar said, referring to Kanye West's skirtgate from 2012, while being interviewed for VladTV, a hip-hop themed YouTube channel.
It is West, he believes, that has opened the floodgates for more rappers to break the "gangster" mold and express themselves in other, more personal ways. One rapper, New York-based Le1f, a self-identified gay man, has fallen under Jamar's judgmental eye. And, not just because his style strays from the norm.
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Le1f recently performed on Letterman, prompting Jamar, the self-proclaimed "hip-hop conservative," to Tweet, "[sic] THIS IS JUST THE BEGINNIN." The beginning he's likely referring to is the age of "queer" rap — a term Le1f has many feelings toward. And, instead of letting Jamar's comment float away into the ether, he's firing back.
"Are you proud of being a hateful member of a majority?" he wrote in an open-letter of sorts on Facebook. "If you think being gay is the same as being white, you are as ignorant as your enemies." It's a rather polite addition to a conversation still in its infant stages. Luckily, minds like Le1f's are vocal enough to sound off when the moment is right.
Now, to wax a little poetic on Le1f's first single: What it do, Lord Jamar. What it don't. (Dazed Digital)