Lil B’ Says He’s Gotten Death Threats Over ‘I’m Gay’ Album

The rapper says he's losing fans, but still loves the gay community.

By Jamilah King Apr 25, 2011

Looks like Lil’ B’s path to trendsetting stardom won’t be very easy. The rapper, who recently announced his intentions to name an upcoming album "I’m Gay" while steadfastly maintaining his straightness, spoke to MTV about the backlash he’s been getting. Here’s what said in an interview with MTV:

I’m very gay, but I love women. I’m not attracted to men in any way. I’ve never been attracted to a man in my life. But yes I am gay, I’m so happy. I’m a gay, heterosexual male. I got major love for the gay and lesbian community, and I Just want to push less separation and that’s why I’m doing it.

He then went on to describe some of the hate that’s been directed his way since he announced the album title at Coachella a few weeks ago. "Many supporters have turned on me," he said, adding that he gets messages from some saying "I’m gonna bash your head in," "you faggot" and "I’m gonna kill you."

At the very least, you’ve gotta respect Lil B’s complicated honesty. He’s trying to do good. But at every turn, he’s reiterating how much he loves still loves women, and the fact that that’s so central to his so-called "coming out" shows just how difficult it would be for a mainstream male rapper who really does love men to just come out and say so. Terrance Dean, the author of the much-talked about book "Hiding in Hip Hop: On the Down Low and the Entertainment Industry From Music to Hollywood" recently said as much in a column on HelloBeautiful.com after the Mister Cee controversy broke:

Hip Hop is a culture and environment which does not provide a safe place for an artist to come forward or to come out," he wrote. "If you listen to many rap lyrics they promote hate and gay-bashing. It is an environment where the thug and gangster mentality is prevalent. Artists boast of a hyper-masculine bravado, with their crotch-grabbing, degradation of women, and their braggadocios lyrical slaying about the number of women they’ve slept with and children they’ve produced.

As gloomy as the climate may seen, there is some hope. Gender Matters columnist Akiba Solomon recently spoke to three educators about how they’re confronting homophobia in the classroom. "Change is hard, but we can’t afford to lose sight of our humanity," Davey D told Solomon. "Gay folks are already involved in hip-hop and they aren’t going anywhere."