Celebs Who Can't Stand DaBaby
The hip-hop world has famously always had a problem when it comes to the LGBTQ community. Who can forget Eminem visibly showing his disgust for gay marriage in "The Real Slim Shady" video, for example? And as Queerty noted, GLAAD Vanguard Award recipient Jay-Z used to casually throw around homophobic remarks on record, too. What's more, as HuffPost pointed out, the genre's very first US Top 40 hit, The Sugarhill Gang's "Rapper's Delight," contained a mild slur.
Even in today's apparently more enlightened times, the concept of same-sex attraction or the medical advances in treating HIV continue to be targeted by some public figures. None more so than DaBaby, the chart-topping MC who essentially canceled himself in the summer of 2021 with a homophobic speech about HIV at Miami's Rolling Loud Festival. To make matters even worse, he then backed up his own comments in an Instagram Story (via The Grio), kept the controversy going with the "Giving What It's Supposed to Give" video, and, for reasons which remain unclear, deleted his official apology (via The Independent).
While the man born Jonathan Lyndale Kirk still has a list of famous defenders that includes 50 Cent and Nick Cannon, the general celebrity consensus was one of shock, horror, and condemnation. From R&B stars to a Real Housewife, here's a look at 14 of his harshest critics.
Jonathan Van Ness calls out DaBaby's spread of misinformation
"[If] you didn't show up today with HIV/AIDS or any of them deadly sexually transmitted diseases that'll make you die in two to three weeks, then put a cellphone light in the air." Yes, those words actually came out of the mouth of a chart-topping rapper in the year 2021. And understandably, they drew more criticism than any of the other loathsome remarks DaBaby made at the Rolling Loud Festival in Miami.
Jonathan Van Ness, arguably the breakout star from Netflix's hit reboot of "Queer Eye for the Straight Guy," had more reason to take offense than most. As the hairdresser/activist shared with The New York Times ahead of the release of his memoir, he found out he was HIV-positive at the age of 25 and announced his diagnosis to the world seven years later in 2019.
Reacting to a Complex article about DaBaby's comments, Van Ness tweeted, "This stigma of HIV/AIDS is what is killing folks and it's spread by this kind of misinformation that then people go believe." The podcaster then added the hashtag, #UequalsU, a reference to the "Undetectable=Untransmittable" campaign designed to eradicate the misconceptions about the disease.
Candiace Dillard Bassett describes DaBaby's remarks as 'disgusting'
DaBaby also incurred the wrath of a "Real Housewives" star with his homophobic remarks at Miami's Rolling Loud Festival in 2021. Candiace Dillard Bassett, a former Miss United States who appears in the Potomac part of the ever-expanding Bravo franchise, took to Twitter to blast the rapper for his ignorance: "To refer to HIV and AIDS as a 'deadly disease' that kills people in 'two to three weeks' is disgusting and dangerous at best. Like. Why would you say that?"
Just a year previously, Bassett had been forced to apologize for insensitive comments she'd made toward the LGBTQ community at the start of the 2010s. Unearthed tweets (via Pink News) showed the reality star admitting to being "irked" by "queenie gay men," not being attracted to any guys with a keen interest in fashion ("makes me think 'gay'"), and perturbed by "dudes wanting to be women."
In her response to the resurfaced social media posts, Bassett expressed remorse for hurting both her nearest and dearest and her army of fans. She admitted on Instagram that her language "wasn't acceptable back then, and it isn't acceptable now" and also said that the whole controversy had been a "teachable moment."
Sir Elton John argues DaBaby's comments 'have no place in our society'
Sir Elton John might not have had any qualms about collaborating with Eminem, a man who on 2000's "The Marshall Mathers LP," asked, "Hate f***?/The answer's yes." But you probably shouldn't expect to see the openly gay Rocket Man sharing the stage with another rapper not averse to homophobic sentiments any time soon.
Following DaBaby's controversial outburst at Rolling Loud Festival, the rock legend issued a statement, broken into five different tweets, condemning such blatant ignorance. It began, "We've been shocked to read about the HIV misinformation and homophobic statements made at a recent DaBaby show. This fuels stigma and discrimination and is the opposite of what our world needs to fight the AIDS epidemic."
After reeling off several bits of official, scientifically-proven information which proved just how ill-informed DaBaby's rant was, John concluded, "Homophobic and HIV mistruths have no place in our society and industry and as musicians, we must spread compassion and love for the most marginalized people in our communities. A musician's job is to bring people together." It's little wonder the Brit was so enraged. In 1992 he founded an eponymous foundation which aimed to educate the world about the condition.
Dua Lipa was left 'surprised and horrified' by DaBaby's outburst
In 2020, Dua Lipa told Attitude magazine that she felt it was imperative to utilize her high profile for the greater good of the LGBTQ community: "To be able to use my platform to spread awareness, show support, talk about it, to make people feel seen, heard and safe, communicate with charities and try to do my part as much as I can ... I see that as my duty."
The "New Rules" singer, therefore, no doubt felt she had to react immediately to DaBaby's homophobic remarks on stage at Miami's Rolling Loud Festival. As in a rather unfortunate bit of networking, the gay icon had worked with the ill-informed rapper on a 2020 remix of her single "Levitating." Within just hours of the news breaking, Lipa made it clear that she still had her LGBTQ fans' backs.
In an Instagram Story, the Best New Artist Grammy winner wrote (via Elite Daily), "I'm surprised and horrified at DaBaby's comments. I really don't recognize this as the person I worked with. I know my fans know where my heart lies and that I stand 100% with the LGBTQ community. We need to come together to fight the stigma and ignorance around HIV/AIDS." As Billboard reported, the remixed version of "Levitating" was cut from several radio stations' playlists in the wake of DaBaby's comments, but it still remains available to stream.
Demi Lovato implores fans to avoid DaBaby's Dua Lipa collab
Demi Lovato has been one of pop's most vocal advocates for the LGBTQ community in recent years. Alongside Nick Jonas, they announced on Twitter that they would not play shows in Charlotte and Raleigh after the state of North Carolina passed an anti-gay bill. And a year later they penned a letter for Billboard which read, "I struggle with wrapping my head around the fact that we live in a world where love and equal rights still have to be questioned or discounted."
So it was little surprise when the former Disney Channel star, who that same year announced that they were non-binary, offered their condemnation of DaBaby's homophobic remarks. And they did so in an attention-grabbing style.
Yes, Lovato took to Instagram where they uploaded a photo of a man's chest emblazoned with the words, "HIV is not a gay disease" in capital letters. The "Heart Attack" singer also provided a synopsis of the whole furore for the uninitiated before bringing DaBaby's collaboration with Dua Lipa into the conversation by quoting another social media user: "Hot people listen to the original version of "Levitating.""
Chika describes DaBaby as 'quite literally mediocre in every way'
Grammy-nominated rapper Chika has never been afraid to fight for what she believes in. You may recall that in 2020, the social media favorite was arrested for protesting the death of George Floyd, per Billboard. So it was little surprise when the bisexual star gave DaBaby both barrels online after his ill-informed and highly offensive speech about the LGBTQ community surfaced.
Indeed, Chika certainly offered the most scathing rebuttal when she took to Twitter. First, she questioned why DaBaby had gone in on the attack when he was renowned for walking around in public with a diaper on, providing two pictures as evidence, too. And then, in no uncertain terms, she disputed why he'd been given such a big platform to shoot his mouth off in the first place.
Chika tweeted, "Maybe change your f***in flow for ONCE and write a song you haven't written before being a homophobic piece of s***. You are quite literally mediocre in every way. Don't let that money go to your head, kiddo."
Questlove takes DaBaby off his dream concert line-up
In 2021, Amir 'Questlove' Thompson received huge critical acclaim for "Summer of Soul," a documentary on the legendary Harlem Cultural Festival that had taken place more than a half-century ago. When asked who would make his dream line-up for a modern-day revival, the multi-talented drummer named the likes of his own band The Roots (obviously), superstar Rihanna, and DaBaby.
But following the latter's offensive remarks at Miami's Rolling Loud Festival, Questlove took the only solo male rapper off his imaginary bill. In fact, the musician was so enraged by DaBaby's conduct he couldn't even bring himself to mention his name while providing an explanation on Instagram. "If you're lost: Google the idiocy of the crossed out," he remarked alongside the list of stars who'd kept their place on his fantasy list.
Questlove insisted that he hadn't made such a statement to be a "performative smurf." But he simply wanted to make his thoughts loud and clear: "Homophobia/Transphobia/Xenophobia/Misogyny/Racism — this should go without saying is morally wrong ... Huey Newton wisely stated in the early '70s that we as a people should NEVER go so low in life (with what we been through) that we start oppressing/terrorizing the next man in the way we been terrorized for centuries." "The Tonight Show" musical director then concluded his from-the-heart speech with a message DaBaby would do well to take heed from: "Y'all gonna learn that there are other human beings living in the space you are."
Chris Brown implies DaBaby should have shut up
"You know you're in the wrong when even CHRIS BROWN is making sense." That was one of many tweets highlighting just how low DaBaby had sunk to after one of the R&B world's most disgraced figures waded in on the Rolling Loud Festival controversy.
Yes, although he didn't name the "Rockstar" hitmaker specifically, Brown did appear to be calling out his offensive remarks on an Instagram Story message posted shortly after which read (via Complex), "Shut the f*** up. Do yo shows, thank everybody, then get the f*** off stage!!!!!!!!!!"
Brown certainly isn't a stranger to courting controversy live on stage himself. In 2015, he was accused of punching an imaginary woman before simulating sex with her while performing "Take Me Down" on his "Between the Sheets" tour, per Cosmopolitan. Captured on camera, the bizarre incident would have been considered bad taste in any situation, but even more so following Brown's much-publicized conviction for domestic assault of then-girlfriend Rihanna six years earlier.
Madonna tells DaBaby to know his facts
During an era when the U.S. government appeared determined to brush the AIDS crisis under the carpet, Madonna used her platform to advocate for those impacted by the epidemic. As MTV News recounted, she launched a dance marathon in New York for the cause in 1989, and on 1992's "Erotica," as Instinct remembered, she dedicated penultimate number "In This Life" to those she'd lost to AIDS. And in 2019, the singer was recognized for her efforts by the GLAAD Media Awards when she was named an Advocate for Change.
It wasn't a huge shock, therefore, when the Queen of Pop responded to DaBaby's "hateful remarks" with an Instagram post addressed specifically to the rapper. After telling him to know his facts, Madge then gave him several to learn: "There are life saving medicines available to children born with HIV, to people who contract HIV through blood transfusions, dirty needles or exchange of bodily fluids. These new ARVs [antiretrovirals] can keep a person with AIDS alive for the rest of their lives!!!"
Referencing DaBaby's demands for the Rolling Loud Festival crowd, Madonna then revealed she would be putting her cellphone lighter up but to pray for the rapper's ignorance. She added, "People like you are the reason we are still living in a world divided by fear. All human beings should be treated with dignity and respect regardless of race, gender, sexual preference or religious beliefs. AMEN."
Indya Moore calls out DaBaby's misogyny
Indya Moore shot to fame playing the House of Evangelista's transgender model Angel in "Pose," Ryan Murphy's groundbreaking drama which explored the drag ball culture world in the midst of the AIDS crisis. But it wasn't just DaBaby's comments about the disease that Moore addressed on Instagram. They also addressed the equally abhorrent display of misogyny.
As well as uploading a 25-minute video about DaBaby's comments, Moore also penned a caption which summarized their feelings on the rapper's attitude toward women. The TV star wrote, "Men need to stop marginalizing women for the ways their bodies show up. Women with vaginas are not petri dishes. A vagina is not a buffet. It is a body part, a sex organ."
Moore, who identifies as non-binary, went on to add, "Different people have different microbiomes for many different reasons. If you do not enjoy your experience with someone for whatever reason, that doesn't mean there is anything wrong with THEM. The world does not revolve around you imperfect, misinformed preferences for superficial perfection.'"
Megan Thee Stallion felt betrayed by DaBaby's support for ex
Megan Thee Stallion also addressed DaBaby's on-stage outburst, telling People, "Representation is important, and it is really crucial for us all to have compassion and acceptance of every human." But the "WAP" hitmaker has another reason to have beef with the controversial rapper: he appeared to side with the man who allegedly shot her in both feet.
Stallion had previously worked with DaBaby on several tracks including "Crybaby" and "Nasty," and so was understandably left hurt when he guested on Tory Lanez' "SKAT" in 2021. Lanez, of course, has been accused of firing at Stallion during a Hollywood Hills house party in the summer of 2020. And DaBaby added even more fuel to the fire when he retweeted a post about how his and Lanez's legal troubles had brought them together (via People).
DaBaby subsequently claimed that the retweet had been an accident but Stallion was having none of it, posting, "Support me in private and publicly do something different ... These industry men are very strange. This situation ain't no damn 'beef' and I really wish people would stop downplaying it [the alleged shooting] like it's some internet s*** for likes and retweets." Stallion and DaBaby then went back and forth with various expletive-filled messages before the former, no doubt referring to her ongoing legal battles with Lanez, concluded, "Justice is slow ... as we've all seen ... back to my good day."
Lil Nas X's father tells DaBaby to 'bruh sit down'
As unarguably the most visible and most vocal openly gay artist in the hip-hop world, Lil Nas X has made a conscious choice to stay relatively quiet about the DaBaby controversy. "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," he said in Variety. "It's more for my own safety rather than anything else." But his father Robert Stafford did wade in with a succinct putdown on Instagram Stories.
Lil Nas X, of course, had collaborated with DaBaby on a remix of his hit single "Panini." And Stafford used a picture of the pair during this happier time to make his feelings on his son's choice of musical partner crystal clear: "Bruh sit down, you had your time," he captioned the snap (via The Neighborhood Talk) in an expert bit of shade-throwing.
The man born Montero Lamar Hill did get dragged into the whole conversation even further when T.I. argued in an Instagram comment (via Complex), "If Lil Nas X can kick his s*** in peace ... so should DaBaby." This time around, the "Old Town Road" star did appear to react, shortly after tweeting, "Some of y'all not even mad that I'm gay, some of y'all mad that I'm gay and still succeeding."
Laverne Cox calls out DaBaby for multiple prejudices
Laverne Cox undoubtedly gave one of the most eloquent responses to the whole DaBaby furore. Although she didn't specifically name the disgraced rapper in her Instagram video post, the "Orange Is the New Black" alum did acknowledge that everyone would know which famous artist she was referring to.
One of Hollywood's most visible transgender stars reflected on a chat she'd had with Karen Franklin, a forensic psychologist, which helped her to realize that the "relationship between homophobia, transphobia and misogyny are inextricably linked." The Emmy nominee then hinted at examples of DaBaby's homophobia and misogyny at Miami's Rolling Loud Festival, including the guest appearance from Tory Lanez, a man accused of shooting Megan Thee Stallion in 2020.
Cox stated that she didn't want to cancel anyone or be hateful in return. But she did hope that the response to DaBaby's outburst would mark a major shift in attitudes: "This historical moment is an opportunity for us to begin to think differently about masculinity, how we allow masculinity to manifest itself."
Leslie Jordan describes DaBaby's remarks as 'stupid'
You wouldn't expect the diminutive scene stealer from "Will and Grace" and the man behind trap anthems titled "Big Butt," "Cash S***," and "Throat Baby (Go Baby)" to feature in the same news story. But then, these are strange times.
In 2021, openly gay 60-something Leslie Jordan was ambushed by TMZ outside a Los Angeles café and asked for his opinion on the DaBaby controversy. Unsurprisingly, the Hollywood veteran didn't hold back, describing the outburst as "stupid" and citing the rapper as an example of why many gay people find it difficult to feel "perfectly comfortable with who [they are]."
The "American Horror Story" regular also suggested that karma would come back to bite DaBaby on the proverbial. And he wasn't wrong there. Shortly after, fashion retailer boohooMAN announced on Twitter that they would no longer be working with the "Rockstar" hitmaker: "We stand by and support the LGBTQ+ community and do not tolerate hate speech or discrimination in any form." Lollapalooza and the Governors Ball both soon followed suit.