DDG is letting the hate his girlfriend Halle Bailey has received for her portrayal of Ariel in The Little Mermaid roll off his shoulder, but the same can not be said for the criticism he faced this week.
The artist, whose real name is Darryl Dwayne Grandberry Jr., recently spoke about the racist attacks Bailey has faced while he appeared on the “Bootleg Kev” podcast. During the Sept. 23 interview, DDG said, “She be laughing it off. They be going a little too hard, but I feel like the people is more attacking the character rather than her personally.”
He then added, “I didn’t know people was this racist. I didn’t know this was a thing. I thought this s**t was gone already. I thought that s**t was gone! I thought Martin Luther King [Jr.] canceled that s**t out! This s**t is crazy, I was like, ‘What the f**k is these n**gas talking about?’”
His remarks about racism being canceled were met with an onslaught of “do better” comments and quips about him needing to take a refresher course in history. But, hours after seeing his comments caused a frenzy on social media, DDG decided it was time he set the record straight.
On Friday (Sept. 23), he jumped into the comment section of a Shade Room post containing a clip from the interview, where he slammed the notion that he was being literal when stating he had no idea racism is still a thing.
“I was valedictorian in high school. Obviously, MLK ain’t stop racism … It’s called exaggeration lol. See, this [is] what’s wrong with our people these days. We attack each other all day, every day, and no one else. SMH. Y’all have a blessed one,” he wrote.
Fans and critics have only seen a first-glance video of the upcoming live-action remake of the Disney classic. It will mark the second time a Black actress has landed the role of a princess. The film is slated to debut in theaters next spring.
Check out DDG’s full interview for yourself below.