On Kendrick Lamar’s new album DAMN., he calls out frequent FOX News figure Geraldo Rivera at least three times for the correspondent’s past criticisms of the rapper’s music.
On album opener “BLOOD.,” Rivera can be heard denouncing K.Dot’s 2015 BET Awards performance of “Alright.” He says, “Lamar stated his views on police brutality with that line in the song, quote, ‘And we hate the po-po / Want to kill us in the street, fo’ sho.’” His co-host can be practically be heard grimacing in disgust, “Ugh, I don’t like it.”
On the very next song, “DNA.,” Rivera’s voice is sampled again. In the same news segment, still referencing K.Dot’s performance, he offered the opinion, “This is why I say that hip-hop has done more damage to young African-Americans than racism in recent years.”
And on track No.3, Kendrick calls both Rivera and the television network out by name:
“Fox News wanna use my name for percentage / My latest muse is my niece, she worth livin’ / See me on the TV and scream: ‘That’s Uncle Kendrick!’ / Yeah, that’s the business / Somebody tell Geraldo this nigga got some ambition.”
But all the blows haven’t affected Rivera. In fact, upon hearing the LP, he’s reiterated his beliefs. In an 18-minute video posted on the journalist’s Facebook page, Rivera reinforces the same sentiments that angered K.Dot in the first place. His argument? That the “real” threat to black men are artists-turned-bad role models with negative messages. He said:
“Kendrick Lamar…he’s the best of ’em, like I said. The others far more egregious, with them, indoctrinating young people with the message that the cops are the enemy, that there’s no good way to get ahead. It’s the WORST role model. It’s the worst example. It’s the most negative possible message. And what’s the point of it? I mean, you sell records. I get that. You sell records.”
He continued:
“I know that the real danger to real black men and real brown men now is that their role model will sing about cops being killers and the system being stacked and there’s no chance of advancement and all the rest of it.”
And also said:
“Remember Mavin Gaye, not the Notorious B.I.G. and Tupac and all the rest. I have no beef with Kendrick Lamar, anyone else in the business, but if you don’t have a positive attitude, you’re dooming yourself to a life that you profess to despise.”