Drake has had plenty to say to critics who are dissatisfied with For All the Dogs, but one topic he has carefully steered clear of publicly addressing is the bloodshed taking place in the Middle East. If his father, Dennis Graham, has his way, his son won’t be issuing a pro-Palestine stance or otherwise any time soon.
TMZ caught up with the superstar’s dad at Los Angeles International Airport on Sunday (Oct. 15), where he was asked about his thoughts on the political turmoil that has cost thousands of Israelis and Gazans their lives. The debonair gentleman began by acknowledging that he is sure it “affects everybody” and that it is “just totally ridiculous.”
Calls for celebrities and public figures to speak out about the Israel-Hamas war have grown louder this weekend as tensions between the militant movement and the Israeli military ramp up. Residents of the densely populated northern Gaza Strip have already been ordered to flee their homes as airstrikes and Hamas convoys are certain to lead to more deaths and injuries. Earlier in the week, Drake, who is Jewish, was criticized for not speaking out in support of Palestinians. DJ Khaled, who is Muslim, was also pulled into the fray for not speaking about the humanitarian crisis.
Graham said that his son and others are caught in a catch-22 scenario. “If you say something about this one, you’re going to get criticized, and if you say something about someone else, you’re going to get criticized,” he said. The seasoned musician said his perspective is that it was best they simply “stay out of it. Especially if you’re somebody that’s well-known, but be a celebrity and say something favoring one over the other, and it’s gonna come back on you.”
One artist who is using their platform to amplify calls for justice for Palestinians is Kehlani. “You’re being silent for the sake of money and business like that amounts to what the f**k is going on. There’s an insane amount of unchecked privilege on literal f**king display. It is gut-wrenching; it is disgusting,” said the singer in a passionate plea for her peers to stand on “the right side of history.”