HIV/AIDS organizations say DaBaby snubbed them after he promised to donate to them as part of his apology for statements he made about HIV.
DaBaby received intense public backlash and was dropped from a number of gigs due to his derogatory remarks about gay sex and HIV/AIDS at the Rolling Loud Miami festival in July.
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Afterward, he met with several HIV/AIDS organizations after they invited him to become better informed about the disease.
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DaBaby claimed his meeting with the organizations helped open his eyes. but according to a report by The Daily Beast, those organizations never heard from DaBaby again.
Three of the nine organizations he met with responded to The Daily Beast’s request for comment and said DaBaby never donated money and never again contacted them.
Pavni Guharoy, communications consultant for the Black AIDS Institute, said DaBaby “received that learning gracefully” during their conversation but that the organization has “not received any outreach, partnership, or funding from DaBaby.”
“The onus is now on him, if he chooses to, to convert his misinformation into allyship by supporting the work of the Black AIDS Institute and other people of color-led HIV organizations.”
In an apparent attempt to hype up the crowd between songs this past July, DaBaby told the audience, “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 your cellphone lighter up.”
He continued, “Ladies, if your pussy smell like water, put your cellphone lighter up.” Then, he continued, “Fellas, if you ain’t sucking dick in the parking lot, put your cellphone lighter up.”
I just know you mf lying… GET HIM pic.twitter.com/fmYjxTlGZM
— Zay Maximoff 💥 (@ZayBelvin) July 26, 2021
After criticism for the remarks from hip-hop fans and other musicians, including Elton John, Madonna, and Questlove, DaBaby admitted his remarks were “insensitive.” He then released a song and music video using AIDS as an insult.
“Bitch, we like AIDS, I’m on your ass, we on your ass, bitch, we won’t go ‘way,” he raps in the song “Giving What It’s Supposed to Give,” which came out on July 29.
Later that week, DaBaby was dropped from Lollapalooza after the festival gave him a chance to issue a public apology and he did not. He also lost his spot at the Austin City Limits festival and was dropped from a clothing partnership with BohooMAN.
On August 2, DaBaby issued a more formal apology statement on social media.
“I want to apologize to the LGBTQ+ community for the hurtful and triggering comments I made,” the statement read. “Again, I apologize for my misinformed comments about HIV/AIDS and I know education on this is important.”
But he later deleted that apology.
Now he is back in the press for his alleged halfhearted attempts at engaging with these HIV/AIDS organizations.
“Though we felt the conversation was extremely powerful a couple months ago, we haven’t heard anything back as an organization since our conversation,” said Ian L. Haddock, founder and executive director of The Normal Anomaly Initiative.
The same sentiment was expressed by the Positive Women’s Network and the Black AIDS Institute.
DaBaby has already been working with Rolling Loud again, who released a statement saying the organization “supports second chances” and believes the rapper “has grown and learned from his experience.”
