For those of you unfamiliar with Lil B, you may recognize him from the Bay Area’s group “The Pack.” They were known for their hit sneaker anthem song “Vans.” If you’ve ever heard some of Lil B’s music, he likes to play with gender roles in his lyrics, often referring to himself as a “pretty bitch” and brags about how the women love him because he “resembles” Barbara Walters. Riiiiight.  

Speeding up to date, Lil B has started a controversy in the Hip-Hop world. GLAAD (The Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation) is actually somewhat supportive of his upcoming album entitled “I’m Gay.”  Here’s what GLAAD had to say:

“As a lyricist, Lil B knows that words matter. Slurs have the power to fuel intolerance. We hope that Lil B’s album title is not just a gimmick, and is really a sincere attempt to be an ally. He has the platform and the voice. We hope he uses it in a positive way.”  

Recently, XXL reached out to several rappers such as Talib Kweli and Freddie Gibbs just to get their opinion on the situation. Here’s what Talib had to say:
 
“Immediately (upon hearing the hubbub) I’m like not that’s a fuckin’ social experiment, if I’ve ever heard one,” Talib told XXL. “Look I don’t care who you sleep with at the end of the day. I don’t care if Lil B’s gay or not. It doesn’t change my life in any way, but for him to name his album I’m Gay, issues such a challenge to his fans. I’m not sure if it’s brilliant or not, but what he did with that, in one fell swoop, was challenge every single bandwagon fan. Like are you really down with me or not. And me as an artist, I have no choice but to respect that.”

And here’s new CTE signee, Freddie Gibbs response:
 
“[The] Lil B shit was funny at first but now I feel like it’s just a bunch of white people laughing at a nigga, like a minstrel show. Shit is wack. I ain’t dissin’ gays, if you gay that’s yo biz.”  Last but not least, Mike Bigga had something entirely different to say.  He actually feels Lil B’s had a strategy to his madness.  “He’s a happy guy, Gay means happy. It makes perfect sense to me. It’s a provocative, bold thing to me. That’s what B does. It’s not as shocking to me. From a social element . . . this just feels like knocking down walls and stereotypes, embracing controversy and flipping it. Bravo to him for being the next Madonna. I also don’t think Lil B could ever make some of the music that I make. If he’s rapping about (gay) lifestyle the whole album, no I probably wouldn’t want to hear it. If he’s rapping on some hip-hop shit and it’s a weird ass, weird Lil B album . . . I’d probably buy it like  I did his last (album) and have a little laugh.”

That’s crazy!!  Seems to me, Lil B is getting some “positive” support seeing how the Hip-Hop industry is so conservative. One main statement that Talib Kweli did mention was this:

“I’m happy to see young Hip-Hop heads move [away from] homophobia,” he said. “Regardless of what your stance is on gay people, homophobia or the act and practice of it, is extra wack.”  Hmmmph, what do you guys think??

Keep posted to www.24hourhiphop.com for more updated news on Lil B.