DaBaby Apologizes for Bizarre Comments About HIV and Gay Men During Live Concert

In recent years there has been a lot of discussion regarding homophobia in rap and hip-hop culture. From shows like The Boondocks commenting on the phenomenon with the tale of Gangstalicious as early as 2005, to Lil Nas X responding to homophobic comments himself in 2021, it's a topic that's being discussed more and more.

While the hip-hop community has seemed to embrace gay artists more in recent years, it's always a bad look when prominent performers make remarks many decry as hate speech, like DaBaby's recent comments at Rolling Loud Miami 2021.

During his Rolling Loud set on July 25, the rapper said (per Pitchfork): "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 cell phone lighter up."

He then went on to say, "Fellas, if you ain’t sucking d--k in the parking lot, put your cell phone lighter up!"

Following criticism, he took to Instagram on July 26 to further clarify his comments by stating this his gay fans haven't contracted HIV/AIDS because they aren't "nasty gay n---as [or] junkies." He added: "I wasn't going on a rant. That's called a call to action. That's what that's called, 'cause I'm a live performer. I'm the best live performer."

DaBaby did eventually apologize for his comments on July 27, tweeting: "Anybody who done ever been effected by AIDS/HIV y’all got the right to be upset, what I said was insensitive even though I have no intentions on offending anybody. So my apologies."

This came around the time the clothing company BoohooMan announced that it would no longer be working with the rapper:

"boohooMAN condemn the use of homophobic language and confirm we will no longer be working with DaBaby. We stand by and support the LGBTQ+ community, and do not tolerate any hate speech or discrimination in any form," the company posted on July 28.

DaBaby further expanded on his comments in a series of tweets, stating that his words were "digested wrong" before saying that "any brands, networks, or artists that like to profit off black rappers' influence on the culture" can "keep yo money next time."

DaBaby did receive some blowback from his Twitter comments from fans, with some stating that the rapper was using racial injustice as a "gaslighting tool" and that he was attempting to save face by diverting attention from his comments at Rolling Loud by insinuating the outcries against him were a form of racism.

The English-Albanian singer worked with DaBaby to remix her popular track "Levitating," breathing even more life into the song. She wrote in an Instagram story: "I’m surprised and horrified at DaBaby’s comments. I really don’t recognise this as the person I worked with. I know my fans know where my heart lies and that I stand 100% with the LGBTQ community. We need to come together to fight the stigma and ignorance around HIV/AIDS."

Many are speculating that one of the "artists" DaBaby is referring to is Dua Lipa herself. Now, many fans are requesting that the singer take down her featured track with DaBaby or remove him from the "Levitating" remix entirely.