Four years after coming out as gay, iLoveMakonnen took to Twitter Friday to shed light on how his sexuality has affected his career. In a series of tweets, the 31-year-old rapper questioned why he isn’t credited for influencing the sound of hip-hop at the midpoint of last decade.
“Why they love leaving me out of the 2014-2015 music talks now days, the shade the blogger girls and music sites be giving!!! Honey! Was I not there??,” Makonnen wrote in the first of several tweets. “Is it cus I came out as gay? Since I came out as gay everyone has tried to discredit my music talents and originality and influence. I know y’all ashamed to say u was on a gay mans dick, but just keep it 100 since everyone so real nowadays.”
In a series of subsequent posts, Makonnen expanded on how homophobia in hip-hop has affected his career. “For people to think I came out as gay for promo is beyond me. Like there was no album. No nothing. U think im tryna get support in a homophobic environment for promo. Lol the game so fucked up. It was quite the opposite. I knew it would piss people off. But it was needed.”
Makonnen also suggested the hypocrisy that’s apparent in hip-hop’s love for fashion and lack of support for gay rappers. “Rappers be feeling confident bragging about being in gay designer brands and buying their so called girlfriend gay designer handbags but u don’t fuck with music made by a gay man cus why,? wrote the rapper.
This isn’t the first time that Makonnen has opened up about his role as a hip-hop pioneer. In a 2019 interview with Complex, he spoke about how much influence he has on today’s rappers.
“I’m hoping the influence is for them to be themselves and not be afraid to express themselves—love themselves for whatever they truthfully are, or whatever they believe the truth is,” Makonnen offered. “If anything, it’s like a fence that everybody was trying to hop over, and I just showed the way. And, of course, I was the guy who was overweight and stuff, so it’s like, well, ‘How did he get over that fence?’ Well, I did. So it gave people inspiration that they can do it too.”
