Consequence Talks About Raising Lupus Awareness, Thanks Kanye for ‘Helping Me Fight for My Life’ (UPDATE)

The A Tribe Called Quest adjacent compares his health situation to that of Phife Dawg and legendary producer, J. Dilla.

Consequence performs onstage with A Tribe Called Quest
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Image via Getty/Scott Dudelson/WireImage

Consequence performs onstage with A Tribe Called Quest

UPDATED 10/2, 10:30 a.m. ET: Prior to Consequence’s lupus diagnosis, the rapper thought the autoimmune disease primarily affected Black women. Now, he wants to warn men they can get it too.

TMZ reports that he was first aware something was wrong when he felt a pain in his neck while giving his 9-year-old son a piggyback ride. When Consequence went to the doctor, he was given a muscle relaxer, but he didn’t get better. He thought his health would improve as the pandemic set in, but he suffered from immobility and weight loss and didn’t know what was wrong.

He told the outlet the most difficult part of his diagnosis was the fear that his son wouldn’t have a father. Consequence also endured diabetic complications: he went from being Type 2 to Type 1 and has been taking insulin for two months. His weight also went down to 105 pounds.

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While Lupus largely affects Black, Hispanic, and Asian women between the ages of 15 and 45, Consequence wants Black men to be aware that it can impact them as well and keep an eye out for symptoms.

Consequence also took to Instagram to share that his son and Kanye West have helped him keep his chin up during this time. He captioned the Yeezy pic, "Me and my brother, Kanye... Thank You For Helping Me Fight For My Life TIME 2 RUN IT UP LETS GOOOOOOOOOOO #ThingsAreDifferentNow."

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Consequence revealed that he's been battling the autoimmune disorder, lupus. 

Per HipHopDX, Consequence held a listening party via Zoom for his upcoming EP, Things Are Different Now, on Monday. During the event, the rapper decided to disclose that he was diagnosed with lupus in June.


Consequence explained that he had been feeling ill for a while leading up to the diagnosis. Because he is a type 2 diabetic and part of the at-risk population for catching the virus, Consequence feared he had contracted COVID-19. He decided to go to the hospital where he was told that he had lupus. He went on to explain that it's "God's will" that he's still here and able to create meaningful music.

"He’s really my blessing from God," Consequence said when explaining how his nine-year-old son Caiden Mills gave him the encouragement he needed to move forward. "When it got stupid for me, he was right here like, ‘Yo, come on, you just gotta get your muscles back. Come on daddy, you can do it.’ He’s my little superstar … he definitely re-charged the Tesla for me."

The A Tribe Called Quest adjacent compares his health situation to that of Phife Dawg—who died from diabetes complications—and J. Dilla—who passed from lupus in 2006. 

"I have what Dilla had and what Phife had as a combo Happy Meal," he continued. "To be honest with you, I’m learning every day. I didn’t even know I would get my way back. I didn’t know I would get my strength back at all. So I’m definitely in a space where I’m taking everything literally a step at a time, a day at a time. I don’t know where their situations went wrong. I’m assuming a lot of it is diet ’cause I know with me, I’ve to reformulate how I eat about four times in the last two months."

This dedication to his health is mirrored by the effort he puts into his craft. Along with taking precautions to regain his weight and stay regulated, Consequence has been putting hours in the studio to create Things Are Different Now. This project is expected to drop on Oct. 23.

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