A$AP Rocky is responding to those critics questioning whether or not he attended protests over the weekend demanding change following the killing of George Floyd.
On Monday (June 1), images with a caption including information that the Harlem native was present at protests in Los Angeles this past weekend surfaced on Twitter. Rocky was seen posing in front of a metal gate that had been tagged with graffiti. The graffiti reads, "Fuck 12," followed by a signature.
However, folks on social media were uncertain if Rocky was actually attending the protests or if he was doing a photo op in front of the gate. Shortly after the photos circulated, fans and Twitter users' questions and concerns started brewing and Rocky responded saying that he was on the frontlines, but didn't feel the need to broadcast his actions.
"WE PROTESTED N DEEZ STREETS, NO PRESS ,NO CAMERAS ,NO INSTAGRAM," he wrote. "NOT 4 NO BRAGGIN RIGHTS OR PHOTO OPPS, SHIT WAS JUST GENUINE. 4 ONCE ITS
It wasn't long before Twitter users obtained video footage that appears to have been recorded around the time that A$AP Rocky took that same photo in front of the graffiti wall that made its way online. In the clip, a man is seen spray painting "Fuck 12" and a signature on the gate when Rocky runs up and says "It's Flacko" before taking a series of photos.
"Bro u literally recorded vid of ur self on protest and prolly headed out after that lol," one person tweeted.
"But y-you just posted your every move rn tho," said another person in response to Rocky's Twitter post.
A third person said, "Yea you should probably sit this one out."
Some people even revisited the comments A$AP Rocky made during an interview with The Breakfast Club back in July of 2016 regarding the protests in Ferguson, Mo. and the Black Lives Matter movement. "I’m A$AP Rocky," he said at the time. "I did not sign up to be no political activist. I wanna talk about my muthafuckin’ lean, my best friend dying, girls, my jiggy fashion and my inspirations in drugs. I live in fucking Soho and Beverly Hills. I can’t relate. I go back to Harlem, it’s not the same. It’s a sad story. I gotta tell you the truth. I’m in the studio, I’m in fashion houses, I’m in these bitches’ drawers. I’m not doing anything outside of that. That’s my life. These people need to leave me the fuck alone.”
Rocky clarified his statements earlier this year, saying that he didn't feel it was appropriate for him to speak on causes that he hadn't helped with. He added that he thought it wasn't "sincere" and that it was "pretentious."
Now, it appears that the images of Rocky that social media criticized were posted on the Instagram account for the creative agency he founded, AWGE, on Sunday (May 21). The IG page also uploaded images of Rocky with a caption that says that he was protesting in Los Angeles yesterday.
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