A Wu-Tang Clan fan in Scotland was slapped with a hefty fine for saying the N-word while rapping the lyrics to the group's classic debut single, "Protect Ya Neck."
According to a report from The National, published last Friday (Aug. 5), Kyle Siegel, a 25-year-old white man, was fined £500 ($604 in USD), for using the N-word while rapping The Wu-Tang Clan's 1993 track "Protect Ya Neck." The young man was recording himself for a TikTok video while standing in a women’s bathroom stall.
Unbeknownst to Siegel, however, a woman of mixed race was in the next cubicle and heard him use the racial slur. The woman claimed she was "severely shocked" by the man's actions.
According to the newspaper, Siegel was in Lerwick Sheriff Court to answer the charges that he was using profanity in public. Prosecutor Fiscal Duncan Mackenzie said that Siegel committed the act at 1 a.m. during a birthday party at the Scalloway Boating Club on Feb. 20.
Siegel admitted to the court that he conducted himself in a disorderly manner by entering the female restroom, in which several people were present, including a woman of mixed race, and uttering the N-word. Siegel’s lawyer, Tommy Allan, said his client was "singing along to a TikTok on a friend’s phone."
According to the prosecutor, the man's rapping was so loud that the woman complained before an argument ensued. Apparently, the woman called the police and reported the incident. The officer said a few issues arose from the case, such as "artistic freedom," but he noted Siegel was not a "person of colour."
In the end, Siegel apologized to the court. The young man accepted "he crossed the line" and did not mean any harm, reports the publication.
The judge ordered Seigel to pay a $604 fine for the Breach of Peace offense and a victim surcharge of $24.
Wow! Life as a shorty shouldn't be so rough.