Spike Lee Responds to Chance the Rapper's Chi-Raq Criticisms
Spike Lee's latest movie venture Chi-Raq was expected to ruffle a few feathers with its raw portrayal of the current crisis of gun violence in the streets of Chicago. In fact, Chance the Rapper, a native of the city, had a problem with the film, calling it "exploitive and problematic" in a series of tweets. Now, Lee has some words of his own for the rapper.
"First of all, Chance the Rapper should say full discourse: his father works for the mayor," Lee said in an interview with MSNBC. "He's the chief of staff. His father is the chief of staff. Show me any criticism, if you're so concerned about Chicago, do your research, show me where he's made criticisms about the mayor. I think your finds will be surprising. He's not criticized the mayor. Why? His father works for the mayor."
Chance's father, Ken Bennett, is Mayor Rahm Emanuel's deputy chief of staff and the director of the Mayor's Office of Public Engagement.
Touching on another Chicago native in the film, Lee continued to make his point: "Jennifer Hudson is in the film," he said. "She plays a pivotal role. Jennifer Hudson's mother, brother and nephew were murdered in Chicago... If what Chance the Rapper is saying is true, then why would Jennifer be in the film?"
What do you think of Spike Lee's words?
BET.com is your No. 1 source for Black celebrity news, photos, exclusive videos and all the latest in the world of hip hop and R&B music.
Rewind! Watch Spike Lee Goes Off About Black Lives Matter in the video below.
(Photo left by Slaven Vlasic/Getty Images) (Photo right by Tim Mosenfelder/Getty Images)
