8 Celebrities Who Spoke Out Against Black Entertainers in Drag

In the '80s era of hip-hop, if a Black boy wanted a Thriller jacket, shell-toe Adidas or a rope chain, no gender-orientation red flags went up. Today’s male trends have crossed into new territories that are causing pause - skinny jeans, UGG boots and skirts. Many believe this effeminizing of the Black male is a covert operation filtered through hip-hop and that Hollywood is attacking the Black male on the most rudimentary level— what he wears. Emasculating the Black Male: 15 Actors Who Wore A Dress For Success Here are eight Black men who have spoken out against the adopted looks of a few who they believe are changing how the whole is perceived. Photo: Complex Lord Jamar Lord Jamar, member of Brand Nubian, a famed '90s underground rap group, didn’t skirt around his distaste for Black men in skirts during an interview with VladTV, a hip-hop-centric YouTube channel. Jamar said skirt-wearing is the current phase in a movement towards excessively "softening" the image of Black men in entertainment to the extreme of femininity. He says it began with Black men wearing earrings in the '80s and '90s, a trend that evolved to them draping themselves in diamonds, which, as the age-old aphorism proclaims, are a girl’s best friend. That trend transitioned to the skinny jeans craze and now to wearing skirts and dresses. Jamar credits rap moguls like Jay Z and Kanye West for shepherding these trends -- Jay Z led the culture in abandoning gold chains and adopting platinum and diamond jewelry, while Kanye introduced the black leather skirt. Jamar says the creation of these trends and the successfully adoption by fans is fuel to the egos of Black male entertainers. He says the stars' need to be validated by the reach of their influence is corrupting the culture. “In order to preserve a culture there are certain guidelines and boundaries that have to be there,” he said. “I have no problems with pushing boundaries, but everything has its limits. How far do you go with this pushing of boundaries before you’ve turned it into something else?” Photo: The Urban Daily Lord Jamar Lord Jamar made the list twice. This time, for speaking out against actor Omar Epps who recently wore a leather skirt on The View while doing press rounds for a new television series. Social media was buzzing with commentary. Jamar chimed in: “So now OMAR EPPS has joined the SKIRT GANG??? Say it int so!!! Old heads suppose to know better.” Fellow actor and Epps’ childhood friend, Marlon Wayans, fired back at Jamar, taking a dig at Jamar's style: “Hey @lordjamal how bout you retire that Troop jacket in your closet? And while u at it release them Gibraud jeans dawg ha!” Epps defended his skirt saying it was an informed nod to his ancestry. “The uninformed couldn’t understand my contemporary ode to my Zulu warrior roots. The Maasai, Fante, etc. It’s tribal, study our history,” he added. Epps' response poses an interesting question. Is cultural appreciation of this kind appropriate for a generation so far removed from its core practices? Photo: cc.com Dave Chappelle Comedian Dave Chappelle famously pushed the topic of feminization of the Black male to the forefront of Black Hollywood’s consciousness when he sat down with TV talk show host Oprah Winfrey in 2010. Chappelle had just returned from his Africa trip after his $50 million dollar abandonment of his namesake sketch comedy show. The trip and the walk-out were signs to the public that he was unraveling, and for this reason many wrote his claims off. But recently, people are taking note of his revelation. “I’m a conspiracy theorist to a degree," he said. "I connect dots that maybe shouldn’t be connected, but certain dots, like when I see that they put every Black man in the movies in a dress at some point in their career, I be connecting that, like, why all these brothers gotta wear a dress?” Chapelle candidly shared during the interview that while on the set of a movie, he was asked to portray a male prostitute and told he would be required to wear a dress. Chapelle adamantly opposed it, standing firm on his belief that Black men could be both entertaining and marketable without having to wear a dress at some point in their careers. Photo: wineandbowties Cam'ron Harlem-based rapper Cam’ron didn’t hold any punches when he dissed hip-hop elite Kanye West’s attire for his 12-12-12 benefit concert for Hurricane Sandy relief. During the show, West wore a leather Givenchy skirt, or kilt, atop leather pants paired with a black hoodie under a Pyrex jersey. Cam’ron took his Twitter page to air his disapproval. "Pyrex and a skirt? S**t ain't adding up And if u co-sign this I'm blocking u!! Straight up. Ima have to save us." Photo: Billboard Chris Brown Chris Brown, who has been no stranger to controversial debate himself among hip-hop critics and aficionados alike, joined Cam’ron’s condemnation on Twitter caravan, saying: "That s**t suspect. Can't get with that swag. N***s gone be wearing heels next." Photo:BET.com John Singleton Director John Singleton, ("Boyz 'n The Hood," "Baby Boy"), griped to Black Star News in late 2007: “I’m tired of all these Black men in dresses … How come nobody’s protesting that?” This comment came on the heels of the derogatory remark by radio shock jock Don Imus, who called the Black women of the Rutgers Basketball team, “nappy headed hos.” When asked about the incident, during the same interview, Singleton said that Black people should accept a degree of ownership for familiarizing the dominant culture with the offensive slurs that we use against each other. Singleton suggested the way we are perceived has been at our own invitation. The director, who is intent about telling a holistic story reflective of the truths in Black culture, especially those of the impoverished Black male, is turned off by the major lie that seems to be infiltrating Hollywood -- that Black men are comfortable wearing dresses as way to pacify an intimidated white America. Photo: Celebrity Power Magazine Freaky Zeeky Dipset rapper Freaky Zeeky told Vlad TV he was not a fan of men wearing dresses. “I been to the top and there were no dresses for men up there,” he said. When the interviewer showed him a picture of fellow Harlem rapper A$AP Rocky in what appeared to be a long dress over leggings, Zeeky gave an unbelieving laugh, then said. “Oh, God what is this world coming to?” He went on to ask: “You know who A$AP looks like right there? Jamie Foxx. I bet Jamie Foxx won’t wear no skirt, I don’t think.” Perhaps the infamous Wanda Wayne bits on the '90s hit sketch comedy show In Living Color were not on Zeeky's radar. When the interviewer mentioned a similar controversy about Black men wearing pink, which both Zeeky and Cam'ron approved of, Zeeky said that style choice came about after watching a gangster movie where a mobster had on a pink suit. There is a difference between wearing a color and wearing a dress, he added. Photo:mmadiehards.com N.O.R.E. According to rapper N.O.R.E., hip-hop is going through a “Purple Rain” phase, collectively mimicking the gender-bending career of music icon Prince, a logical poster child for normalizing an effeminate style of dress for Black males in the entertainment industry. “I think Prince pushed fashion so people could talk about it," N.O.R.E. said. The difference between Prince’s era and now is that the star's bold fashion choices started conversations, but did not seep into American consciousness and were not mimicked. Black men weren’t moved wear leather pants and pearls. Prince set his own pace while artists today are seeking to influence the pace of a culture. “Things are so loose now that people are doing certain things on purpose for the reaction. They don’t care if it looks queer," N.O.R.E. said. "They actually want to be the talk of the town.” N.O.R.E. says he is not bothered by this trend, but he will not be hopping on the “Purple Rain” bandwagon. Photo: Entertainmentordie.com Katt Williams In April 2013 comedic heavyweight Katt Williams responded to comedian Kevin Hart, who wore a dress during a Saturday Night Live skit parodying actress Quvenzhane Wallis. In an interview promoting Scary Movie V, Williams said: “It was his turn,” to acquiesce to the inevitable call to wear a dress that is presented to Black entertainers. “At the end of the day, Kevin doesn't have to worry about what people are going to say about him wearing a dress because of the long line of dress-wearing before him,” Williams said. He added that putting on a dress is a matter of choice, and Hart chose to do it. Hart was also questioned in an interview with Black Tree TV following the SNL skit, he responded: “I was one of those comedians who said I would never wear a dress, but when with the opportunity of what I felt was funny I said, 'Oh that’s funny. I will do it.' It’s all about making the choice about what’s funny to you." He added: “Nobody makes you do anything ... Nobody made Martin put on a dress in Big Momma’s House; nobody made Tyler Perry put on a dress as Madea; nobody made Jamie Foxx put on a dress as Wanda; nobody made Martin do it as Sheneneh. It was a choice."

Related Stories

‘How Y’all Mad?’: Woman Who Rejected Usher Onstage Fires Back After Confirming She Went on Stage for One Reason — and It Wasn’t Him

‘You Know What…’: Jamie Foxx’s Bold Post About Black Identity Sparks Fierce Debate as Critics Point to His Dating History

‘She Looks Like a Different Woman’: Kevin Hart and Wife Eniko Hart Turn Heads at Movie Premiere After Fans Barely Recognize Her Stunning New Look