No matter how many times he's discussed his use of the n-word, Fat Joe still comes under fire for flaunting it in both his rhymes and everyday conversation. The Bronx native has never been shy about explaining how the term was a regular fixture in his life and his neighborhood, and once again he explained the word being a staple in his vocabulary.
Fat Joe recently visited Los Angeles radio station 92.3 The Real and chatted with Bootleg Kev and DJ Hed about people who criticize him for saying the n-word. "My thing is, when you say, 'You're Latino, why are you using the n-word?' Are you calling me a racist? Do you think I'm racist for using it? 'Cause the way the n-word offends me is when somebody says it in a racial way. We feel like somebody's trying to call us n*gga...so now you lookin' at me with racist eyes when I do is for my culture, for my people? I treat black people and Latinos the same way. Hundred percent. No difference, no preference. I treat 'em all the same way."
Joe added that where he's from, the word is prevalent and he's heard it since he was a small child. "I wouldn't even know how to stop saying it," he said. The rapper added that there are some people who "just want to look at things with a racist eye, a racist view. Spike Lee, to me, he's always loved black people and shown beauty in black people, but I've been around some white people who have told me he's a racist. Because he loves his people? Does that make sense to you?... Sometimes we gotta watch the people who's trying to police the word." Watch his clip below, including what he had to say about his heritage and Latinos in the Caribbean.