It's officially Election Day in the United States Of America, and by the end of the night, either Joe Biden or Donald Trump will be the President. For many, the outcome is as high-stakes as they come. Anxiety has reached a feverish high, with fear of widespread protests transpiring regardless of the results. For the most part, a score of musicians and celebrities have come forward with endorsements for Biden -- at least, in public. Others have made their Trump loyalties known, with rappers like Lil Wayne, Kodak Black, and Lil Pimp tossing their red hats into the ring.
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Last night, John Legend held it down with a performance at Joe Biden's final campaign rally. No stranger to voicing his political takes, Legend made sure to offer some thoughts on his fellow musicians, as well as those emboldened by some of Trump's more negative qualities. "Now, some people see the meanness, the bullying, the selfishness of Donald Trump and they mistake it for strength, a kind of twisted masculinity,” says Legend. “Some see his greed and they mistake it for being good at business.”
“Some of your former favorite rappers have been taken in by these lies," he continues, a clear allusion to Lil Wayne; last we checked, Lil Pimp hardly fit the mold of anyone's favorite rapper. "I think they even founded a new supergroup, it’s called The Sunken Place. But Trump’s Platinum Plan for Black folks is nothing but fool’s gold, because you can’t bank on a word he says. Ask the students of Trump University. Ask all of the contractors he stiffed. Ask people his charity was supposed to help before it was shut down for being a fraud. Ask all the Black and Brown Americans who are dying from this virus and losing their jobs under his watch.”
It should be noted that Legend and Wayne have worked together in the past, having previously connected on Tha Carter IV's "So Special." It's not the first time he watched a collaborator endorse Donald Trump, with Kanye West having notoriously boarded the Trump train prior to his own political ambitions. And while Legend did not call out Weezy by name, it's abundantly clear as to whom he's speaking on. Though to be fair, it's possible he was alluding to 50 Cent and Ice Cube, though neither of them has stood firmly behind either party.
Check out Legend's speech below, and sound off -- do you think it's counterproductive to equate hip-hop's Trump supporters to Jordan Peele's racially driven body-horror classic?