Jay-Z just won the Dr. Dre Global Impact Award at the 2024 Grammy Awards, an accolade with a difficult history to reckon with. That's what Dee Barnes pointed out on Twitter upon hearing of the win, as she is the award's namesake's abuse victim. As such, this achievement does come with some baggage and a wider conversation on platforming these individuals, but it didn't play out in the way that you would expect. As she suggests, she does not hold these actions against any one recipient of the Global Impact Award, especially not Hov, and expressed more concern with how the producer's legacy erases his actions.
"The @RecordingAcad does not care about #ViolenceAgainstWomen," Dee Barnes wrote of Jay-Z winning the Dr. Dre Global Impact Award. "#JayZ received an award named after an #abuser and defended his wife in his speech while his daughter stood by his side." As such, she seemed to suggest that the New York rapper actually fought back against the implications of this award by championing the females in his journey. While this is no easy fix for abuse or the tough discussion around these topics, it's certainly something to focus on and emphasize, especially in a year in which almost every General Field nominee was a woman.
Dee Barnes Speaks On Jay-Z's Dr. Dre Global Impact Award
However, some folks on Twitter weren't buying Dee Barnes' interpretation, for one reason or another. Sure, some will always dismiss "cancel culture," but those who condemn Dr. Dre's actions think Jay-Z's speech wasn't enough to make up for them. "Another reason I'm unmoved by that speech," a user replied to her aforementioned tweet about the Roc Nation mogul. "Nah, it gave what it was supposed to give," Barnes responded, and it's unclear whether this is a fully genuine take or sarcastic disappointment.
Still, her next tweet was definitely more clear in this aspect. "It wasn't a slamming it was a call out! They gave him the mic and he rightfully caled them out. You can't do that from home on the couch. FORGIVE HIS BROOKLYN!" For more news and updates on Dee Barnes, Jay-Z, and Dr. Dre, stay posted on HNHH.