Aoki Lee Simmons is calling out White America for what she believes to be a “fake” love of Hip-Hop. The youngest daughter of Russell Simmons and Kimora Lee Simmons took to social media with her thoughts this past weekend.
“You know every time a Black hip-hop artist, a rap artist who is broken into the American mainstream dies, it is only those communities, the Black community, the hip-hop community, who are actively involved in the remembrance or mourning them,” Aoki said. “At the same time, like so many privileged non-Black people are like living their lives, the soundtrack to their life is this music they are using it for everything, it’s constantly headphones in there like gym, it’s motivation,” the young adult shared.
“Much of what makes Hip-Hop so compelling and it’s so often the stories of the traumatic lived experience of Black Americans like the absolute worst parts of systematic oppression on communities in the hood violence and drugs,” Aoki told her social media fans. “It’s all fun and games but like these are ongoing relevant issues that frequently kill these artists and when that happens, it’s all like, ‘The Hip-Hop community is violent.’ But you were just vicariously trying to insert yourself into the community. You were just appreciating that.”
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Aoki Lee Simmons’ comments come after the tragic death of Migos group member Takeoff. The artist was at a private event in Houston, Texas, when he was killed by a stray bullet. Several Black celebrities, including Deion Sanders, laid the blame solely on Hip-Hop glorifying violence without acknowledging the entire picture in which, from a historical standpoint, the United States has revealed itself as a country appreciative of both violence and oppression. Pastor Jamal Bryant of New Birth Missionary Baptist Church commented on Takeoff’s passing during his Sunday sermon.
“I’m afraid that this generation is adjusting to a culture of violence with no redress,” the pastor shared. “This summer and this fall, we lost six rappers to gun violence,” Bryant continued. “Yet, we wonder why our young people are under distress, anxiety, under depression, because all of the people they look up to are now falling below zero,” the pastor said.
Takeoff was 28 years old at the time of his passing. LeBron James, Cardi B, and others have given tributes to the late rapper.
Photo: Aoki Lee Simmons/Instagram
