By: Amanda Anderson-Niles
Nelly is doing press this week to promote his hit show on BET, “Real Husbands of Hollywood,” but the rapper and actor has a lot of people talking about his recent comments about historical black college Spelman College. Several years ago when Nelly was one of the most popular rappers at the time, he found himself in the middle of controversy for his music video for “Tip Drill.” In the video, there was a scene in which he took a credit card and slid it down the middle of a young video vixen’s behind. This of course made a lot of women furious, and the women of Spelman College decided to protest him for it.
The protestors boycotted the 2004 bone marrow drive he was supposed to have at the campus to aid his sister Jacqueline Donahue who eventually passed away from leukemia in 2005. The protest caused Nelly to cancel the event and he tells Marc Lamont Hill via HuffPost Live that he’s still furious about the situation and he also somewhat blames the protestors for his sister’s death:
“The Spelman thing, the only thing I feel I would’ve did different is kick somebody’s a*s…that’s just how it felt to me, Pimp. I don’t have my sister. And I doubt it if half of those girls are still campaigning for what they quote, unquote took advantage for that opportunity for.
“You [protesters] robbed me of a opportunity. Unfairly, my brother. Because we could’ve still had your conversation after I got my opportunity, but it could’ve been somebody that was coming to that bone marrow drive that day, that was possibly a match for my sister. That didn’t come because of that…”
Check out the clip below:
Wow!
It’s very unfair for him to blame the protestors for his sister’s death. He made the video and they had the right to protest him if that’s the cause they wanted to fight for.
I really don’t know how to feel about this. I know he’s hurting that he lost his sister, but to blame these women for his sister’s death just seems wrong to me. But I can only imagine how he feels about losing his sis.
I can see where he’s coming from. The cause was so much more important than that music video. They shouldn’t have protested his bone marrow drive.
But I thought they held a bone marrow drive on their own after the fact?
So he still doesn’t see what was wrong with that video after all these years…smh
I honestly see what Nelly is saying. It was a music video and shouldn’t have caused women to protest against a bone marrow drive out of all things. That just wasn’t the right way to protest.
The event was held anyway I think even after he cancelled and there was a large turnout. So what is he talking about?
Those are some strong words. I think he may be unfairly blaming the protestors for his sister’s death.
He only said the truth. Most protests/boycotts are fads. People just like to jump on the bandwagon and pretend like they are doing something. But in the end they ruined his opportunity to save his sister. And the ironic thing about it is they claimed they were standing up for all women but they hindered one women’s chance to get better. Smh.
Had he not have made that raunchy video, he would have never gotten protested…
Huh? They still had the bone marrow drive, they just didn’t include him. But he shouldn’t expect an institution for women to want him on the campus after he made that kind of music video.
The protest was pointless in my opinion. Those video chicks were cheesing throughout the whole video. They wanted to be there and got paid for it too. At some point women have to understand that some females don’t care about being respected. They just want to be paid. And they aren’t worth protesting for.
The issue could have been handled AFTER the drive. That’s all I’m saying.
I think it’s a misunderstanding on both sides. They had the drive but Nelly decided not to show up because he was told there was a lot of students protesting him, but it really wasn’t.
Time to take some responsibility for that video Nelly.
Both sides should have sat down and had a conversation because both sides are telling a different story. So there had to be some kind of misunderstanding.
how can a video compare to someone life. its funny it was women block him from finding a donor to save a next woman’s life.His sister has nothing to do with the video you can protest his show,but a bone marrow drive is crazy May a match had the time to come in that first day,but not the other time,but we will never know
because of those 60’s wannabe feminist.
maybe it it was some crazy white folks they would have gone back and go postal on that campus
While I get his point, he could have taken complete control of the situation and created a better outcome. I understand his frustration and anger though, heaven knows what the Spelman feminist brigade came at him with. That’s all part of being a man. Now he has to do the only real thing that actually makes you a man and that is take full responsibility for your actions.
They were selfish cowards jumping on the protest bandwagon like that pointless Occupy movement. The timing made him a pivotal target but they took advantage of a humanitarian mission to address a big name. If they also publically attacked the video vixens, the rappers and the music execs as a platform as a whole, maybe the paradigm would have shifted in their favor. They should have accosted the women auditioning for the videos point blank. Those women have blood on their paws.