Beenie Man, the closest thing that Jamaican dancehall has to an international popstar, has been slammed by gay rights groups for the content of some of his songs. Activist groups have complained that Beenie Man songs like "Bad Man Chi Chi Man" ("chi chi man" is a Jamaican homosexual slur) and "Han Up Deh" contain lyrics that seemingly call for violence agianst gays and lesbians. Such groups have launched protests which have caused the cancellation of a handful of Beenie Man concerts in Europe.
In the past, Beenie Man has dismissed the homophobic lyrics as a part of Jamaican culture, but he has now issued an official statement apologizing for his ways.
"It has come to my attention that certain lyrics and recordings I have made in the past may have caused distress and outrage among people whose identities and lifestyles are different from my own," Beenie Man said in a statement issued by his record label, Virgin. "While my lyrics are very personal, I do not write them with the intent of purposefully hurting or maligning others, and I offer my sincerest apologies to those who might have been offended, threatened or hurt by my songs. As a human being, I renounce violence towards other human beings in every way, and pledge henceforth to uphold these values as I move forward in my career as an artist."
Despite the apology, some gay rights organizations aren't accepting Beenie's words of remorse. OutRage! have issued a press release in which spokesman Peter Tatchell points out that Beenie does not mention gays and lesbians specifically, but could as easily be apologizing to any group that doesn't jive with Beenie's lifestyle. Tatchell urges Beenie Man to withdraw the CDs with the questionable content from stores and to specifically declare his respect for gays and lesbians.
For now, though, fans will have to weigh their loyalty towards the dancehall superstar on the above apology. Meanwhile, Beenie Man is currently on an extensive tour of the United States.
Janet Jackson has apologized to gay fans for performing a duet with reggae star Beenie Man, insisting she never would have recorded with him if she knew he was homophobic.
The dancehall star is among a number of Caribbean hitmakers currently being targeted for anti-gay lyrics in songs, and his inclusion on the new blacklist has embarrassed Jackson, who recorded "Feel It Boy" in 2002 with Beenie Man.
The dancehall star once advocated the killing of gays in his early songs.
Speaking to gay magazine Genre, Jackson insists she knew nothing about the reggae star's controversial past when they teamed up.
She says, "If I had known that, I would not have worked with him. It's shocking to me. We're on the same label, so I should have known.
"But at the same time, I wish someone from the company would have told me, knowing how ... I feel about the gay community.
She's already alienated the family listeners with her Superbowl incident, she certainly can't risk alienating gays as well. So I understand why she's apologised, but it's still a bit odd. People aren't that narrow-minded that they would assume she is homophobic just because she sang a song with the guy. I mean if Elton John and Eminem can do a song together, Janet and Beenie man should have no problems.
08-06-2004 04:07 AM
