Macklemore Talks Homophobia, Dissing R. Kelly, & Being a White Rapper

Macklemore (sans Ryan Lewis) paid a visit to Peter Rosenberg and Angie Martinez on Hot 97 on the same day that his single “Same Love” went platinum. The Seattle rapper, who has “hella gay uncles” and a gay godfather, spoke out about homophobia in hip-hop, being a white rapper, and his R. Kelly diss on “Thrift Shop.”

Check out what he had to say and watch him freestyle over Wu-Tang Clan’s “Triumph” beat.

On homophobia in hip-hop: “That’s my community [hip-hop], that’s who I see to be oppressing gay people. The f-word and saying “that’s gay” are still rampant. Homophobia is still rampant in the hip-hop community and it just gets the co-sign.”

On hip-hop’s progress: “It’s getting better. The last year has gotten a lot better, but for so long, it was just an issue that nobody touched on.”

On being a white rapper: “You’re immediately going to get placed in the box, you’re immediately going to be corny. That’s the first place that you go. I do it too. I, for the most part, don’t like white rappers either. I think that most white rappers are corny.”

On his R. Kelly diss on “Thrift Shop”: “I never thought R. Kelly would hear that song ever. R. Kelly to me is the G.O.A.T. of R&B. I wrote that line in 2008 when that line was actually relevant. [If I meet him], I’m gonna be like, ‘Man, I’m so sorry. I was still using drugs. I was high.’ He’s a genius.”