Full text available at Cultural Weekly [1]
Jay Z has made a career of speaking his mind. But the ongoing controversy over recent remarks about his presence being “charity” seems to have touched a nerve with many people. Academics, pundits and bloggers are mostly in agreement that Jay Z at best misspoke and at worst is an arrogant fool. I don’t agree with either position. As I see it, there are three main issues at play here: 1) generation gaps, 2) expectations for celebrity advocacy, and 3) racism.
Jay Z has made a career of speaking his mind. But the ongoing controversy over recent remarks about his presence being “charity” seems to have touched a nerve with many people. Academics, pundits and bloggers are mostly in agreement that Jay Z at best misspoke and at worst is an arrogant fool. I don’t agree with either position. As I see it, there are three main issues at play here: 1) generation gaps, 2) expectations for celebrity advocacy, and 3) racism.