A rapper in China is facing backlash after drawing scrutiny for using offensive lyrics in a song and then following up with an apology blaming the influence of “Black music” for it.
PG One, real name Wang Hao, is a 24-year-old rapper from Harbin who rose to fame in 2017 after appearing in “The Rap of China,” a Chinese reality show.
Unfortunately, his newfound fame was short-lived as netizens dug up his song “Christmas Eve” from 2015, accusing him of misogyny and promoting drug use. The song contained references to “white powder” and lyrics like “Bitches all come to my house, stick out their butts and cosplay as Santa’s little reindeer. I ride on their shoulders until all their fuel is drawn out while singing Jingle Bells.”
PG One promptly took the song offline and issued an apology in Chinese on Weibo, and was translated to English by Shanghaiist.
“I was deeply influenced by Black music when I was first introduced to hip-hop culture, but I had a flawed understanding of its core values. For that, I sincerely apologize. As I mature, I feel I should enhance my sense of social responsibility, promote the right system of values, and become a better role model for my fans,” he wrote, adding that hip-hop should always be about “peace and love.”
Naturally, his apology caught even more backlash and scrunity from Netizens, according to SCMP.
“What does insulting women have to do with black music? Strictly speaking this is racial discrimination,” one commenter on Weibo.
“Chinese hip-hop draws from hip-hop the musical style and rap techniques, not their swear words!” wrote another.
Earlier this week, Wang was involved in another scandal after a paparazzi caught 35-year-old Chinese actress Li Xiaolu, who’s married to actor Jia Nailiang, spending the night at PG One’s home.
