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Lil’ Wayne Apologizes for Offensive ‘Emmett Till’ Lyric In Future’s ‘Karate Chop’



Lil’ Wayne formally apologized for his offensive lyric about Civil Rights icon Emmett Till. The CashMoney Records superstar penned a letter to the Till family.

Lil’ Wayne, who also goes under the moniker Lil’ Tunechi, was a guest feature in Epic Records artist Future’s “Karate Chop” track.

In “Karate Chop,” Lil’ Wayne raps, “Beat that pu**y up like Emmett Till.” Lil’ Wayne can be heard laughing after uttering the line.”

It was also learned that this song was not Wayne’s first reference to Till.

Lil’ Wayne previously disrespected Emmett Till several years ago in 2007 on “Da Drought 3” mixtape in song “Swizzy.”

In “Swizzy,” Lil’ Wayne raps, “Beat up ya block yeah I get my Emmett Till on.

These lines are highly offensive given the story behind Emmett Till.

Emmett Louis Till was a 14-year-old African American Chicago teen murdered in Mississippi in 1955 after allegedly whistling at a white woman. The teen was in the Mississippi Delta region visiting family members.

The event took place after Till allegedly showed friends a photograph of himself in an integrated school. Till said he had a white girlfriend to the young boys’ disbelief. Till was dared by some of the local boys to talk to a white woman who was running a store.

A few days later after the incident, the woman’s husband Roy Bryant and half brother J.W. Milam arrived at the teen’s great-uncle’s house and took him to a barn, tortured him and gouged out one of his eyes. They shot the Chicago boy in the head, tied a cotton gin fan around his neck with barbwire and threw his body in the Tallahatchie River. His body was recovered three days later.

Till’s mother held an open casket funeral for the world to see the brutal nature of her son’s murder. Bryant and Milam were brought to trial for Till’s death and later acquitted. A few months later, the two boldly admitted to killing the teen in a magazine interview. Bryant and Milam were protected by double jeopardy, which prevents a defendant from being charged with the same crime after being acquitted.

Read Lil’ Wayne’s letter to the Till family below.

Dear Till Family:

As a recording artist, I have always been interested in word play. My lyrics often reference people, places and events in my music, as well as the music that I create for or alongside other artists.

It has come to my attention that lyrics from my contribution to a fellow artist’s song has deeply offended your family. As a father myself, I cannot imagine the pain that your family has had to endure. I would like to take a moment to acknowledge your hurt, as well as the letter you sent to me via your attorneys.

Moving forward, I will not use or reference Emmett Till or the Till family in my music, especially in an inappropriate manner. I fully support Epic Record’s decision to take down the unauthorized version of the song and to not include the reference in the version that went to retail. I will not be performing the lyrics that contain that reference live and have removed them from my catalogue.

I have tremendous respect for those who paved the way for the liberty and opportunities that African-Americans currently enjoy. As a business owner who employs several African-American employees and gives philanthropically to organizations that help youth to pursue their dreams my ultimate intention is to uplift rather than degrade our community.

Best,
Dwayne Michael Carter, Jr.
Lil Wayne

Listen to “Karate Chop” below


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