Lil Pump is walking back on lyrics that caused an uproar in the Asian-American community.
The “Gucci Gang” rapper shared a video last week apologizing for a preview of his upcoming “Butterfly Doors” song he posted on his Instagram early this month. The rapper had featured the lyrics “They call me Yao Ming ’cause my eyes real low (ching chong),” pulling his eyes back in a racist slant-eye gesture while the verse played in the background.
Lil Pump has since removed the preview video.
“I came to tell you for my part that I’m sorry and I apologize for posting that,” he said in the later video. “It was not my intention to hurt nobody or do none of that. Dead ass. Because I’ve got Asian homies. I fuck with everybody, got nothing against nobody. It’s all love.”
The rapper’s lyrics and preview video drew a flurry of criticism from many Asian-Americans, including fellow rapper China Mac.
China Mac had posted several videos on his Instagram page demanding that Lil Pump apologize for the racist gestures and slurs. He also called for Lil Pump to take the video down. When the “Gucci Gang” rapper released his apology, China Mac responded with a video to say he was pleased by Lil Pump’s course of action.
“Thank you, Lil Pump. I appreciate that. It shows that you’re a man, you can admit when you’re wrong and you can apologize for it. That speaks volumes,” China Mac said in his response. “We have platforms, so whenever we do something that offends people, we should take the responsibility and correct it. So much love to him, happy holidays to everybody. Let’s respect each other’s cultures.”