Drink Champs host Noreaga issued an apology for entertaining Ye’s foolishness following the problematic Chicago native’s October 16 appearance on the popular podcast. It didn’t go the way he thought.
The Queens-bred rapper posted the mea culpa to Twitter on Monday after the viral episode aired.
“I’m sorry, my fault,” Noreaga tweeted.
I’m sorry my fault!!!
— N.O.R.E (@noreaga) October 17, 2022
Black Twitter quickly gathered the “Oye Mi Canto” emcee.
— 👑 Chelaerys 🐉 (@ChelsIsRight) October 17, 2022
— Zondwa👑🏳️⚧ (@PhenomPapi) October 17, 2022
Naw @noreaga Stand on that shit. You knew better but saw dollar signs pic.twitter.com/5hQmqeCG3N
— OnlyTrama (@DrippyBirdz) October 17, 2022
Really @noreaga?! “I did not realize that the George Floyd statements on my show was so hurtful. And you gotta realize, it was the first five minutes of the show When he walked in, he told my producer, he said that if he’ll stop filming, he’ll walk out.” I call bullshit.
— Maya Contreras (@mayatcontreras) October 17, 2022
Maybe donate your YT shillings for that interview to George Floyd’s daughter, Gianna 🤔
— THEE RENAISSONCE’ 🐝 Follows You (@NaeEve_) October 17, 2022
You starting to become a sellout for the numbers bro. Kanye throwing our people under the bus and you sitting there letting him! You wild dawg
— Houston vs all yall (@BLM365_) October 17, 2022
During the controversial episode, Noreaga entertained Ye’s ramblings about Jews and a trash comment about George Floyd’s death being due to a fentanyl overdose rather than being murdered by racist former cop Derek Chauvin.
“I watched the George Floyd documentary that Candace Owens put up,” the “Through The Wire” rapper said on Drink Champs. “One of the things that his two roommates said was, ‘they want a tall guy like me.’ And the day he died, he said a prayer for eight minutes. They hit him with the fentanyl. If you look, the guy’s knee wasn’t even on his neck like that.”
On October 17, Noreaga addressed the comment, saying he supports “freedom of speech,” when he appeared, via phone, on The Breakfast Club. He also stated he allowed the banter because Ye gave a list of conditions to appear on Drink Champs.
“I just wanna be honest. I support freedom of speech. I support anybody, you know, not being censored. But I do not support anybody being hurt. I did not realize that the George Floyd statements on my show was so hurtful. And you gotta realize it was the first five minutes of the show. When he walked in, he told my producer, he said that if he stop filming that he’ll walk out.”
Referencing the 2018 moment Cash Money founder Birdman walked off the set of The Breakfast Club during an interview, he continued. “So, I didn’t want a Birdman moment. I didn’t want a Birdman moment [like] with y’all like when Birdman walked out. I wanted the man to speak. I actually checked him about the George Floyd comment. I actually checked him about the White Lives Matter [shirt], but it was so [much] later in the episode. I was already inebriated at that time. Maybe people looked over it.”
“I apologize to the George Floyd family. I apologize to anybody that was hurt by Kanye West’s comments.”
The 45-year-old “Nothin’” rapper, born Victor James Santiago, Jr., then took his apology party to his cohost’s radio show on Hot 97.
“I felt like I can control the interview,” he told DJ Ebro’s teammates. “And I learned early on that I didn’t. As a Black man, I feel like I failed. As a human, I feel like I failed. But as a journalist, I succeeded.”
Noreaga attempted again to clarify that he didn’t just allow Ye to be rogue on the show. Initially, he said he let the “Jesus Walks” rapper rock, but later in the episode, he began to push back against what Ye said– though Noreaga admitted he was already blitzed. Given the 45-year-old emcee’s recent antics, it’s rich that Noreaga feigned innocence.
“I didn’t think he was going to spread this ideology,” he obtusely replied. I didn’t think he was going to go there. I thought he was going to have a couple drinks. He smoked blunts with us. I thought it was going to be light-hearted. I learned my lesson.”
Ok, N.O.R.E.
