American rapper Doja Cat apologises for saying faggot ‘15,000 times’
Doja Cat’s song “Mooo!” has had more than 10 million views on YouTube (genius/youtube and dojacat/twitter)
An American rapper has apologised after sparking outrage with her use of the word “faggot.”
Doja Cat – who rocketed into the public consciousness earlier this month with her satirical viral hit song “Mooo!” – prompted a backlash from people including Will & Grace star Debra Messing when she dismissed complaints, saying she had used the word “like 15 thousand times in my life.”
The singer is the latest in a series of musicians to be held to account for their offensive tweets, after posts from Ed Sheeran and Stormzy led people to feel hurt and angry last year.
The singer has made it big with lyrics like: “Bitch I’m a cow” (doja cat/youtube)
After past times in which Doja Cat used gay slurs were highlighted, the star – whose real name is Amalaratna “Amala” Zandile Dlamini – responded defensively on Twitter.
On Tuesday (August 28), she wrote: “I called a couple people faggots when I was in high school in 2015 does this mean I don’t deserve support?
“I’ve said faggot roughly like 15 thousand times in my life,” she added.
“Do I hate gay people?” (dojacat/twitter)
“Does saying faggot mean you hate gay people? Do I hate gay people?
“I don’t think I hate gay people. Gay is ok.”
Doja Cat will turn 23 in October, meaning that she was an adult in 2015.
Her response attracted criticism and condemnation from many, including Messing, who last year hit out at former Fox News host Megyn Kelly for asking a fan if Will & Grace turned him gay.
The actress quote tweeted Doja Cat’s post, which has since been deleted, and wrote above it: “SERIOUSLY, @DojaCat?!
“How can you be so ignorant? Do know how many people you are hurting?” (debramessing/twitter)
“How can you be so ignorant? Do know how many people you are hurting?
“Use your fame and platform for Good. It’s a privilege.”
Later that day (August 29), Doja Cat wrote a new apology, saying: “I truly apologise to anyone that I’ve offended or deeply hurt with my words.
“I used these hateful and derogatory words out of ignorance” (dojacat/twitter)
“I used these hateful and derogatory words out of ignorance and didn’t intend to discriminate against anyone for their race, religion or sexual orientation.
“I understand how serious this is and know that I have let a lot of my fans and supporters down,” she added. “I promise to do better for myself and each and every one of you.”
She has since liked tweets which have called her out, like one which read: “15,000 divided by 4 (years of high school) is 3,750 per year – @DojaCat was letting them slurs off at a rapid rate.”
If she used the gay slurs in 2015 as she said, she would have been 19 or 20 (doja cat/youtube)
Another of her likes pointed out: “GAY IS F**KING AMAZING BTW,” while one more user tweeted: “If you’re gonna give us a notes app apology I want one that’s 15,000 fa**ots long….”
The rapper has also liked tweets which forgave her, such as one person who wrote: “Doja girl we get it just dont say derogatory terms again especially considering your whole artistry is really appealing to the LGBT community.”
Last week, Texas Wesleyan University’s football coach Kyle Cox – who warned students not to “let a tweet ruin your chance” – was suspended after his anti-gay and racist tweets were unearthed.
The rapper has since deleted a host of tweets (dojacat/instagram)
In May, Premier League footballer Shane Duffy sparked outrage with a series of tweets containing anti-gay slurs.
The Brighton and Hove Albion player also attacked TV presenter Rylan Clark-Neal, calling him a “thing” during his stint on X Factor.
Shane Duffy (Dan Istitene/Getty)
Fellow footballer Mason Holgate sparked uproar and a Football Association investigation after it was found in January that the Everton full-back had used the words “fag,” “faggotttttttttt,” “a batty” and “battyboy” to refer to other Twitter users.
Baseball players including Michael Kopech, Sean Newcomb and Trea Turner have also apologised for sending anti-gay and racist tweets in the past month.
