Too $hort's recent video interview giving advice to boys on "how to turn girls out" was nothing short of disgusting. But his response to the incident is shocking in a good way. It's a rare sincere celebrity apology: He doesn't make excuses for himself, resists placing part of the blame on those who were offended and seems to actually understand how problematic his comments were. Most important: He pledges to reverse the message.
The rapper's tips to little boys on sexual aggressiveness were an enormous failure, but he could certainly teach a few lessons to other public figures on humility and willingness to learn from mistakes.
Read a few excerpts from his exclusive interview with AllHipHop.com:
Dream Hampton explained to me about how this is a time when women are fighting for their rights, and here’s a video that describes an assault. I’m actually a very knowledgeable brother, but Dream schooled me in the conversation. It really opened up my eyes to something I had not known about. She told me that if we were kids at a pool and I ran by and yanked her top down, it wouldn’t be a joke or a prank to her — that would be a traumatic incident, and it is along the lines of sexual assault. As little boys, we’re running around tapping girl’s a**es like it’s funny, but they’re really victimized by it. I learned that it’s not a joking matter. I feel like I needed that education because had I not, I could’ve continued thinking that it is a joke. Even with my music filled with misogyny, I still have morals.
… There can’t be any forgiveness. I don’t expect anybody to be like, “I forgive you for being remorseful.” That’s bullsh*t. You’ve got to do something. I have to reverse the message. I hope that there aren’t any kids who have seen that video. If it never resurfaces again, I’ll be fine with that.
Read more at AllHipHop.com.