DaBaby is doing the work.
In the wake of his homophobic comments at Rolling Loud, the embattled rapper had a virtual, private meeting with nine HIV awareness organizations during which he apologized for his “inaccurate and hurtful comments.”
According to a press release, on Aug. 25, DaBaby met with representatives from groups including Black AIDS Institute, GLAAD, National Minority AIDS Council, Southern AIDS Coalition, and Transinclusive Group “to discuss HIV facts and share personal stories of living and thriving with HIV.”
The organizations called for a meeting with DaBaby in an open letter on Aug. 4 and he “affirmatively responded.”
“The open letter to DaBaby was our way to extend him the same grace each of us would hope for,” the organizations said in a statement Tuesday. “Our goal was to ‘call him in instead of calling him out.’ We believed that if he connected with Black leaders living with HIV that a space for community building and healing could be created. We are encouraged he swiftly answered our call and joined us in a meaningful dialogue and a thoughtful, educational meeting.
“During our meeting, DaBaby was genuinely engaged, apologized for the inaccurate and hurtful comments he made about people living with HIV, and received our personal stories and the truth about HIV and its impact on Black and LGBTQ communities with deep respect,†the statement continued. “We appreciate that he openly and eagerly participated in this forum of Black people living with HIV, which provided him an opportunity to learn and to receive accurate information.”
Today, DaBaby met with several members from Black HIV organizations after they wrote an open letter calling him out for his ignorant and harmful statements about HIV+ people. Hopefully he learned something and will ACTUALLY make amends in public.https://t.co/CqsOel1PXL pic.twitter.com/DTvebqByOk
— Britni Danielle (@BritniDWrites) August 31, 2021
Marnina Miller of the Southern AIDS Coalition commended DaBaby’s “willingness to listen, learn, and grow,” and was hopeful he “will use his platform to educate his fans and help end the epidemic.”
DaBaby previously apologized to the LGBTQ+ community for his offensive remarks, but the apology was later removed from his social media accounts. Many also questioned the sincerity of his apology, the latter of which came after he was pulled from several festival lineups including Lollapalooza, Day N Vegas, Governors Ball, and more.
In the wake of his controversy, DaBaby returned to the stage at Hot 97’s Summer Jam and made a surprise appearance at Kanye West’s DONDA listening party in Chicago.
