Mos Def Calls Out Publication Over Inaccuracies In Article, “I Don’t Drink Alcohol”

Written By S. Samuel

Rapper/Actor Mos Def has reportedly issued a statement to the New York Observer over inaccuracies in a recently published article.

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Mos Def contends that the journalist used artistic license when describing their encounter at an art gathering last December.

“I’m responding to the “Wannabe Warhol” article in which the writer claims that he saw me drinking “a Rolling Rock” and “in the mood to record” after “a few drinks.” For the record, none of that ever happened … and we both know this, Mr. Levine (if that is your name). I don’t drink alcohol, and have never in your company or presence. I spent no more than a very brief moment talking to you, and only after you pleaded with me to do so on more than one occasion where I politely declined. “Follow your first mind,” my grandmother says. On top of NOT printing what I DID say, you printed what I DON’T do. You are telling the people a lie, Mr. Levine (if that is your name), and if you’ll lie about something so small, to “add color” to your “piece,” what you have to report about me or any person, place or thing is unreliable to say the least.” (Gawker)

In the Observer write-up, writer D.M. Levine described seeing Mos late last year.

“On a recent blustery December night, rapper Mos Def was in the house. Dressed in brown slacks, shiny dress shoes, jean jacket and a cabby hat tilted to the side, he sipped a bottle of Rolling Rock, taking in the vibe. “It’s like a cross between early Hitsville, Andy Warhol’s Factory and a little bit of the Algonquin roundtable,” he told me. “But it’s something completely different.” (The New York Observer)

Mos is known for being very vocal and, last year, defending Kanye West after being asked about his late mother by talk show host Jay Leno.

“Can I be real with you for a minute?,” Mos asked a crowd of fans. “Kanye West is my friend, my brother…This motherf*cker ain’t kill nobody, ain’t take nobody money, he ain’t slap that girl. He expressed a sentiment that she was sitting at home feeling, probably. He ain’t do it at an appropriate time but he apologized for that…Leave my man alone. He’s at least done something good to make you feel good…So this energy right here is for my brother, Kanye West. Don’t none of y’all motherf*ckers rock with him if you think he this, think he that. I’m rocking with him…When they start kicking on me like that, I hope somebody on a national platform says ‘That’s my motherf*cking man.’ And Jay Leno, with your banana boat face having a**, you need to apologize to Kanye West for having him with his mother [would say], what she would think, she would think she’d need to smack your f*cking banana face-having a** face off trying to be slick…” (YouTube)

The rapper is known for being a significant figure in both music and films.

A contract-fulfilling release for Geffen, which had absorbed Rawkus years prior, the album trickled out in a small run during the last week of 2006. Bizarrely, the disc came with no artwork and was sold in a clear plastic case — though its single, “Undeniable,” did manage to grab a Grammy nomination for Best Rap Solo Performance. The Ecstatic, released on the Universal-distributed Downtown label, followed in June 2009; at that point, Mos Def had significant acting roles in Michel Gondry‘s Be Kind Rewind (in which he co-starred with Jack Black) and Cadillac Records (he played Chuck Berry). (All Music)

Check out a past Mos Def interview below:

11 Comments

Written by S. Samuel

Steven Samuel is the co-founder of SOHH.com.

11 Comments

  1. Any grown ass man that faint from another grown ass man is and always will be a homo. Fucc outta here wit that shit..

    • you need a dictionary to look up what a metaphor is. saying he made grown men faint isn’t one. where’s the comparison? smart dumb nigga.

    • I stand corrected, I did my research and found out that men have actually fainted at his concerts. It doesnt take a genius to see how it could be used as a “metaphor” though.

    • No…..peep MJ concert footage…grown ass men actually fainted, cried, trembled from sheer awe and excitement to see the greatest entertainer of all times do what he do…MJ is unlike any other

  2. This list don’t make no damn sense at all. I shouldn’t be surprised, seeing who made it.

  3. I thought this was a hip hop list?????? Since when are R&B groups included?????

  4. T.I. maybe….the rest, hell naw…but I understand MJs influence in corelation to hip hop…but wtf@Mint Condition being there and calling them the greatest band is just stupid…this nigga must have never heard of Earth, Wind and Fire, or The Average White Band or The Rolling Stones for that matter or the Beatles…Mint Condition had a couple songs but overall they’re obsolete

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