Rick Ross may see one of his paychecks drop off after offending lyrics angered women’s and anti-violence groups this week.
There is a petition in circulation online for Reebok to drop their endorsement of the rapper due to references to rape in his guest verse to Rocko’s track “U.O.E.N.O.” In that song, Ross rhymes: “Put molly all in her champagne / She ain”t even know it / I took her home and I enjoyed that / She ain”t even know it.”
Of course, rape has been the theme in rap songs before, but they’re not always from artists with endorsement deals from male-driven athletic shoe companies.
“By holding Rick Ross up as something to aspire to, Reebok is sending the message that raping a woman is cool–and that’s a dangerous message to send the boys and young men that Reebok markets to. This is what rape culture is,” reads the petitioning group Ultra Violet’s statement.
During the outcry this week, Rick Ross told New Orleans radio station Q93.3 that his lyric was misunderstood… because he didn’t actually use the word “rape.”
“I want to make sure this is clear, that woman is the most precious gift known to man. It was a misunderstanding with a lyric, a misinterpretation where the term ‘rape’ wasn’t used,” he said, explaining and excusing nothing at all.
Rocko’s song has been out for longer than a month, but anger over the lyrics grew out of a Change.org petition that questioned if Ross had actually raped somebody… and if he hadn’t, he was glorifying the act.
“If it is not true and they are just lyrics, he has still just glorified rape,” it read.