Harmony Korine’s Spring Breakers is a film about Disney girls gone wild who team up with James Franco to hopefully not eat spaghetti in filthy bathtub water. Franco plays the character he was put on this Earth to portray, Alien (irony!), a dreadlocked white boy rapper with a golden grill, loud clothes, and an unironic vocabulary that includes use of the word “dope.” He is not Riff Raff, a dreadlocked white boy rapper with a golden grill, loud clothes, and an unironic vocabulary that includes use of the word “fly,” at least according to Franco; he based the character on Dangeruss, another rapper. The real-life Riff Raff is none too pleased.
In a recent MTV story penned by Franco himself, he claims that the inspiration is actually a Floridian rapper named Dangeruss (who also appears on the soundtrack) — a move which has irked Riff to the point where yesterday he emailed out a missive titled “Why Is Franco Lying?”
Riff Raff’s email lists five similarities between himself and Franco’s character (namely: braids, colored beads, grill, rings, and colorful clothes) and says, “The storyline ain’t mine but no one on Earth can deny that James Franco’s image and appearance characteristics are Riff Raff all day.”
Hive hollered at Riff Raff to flesh out his side of the story. Asked why he thought Franco had decided to deny that his character is based on Riff Raff, the rapper said, “Even the Florida rapper [Dangeruss] says that Franco isn’t dressed like him in the movie. All I want is credit for his image and I’m confused why a superstar actor with millions of dollars would steal and deny credit from a new upcoming rapper like myself who hasn’t even dropped an album yet. What a f*ckin’ asshole — I would never do any bullshit like that if I was in his position.” Then in signature Riff Raff patter he added, “Diamonds glisten…wood wheel twistin’ with the Versace optical vision.” (Via)
In Spring Breakers, James Franco’s Alien says, “Rocks glimmer…oak door contortin’ with the Macy’s glasses.” See? Definitely not based on Riff Raff.
