50 Cent has joined the chorus of support for Odd Future's Frank Ocean, who revealed this month that his first love was a man. Although he has previously made repeated homophobic comments, 50 Cent said he "could care less about [Ocean's] personal preference in the bedroom … People make choices, you can live your life your way."
"Anyone that has an issue with Frank Ocean is an idiot," 50 Cent told MTV UK. "I think Frank Ocean is a talented artist, I think he's created material that made me know his name, that impressed me … The more successful that project is now, it's going to leave people in the position where they can actually say: 'Look, I'm gay.'" The rapper even announced that following recent comments by Barack Obama, he is now in favour of legalising gay marriage. "If the president is [endorsing] that, then who am I to go the other way?"
While several other hip-hop stars have celebrated Ocean's announcement, including Jay-Z and TI, 50 Cent's remarks are notable owing to his past examples of homophobia. "I ain't into faggots," he told Playboy in 2004. "I don't like gay people around me, because I'm not comfortable with what their thoughts are. I'm not prejudiced. I just don't go with gay people and kick it … But women who like women, that's cool."
50 Cent has frequently used homosexuality as a basis for insults, peppering his lyrics with slurs and dismissing joint Kanye West/Lady Gaga concerts as "the gay tour". Following the 2010 suicide of 18-year-old Tyler Clementi, who was gay, 50 Cent tweeted: "If you a man and your over 25 and you don't eat pu**y just kill your self damn it. The world will be a better place. Lol."
The rapper has apologised for such comments, claiming they are misunderstandings. His mother, he points out, has dated women. But 50 Cent's statement about Frank Ocean is uncharacteristically specific. "It's cool," he said, though he also downplayed the singer's courage. "You can call it brave or you can call it marketing, because it was intentional; it wasn't an accident."
