Grammy-nominated rapper DaBaby has apologised after video footage emerged of him assaulting a woman in a nightclub.
The rapper, real name Jonathan Kirk, can be seen lashing out and hitting the woman after she shines the flash from her phone into his face at close range. The incident took place at the Whiskey North nightclub in Tampa, Florida.
The law firm Morgan & Morgan confirmed to TMZ that they had since been appointed by the woman, Tyronesha Laws, though no charges have been filed.
DaBaby apologised via Instagram, saying: “I do apologise that there was a female on the other end … keep in mind, I couldn’t see you because you got the flash this close to me … I wish you could have respected me.” He offered to fly her to somewhere he could apologise in person.
Over the last year, DaBaby has become one of the most popular rappers in the US, earning two nominations at the Grammy awards and scoring a No 1 album, Kirk, in September 2019. But he has been involved in a series of incidents, including an arrest over robbery and battery charges in December – with the battery charges dropped last week – and over marijuana possession. The same month, he was also filmed pushing a hotel employee against a wall, later claiming the man had been harassing him.
In 2018, he was involved in a shooting incident in a Walmart that left a 19-year-old man dead. DaBaby claimed he acted in self-defence, but he was found guilty of carrying a concealed weapon and sentenced to a year’s probation.
