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Twenty years ago this week Brand Nubian released their album “In God We Trust.” It was the second album from the group and the first without band member Grand Puba. The first single from the album was the controversial “Punks Jump Up To Get Beat Down.” One of the lyrics from Sadat X (“Though I can freak, fly, floow, fuck up a f*ggot.Don’t understand their ways I ain’t down with gays…”) earned the ire of gay rights groups who thought the entire song was about committing hate crimes against homosexuals.

In this interview with VLADTV.com rapper and actor Lord Jamar reflects on that song, his feelings about gays and why he even avoided an audition for the part of Omar on “The Wire,” an openly gay gangster.

On “Punks” controversy…

When we did shows people would get their asses whipped, but none of them were homosexuals. When that song came on, if you had a grudge against somebody they would wait til that song came on and start whopping they ass. It was the beat down song…

On Gay lifestyle…

“I don’t have a problem with gay people, I’m not homophobic. But at the same time I don’t agree with it. And now these days if you don’t agree with it…whenever you say the word homosexual or gay…if you don’t say it in a way that’s positive or pleasing to them then something’s wrong with you. You’re the bad guy, you’re a homophobe.

Everybody has their opinions and right to what they choose in life but I’m not gonna beat up somebody for being homosexual. I’m not gonna discriminate against them. Can I love them as human beings? Absolutely. But I don’t want to deal with that sexually and that’s not my sexual preference.”

On his gay friends…

“I went to a gay wedding not too long ago. I had a dude I grew up with who is gay and I went to his wedding.”

Omar of “The Wire…

“I didn’t go [to the audition]. I didn’t want to get [the role]. I’m not that much of an actor… If you stick your tongue in a man’s mouth whether you’re playing a character or not that’s you. You gotta explain that to your seeds or whatever the case may be. I don’t blame another man for doing it but I wasn’t comfortable with that so I didn’t even go to that audition. Michael Williams killed that role. He was the perfect one for the role and he’s gone on to do many wonderful things since then….

Watch the full interview below:

Brand Nubian’s Lord Jamar Says He Is Not Homophobic…But  was originally published on theurbandaily.com