Iverson Meets His Critics
On the court he is an All-Pro with the Philadelphia 76ers. But off the court, Allen Iverson's attempt to become a rap star is drawing fire for some offensive lyrics on his new CD.
CBS News Correspondent Jeffrey Kofman says until now, Iverson has been the $12 million-a-year local hero known for his deft moves on the basketball court.
But he has come under fire for what he says in the songs on his CD. "You have someone who is a 76er who is a focal point in the black community in particular, coming out and saying these horrible, disgusting things and it can't be tolerated," says Asa Khalif of the civil rights group Racial Unity.
One song called 40 Bars features racial slurs, attacks on women and a threat to kill gay people.
"[We're] tired of little kids walking up and saying, 'Hey, b****,' and calling each other 'N*****.'" We ain't gonna take that," says C. Delores Tucker, president of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Association for Non-Violence.
All of the criticism seemed to surprise Iverson who met with his critics Tuesday. And what did it accomplish? "I got a chance to listen to those people. That's all I wanted to do—listen and see what I could do to help," said Iverson.
He said after the meeting that there was a "good exchange of ideas." But he said the CD will stay on the market with no change in the lyrics.
Last week, Iverson released a statement apologizing to gays and women who might be offended by the lyrics on the album.
Some said Tuesday's meeting was helpful.
"It suggested more caring than I've ever seen from white rappers like Eminem," said Rita Addessa, director of the Lesbian and Gay Task Force. "It suggests at some level Iverson actually may care about community."
Others who attended the meeting disagreed.
Khalif said he found the star to be "very arrogant."
"He showed he didn't care about the women he was disrespecting and he certainly didn't (care) about the gay and lesbian community," Khalif said.
About a dozen protesters gathered Tuesday night outside the First Union Center, where the 76ers had a pre-season home game against the San Antonio Spurs.
Khalif, one of the protesters, said they were considering whether to disrupt future games.
"Allen Iverson hasn't heard the last of Racial Unity," he said.
Some fans disagreed with the protesters.
"These people are not protesting other rap singers. Why picket him? There are a lot of other rappers who are saying the exact same kind of garbage," said fan Robert Moss, a lawyer from Voorhees, N.J. "I don't like his lyrics, but he has the right to say them. These people are picking on him because he's a celebrity."
Team president Pat Croce called the controversy a "distraction" and said he sympathizes with the protesters' goals but wishes they wouldn't take their anger out on the team.
"I appreciate their concens; I understand their feelings. I just wish they weren't protesting (the team)," he said. "I hope they don't disrupt anything. We're here to play basketball."
Also weighing in was filmmaker Spike Lee, who said in a television interview that he loves Iverson's basketball, but his type of rap is a "21st century minstrel show."
"I'm not saying he can't rap, but I'm talking about the material, the content," Lee said on WTXF-TV. "It's the content, and I love Allen but he's messing up on this one."
You have to search to find his controversial rap. A sanitized version is being played on just one small station in Philadelphia. The full album won't be released until the New Year. One thing Iverson has discovered is it's not so easy to make the leap from basketball star to rap star.