Chingy Denies Donald Trump Endorsement: Rapper 'Didn't Know' About Black, Muslim And Mexican Controversies

Hip-hop artist Chingy wants his fans to know he’s not “right thurr” for Donald Trump. The Kansas City, Missouri, rapper, who enjoyed mainstream success in the early 2000s, recently denied endorsing the real estate billionaire’s presidential bid, despite having posted a Twitter message suggesting otherwise.

Chingy, whose real name is Howard Bailey Jr., clarified his stance on the Republican candidate in a video that appeared on YouTube over the weekend. “I didn’t know about some of the negative things he had to say about some of the races out here and about the hip-hop community,” Bailey said in a video message.

He continued: “I was kind of commenting off reading that article and reading some of the good things that he said, so that’s kind of where my comments came from.” It’s unclear what article Bailey is referring to, as the tweet suggesting his support for Trump did not include any link.

Bailey tweeted Friday: "Politics vs society. People should innerstand [sic] that politics is a business jus like the job you work at. I vote for @realDonaldTrump ‘YEP’ 3." There was a swift backlash on social media, with many users calling Trump’s comments about the social justice movement Black Lives Matter as well as Muslims, Asians and Mexicans to Bailey’s attention.

The rapper, whose hit single “Right Thurr” made the top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 2003, said he felt compelled to clarify his Twitter post in the video, which he titled “I DO NOT endorse Donald Trump.” Bailey said he hadn’t done much research on Trump’s candidacy before making the statement last week.

"Every now and then I see some of [the Trump coverage] on TV," he said. "I'm not familiar with exactly how it's going down. And that's another reason why I didn't know a lot of the negative things he said. Like a lot of people comparing him to Hitler and stuff… I didn't know these things. So when I seen the good he said, I was like, ‘Oh, that's cool that Donald Trump be trying to do that.’"