The war against Joe Rogan is still raging on. But it seems like one of his critics has softened the stance on the former Fear Factor host.
Last week, R&B legend India Arie called out Joe Rogan on Instagram about his recent compilation video saying racial slur “N-word”. She explained that she finds Rogan “problematic for reasons other than his Covid interviews,” adding, “it’s also his language around race.”
Arie’s attack on Rogan did not end there as she also joined Neil Young and other artists that asked for their music and podcasts to be pulled from Spotify.
The massive streaming platform has been on Rogan’s side through the controversies. But after having a conversation with Arie, they also decided to invest $100 million in artists from historically marginalized groups.
Joe Rogan then eventually issued an apology on Saturday in his Instagram post.
“I know that to most people, there’s no context where a White person is ever allowed to say that, never mind publicly on a podcast, and I agree with that,” he said. “Now, I haven’t said it in years,” Rogan added.
Rogan also addressed a video of him comparing a Black neighborhood to a Planet of the Apes movie. “I certainly would never want to offend someone for entertainment with something as stupid as racism,” he said.
Hearing the apology from the UFC long-time color commentator, Arie softened up her stance saying:
“I have to say, I do think he did a fine job with his apology,” Arie said. “He said a lot of the things I would want to hear someone say. The thing that stuck out for me most was when he said, ‘It’s not my word to use.’ And I think change behavior is what we’re really looking for. If it went all the way to allyship, that would be wonderful. But also, change behavior would be wonderful, too.”
“I know why [black people] use [the “N-word”], but explaining that to everyone every time is not where I want to be or anybody should have to be. We should just be able to say, ‘Just don’t.’ And also, I don’t think that Joe Rogan is racist for using it. I think he’s insensitive for using it. So just don’t.” she added.
Throughout the controversies, some African-American figures also voiced their support for Rogan, especially those who know him directly like MMA fighters Rashad Evans, Israel Adesanya and Terrence McKee.