Comedian Bert Kreischer recently revealed his perspective on racial slurs during a conversation with hip-hop legend Too $hort on the Bertcast podcast. The discussion emerged while the two discussed Too $hort’s latest album track “Five-Letter Word,” which addresses the use of the N-word among friends.
Too $hort explained the song’s origins, noting that among his circle of African American friends, the word gets used casually in reference to anyone.
“It’s not like a black thing. It’s like that’s what we just say,” the Oakland rapper stated. He added that some non-black individuals have been around their black friends and “have been called the n-word very casually and just fly by and just keeps going.”
Kreischer’s response was enthusiastic.
“It’s the funnest thing in the world. If you get called the N word by a black guy, you’re like, ‘Oh, [ ]'” he said, trailing off into laughter.
The conversation provided context for Too $hort’s collaboration with comedian Godfrey on the track. The rapper explained that initial listener responses suggested the song’s message needed clarification.
“They were walking away with sometimes with the wrong idea,” Too Short said.
He described sitting down with Godfrey to explain the point he was attempting to convey. “The song was missing hitting the mark of what it really meant,” Too $hort noted. The collaboration aimed to establish clear boundaries around the term’s usage, emphasizing in the lyrics: “If you ever dare say the word, never use the R. Don’t use the R.”
Too Short said the original title was “Don’t Say the R,” but feedback indicated listeners misunderstood the message as permission to use the term without the hard R ending. “They were like, ‘You’re not being specific enough,'” he recalled.
The 60-year-old artist emphasized that the formal discussion with Godfrey represented a valuable “meeting of minds” that helped clarify the song’s intended message about language, friendship, and boundaries.
