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Kendrick Lamar, ScHoolboy Q Talk Charleston

The TDE rappers say bad energy and the media are at fault.

It would be very unlike Kendrick Lamar to stay silent on the recent events affecting Black people in the country, so during the very busy BET Experience weekend, he unleashed his thoughts on the tragic Charleston shooting during a radio interview with Hot 97.

The massacre, which left nine people dead, has caused many to question the idea of a post-racial America, and others to question how to move forward.  

| EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE CHARLESTON MASSACRE |

When he was questioned, K Dot gave a philosophical response, blaming bad energy on the tragedy. “It’s just one of them things where I feel like personally it’s an energy that’s trying to spark an evil, a race war.” he said. “For me, personally, because these events is just happening back to back. And it’s demonized events now. It’s starting to get a little deeper than just hatred. It’s a little deeper than that.”

Chiming in, his TDE cohort ScHoolboy Q shed light on the situation as well, stating, “I think the media, also. They love putting a lot of attention on it,” he uttered. “I’ve never seen this much attention … It’s like the media loves this. And we just giving ‘em more power by always talking about it … We know what’s going on. And I just think the media need to stop pushing it in our faces all the time. It makes hate. How can you sit there with your little daughter, watching TV and they talking about a white dude that killed nine Black people in the church? That makes me hate a little bit.”

During his opener at the BET Awards, Kendrick payed homage to the ever-present struggles of African-Americans with a riviting rendition of his uplifting anthem “Alright," while walking away with the award for Best Male Hip Hop artist. Check out his performance in the video below.

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(Photos: Earl Gibson/BET/Getty Images for BET)

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