Tommy Richman Says He Isn’t Hip-Hop, Immediately Backtracks After Backlash

Tommy Richman sent Rap Twitter into a frenzy last night (Oct. 2.)

The singer out of Virginia — whose single “Million Dollar Baby” went viral and was on its way to dominating the summer until the Kendrick and Drake battle thwarted those dreams — sent out a now-deleted tweet seemingly distancing himself from the genre that propelled him to sudden stardom. “I am not a hip hop artist,” he said before trying to clarify what he meant after the tweet started to take off.

He then got into a back and forth with popular West Coast radio personality DJ Hed with the DJ responding to Tommy’s original tweet by saying Hip-Hop stations should stop playing his music. “Fasho. So every Hip-Hop station playing [‘Million Dollar Baby’] or [‘Devil Is A Lie‘] should stop today. Thanks for the Heds Up?”

Hed then sent out a couple tweets saying he suddenly had “2 open slots” available on his SiriusXM radio show and that “NO ONE is bigger than the culture.” Richman responded to the former with a quote tweet, saying, “I’ll say again, Im thankful for everything. I’m saying I don’t wanna be boxed in. I grew up on hip hop. But I’m a singer.”

DJ Hed then tried explain to Tommy why his original tweet rubbed people the wrong way. “Understood, however there are nuances that can be perceived when statements are made,” he said. “I don’t believe you have malicious intent but I do believe there is much to be learned about the system that you have entered within this thing we do. I hope it works out for you (Not sarcasm.)”

Tommy then tried to clarify further, saying, “I meant to say I’m not SOLEY a hip hop artist.”

Many Hip-Hop fans are weary of most white artists because there have been instances where they use the genre as a springboard into other genres and to grab some sort of relevance within the culture. Post Malone with “White Iverson” and Miley Cyrus‘ brief soiree with the sound with her 2013 album Bangerz are the two examples some have cited. Post and Miley also had questionable quotes about the genre that drew ire from fans.

In other Tommy Richman news, he sat down with Apple Music’s Zane Lowe and revealed that he grew up listening to rock and didn’t really get into rap until a friend introduced him to Kanye’s music. His parents were big Motley Crue fans and named him after drummer Tommy Lee. They also talked about his new album Coyote and touring with Brent Faiyaz, among other things.

You can watch the full interview here.