That was quick. Sexyy Red has apologized and deleted a controversial AI-generated photo featuring herself and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. after the late civil rights leader’s daughter called the image “distasteful” and disrespectful.
ICYMI, on Monday (Jan. 20), the St. Louis rapper posted the AI-created photo on X (formerly Twitter) to mark the national holiday dedicated to Dr. King. The image showed Red and Dr. King seemingly slow dancing in a club-like setting. The unusual and edited photo quickly caught the attention of social media users, sparking laughs and comments, which many considered typical of Sexyy Red’s bold internet presence.
Get this, Dr. Bernice King, the daughter of Dr. King, was less amused. On Tuesday, she quoted Red’s tweet, writing: “This is intentionally distasteful, dishonoring, deplorable, and disrespectful to my family and my father, who is not here to respond himself because he was assassinated for working for your civil and human rights and to end war and poverty. Please delete.”
Sexyy Red quickly acknowledged the criticism, responding, “You ain’t wrong, never meant to disrespect your family my apologies. Just [reposted] something I saw that I thought was innocent” followed by a prayer hands emoji. She then deleted the original tweet.
In the wake of Dr. King’s response, some social media users defended Sexyy Red, questioning why Dr. King seemed to focus on this particular incident rather than addressing similar use of her father’s image elsewhere. One user asked, “Why all of this energy towards Sexyy Red yet I haven’t seen you voice anything towards any of those ATL club fliers with MLK (who are actually profiting off the image) or towards others who have reposted similar memes?”
What’s more, in response to the backlash, Dr. Bernice King clarified her position, writing: “Please don’t project your thoughts onto me. I don’t believe Sexyy Red to be a ‘degenerate,’ ‘ghetto,’ or ‘trash.’ I have spoken out in the past about the use of and comparison to either of my parents to denigrate other people. I just don’t understand this type of use of my father’s image (on #MLKDay, no less), in a way that does not convey what we know to be true about his service and sacrifice.”
We’re happy to hear Dr. King later accepted the apology from Sexyy Red in a direct message, stating: “Thank you for your apology, which I sincerely accept. Please know that it was not my intention that you be denigrated. I value you as a human being,” she wrote. “I hope you understand my concerns about the image. I know that my father has become a bit of a caricature to the world and that his image is often used with no regard to his family, his sacrificial work, or to the tragic, unjust way in which he died (a state-sanctioned assassination).”
Sexyy Red’s swift apology and Dr. King’s gracious acceptance highlight a rare moment of reconciliation following an incident that many saw as a misstep in the use of a powerful historical figure’s image.
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