John Mayer’s Controversial Playboy Interview!
Pop/soul musician and heartthrob John Mayer recently put himself in hot water after his controversial interview from Playboy leaked onto the internet earlier today.
Mayer, infamous for his cocky, self-centered and obnoxious nature, entertained a flurry of questions ranging from masturbation to technology to douchebaggery and relationships. The 32-year-old who recently released his fourth studio album, Battle Studies, was extraordinarily candid with Playboy, as this excerpt illustrates (Editor’s Note: Brace yourself, because what you’re about to read is ridiculous, and we at Dr. Jays are still not sure how he thought this could fly. Read on.):
PLAYBOY: If you didn’t know you, would you think you’re a douche bag?
MAYER: It depends on what I picked up. My two biggest hits are “Your Body Is a Wonderland” and “Daughters.” If you think those songs are pandering, then you’ll think I’m a douche bag. It’s like I come on very strong. I am a very…I’m just very. V-E-R-Y. And if you can’t handle very, then I’m a douche bag. But I think the world needs a little very. That’s why black people love me.
PLAYBOY: Because you’re very?
MAYER: Someone asked me the other day, “What does it feel like now to have a hood pass?” And by the way, it’s sort of a contradiction in terms, because if you really had a hood pass, you could call it a nigger pass. Why are you pulling a punch and calling it a hood pass if you really have a hood pass? But I said, “I can’t really have a hood pass. I’ve never walked into a restaurant, asked for a table and been told, ‘We’re full.’”
PLAYBOY: It is true; a lot of rappers love you. You recorded with Common and Kanye West, played live with Jay-Z.
MAYER: What is being black? It’s making the most of your life, not taking a single moment for granted. Taking something that’s seen as a struggle and making it work for you, or you’ll die inside. Not to say that my struggle is like the collective struggle of black America. But maybe my struggle is similar to one black dude’s.
PLAYBOY: Do black women throw themselves at you?
MAYER: I don’t think I open myself to it. My dick is sort of like a white supremacist. I’ve got a Benetton heart and a fuckin’ David Duke cock. I’m going to start dating separately from my dick.
PLAYBOY: Let’s put some names out there. Let’s get specific.
MAYER: I always thought Holly Robinson Peete was gorgeous. Every white dude loved Hilary from The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. And Kerry Washington. She’s superhot, and she’s also white-girl crazy. Kerry Washington would break your heart like a white girl. Just all of a sudden she’d be like, “Yeah, I sucked his dick. Whatever.” And you’d be like, “What? We weren’t talking about that.” That’s what “Heartbreak Warfare” is all about, when a girl uses jealousy as a tactic.
Uh oh. Mayer may have lost his “hood pass” after dropping the “N-word” like that. Do you guys think his use of the word is justified? Or should he be chastised and thrown to the dogs for it? Let us know in the comment section please! To check out the entire interview, click here.
Lord. John Mayer is known to be character. In general, he says and does things to incite the media. With that said, he’s doing too much. Maybe he was drunk. Or high, because I don’t even know what he’s talking about.
I’m not sure he was drunk when he did the interview, but I think he’s going to be doing a lot of apologizing, I guess. http://www.soul88.blogspot.com
Dear John…so much clutter in one interview.
While he should NEVER have let the “n” word leave his mouth, I do understand (somewhat) what he’s trying to say about non-Black people being “given a hood pass” – it’s a ridiculous phrase to begin with. He also messes up when he offers blanket statements like “that’s why Black people love me” – lumping all “Black people” into one group – throwing any validity he might have had in his words out the window.
When it comes to his answers on women, I think what he’s trying to say (in his forced, everything-I-say-must-be-clever humor) is that while he may find Black women very attractive, he’s not necessarily ATTRACTED to them. He just said something pretty self-explanatory in a way that sparked controversy; something he obviously loves.
On a side note…the journalist went IN. I don’t necessarily agree with the questions (I’m trying to decipher which are more ignorant here, the questions or the answers) but he did his job and knew exactly what juice he’d get out of his interview subject by asking what he did.
~Boss Lady
i don’t think he’s racist at all. i think that his “hood pass” will be revoked with the quickness though; that’s pretty much a given (what is a hood pass though?! can i get one the the L-O?). more seriously, i think that he just made a very, very poor judgment with words. and who says the bloke can’t have preference in the race of his girls? shucks, i know i have a preference, but i’m open-minded. i’m pretty sure he’s the same.
and let’s be real: we know he’s already gotten with more black girls than anybody else out there. he does groupies in his sleep, i’m sure.
I initial stance on his use of the word “nigger” was that he just used it a little too carelessly but after rereading his statement over and over I realize that he’s completely justified.
He said,”If you really had a hood pass, you could call it a nigger pass,” with “could” meaning “able to.” If you theoretically gave a white person a hood pass, and he said “nigger,” you’d probably revoke it. He’s saying in order to truly have a hood pass you would be able to call it your nigger, or maybe nigga, pass. In a nutshell, anyone with a hood pass would be able to freely call it a nigger pass because having a hood pass gives you the “right” to use that word. He understands that he has not reached that point.
He then says that he can’t have one for that reason. He even speaks about the black experience saying he can’t directly relate to it. He also compared his attitude to the attitude of Black people. We, as a people, do not take things lying down. We are vocal and expressive about things which is what he was saying about him being “very.”
So, Black people of America. Let’s take time to think about for a second before we start a mob. I’m well-opened to discussion in the comments section.
Come on grown people of the 21st century, he didn’t go off on a “Kramer” rant here… Mayer’s use of “nigger” is acceptable because of the context. Despite being a self described “prejudiced” black man, I can clearly make that distinction. I thought most of his answers were candid and clever enough as to not draw too much heat. I even feel him on the Benneton heart and David Duke c**k joint. My heart is the same, but the other part of me is Marcus Garvey proud.
The intent of his use of the word was not meant to be offensive at all. He was trying to make a point. It was all nonsense in my opinion though.
Honestly though, how many black people would recognize hm if they seen him on the street? I certainly wouldn’t. I guess he thinks because black musicians may respect him it translates to all/most black people. I don’t think that’s how it works.
i think he was tryin to be too clever and contradicted himself in his own statements. his comments pertained to his lack of/nonexistence of a “hood pass”, and in doing so he overstepped the very boundary that he said he couldnt cross; his point would have been made had he just said the “n-word” but he felt some need to be more interesting or in pocket enough to say the actual word. as for the comments about black woman, he could have been candid yet more respectful; i mean these ladies that his member isnt attracted to are his fans too. i woulda probably commently along the lines that groupies are groupies, black, white, asian, etc. but what do i know, im not cool enough for playboy to interview me…
LOL i would definitely recognize him on the street. he has platinum albums and has songs with kanye, so that’s his link into the hip hop world if you aren’t familiar, but on a completely separate level, he’s world famous.
about john mayer…i can’t even lie like i’m not a huge fan of his music, and in general, i’ve been a pretty big fan of him too. i think that he doesn’t take himself too seriously, and isn’t about throwing out some perfect publicist-made facade in order to make himself more marketable (this generally inevitably fails anyway…tiger woods? michael jordan to an extent? i’m just saying).
that being said, i think in this day and age as a celebrity, you always have to have some sort of self awareness, a filter you could call it, and i think he just needs to work on that. his context in saying the n-word certainly wasn’t malicious, and though his white supremacist comment is just so stupid, i think it was a misguided attempt at being humorously explaining his dating preferences – clearly it failed miserably.
i’ll continue to listen to his music, and i’ll probably still continue to like him as a person. no one’s perfect, everyone makes mistakes, but i just can’t understand why white celebrities keep slipping up and dropping the n-bomb, haven’t you learned your lesson?!
My thoughts:
My bad. My thoughts: http://sticktoguns.blogspot.com/2010/02/n-word.html
Here’s a message to ALL people of color everywhere: DO NOT, DO NOT, BUY ANYMORE OF JOHN MAYER’S music. Don’t attend his concerts, nothing, nada.
It seems like he migt have some issues with race. Using the N-word was a clear statement of that. And he didn’t even say nigga he said nigger. He is brave for that statement. And then making coments about his dick beinga white supremacist is a racial statement as well. What is he saying his dick can’t get hard for a black girl. RIDICULOUS. I can’t believe these women have dated him. Makes you wonder about the women he has dated
I am white,really like John Mayer’s music,but I don’t like him.He is a media ho,loves to stir,and his use of the n-word,while it’s maybe not intentionally aimed at anyone, is stupid.He also should apologize personally to Kerry Washington.He has the ability to write songs well,that makes him neither a good person nor intelligent.Talent is not always smart.And the writer gave John scotch,probably alot of it.