Wednesday, September 1, 2010

Attempted rape becomes attempt at rap

I'm not sure how I feel about this. Two New York musicians have turned an interview from a news piece about an attempted rape into an undeniably catchy Youtube hit. The unwitting star of the project is 24-year-old student Antoine Dodson, who was interviewed after he fought off an intruder from his sister's bedroom. Dodson's angry, head-bopping tirade was so close to being a rap song already that it didn't need much digital altering to turn it into one. It seems exploitative to turn a story about a sexual assault into something humourous, and profitable. But Dodson says he's been empowered, not exploited. The musicians responsible for his sudden stardom, Evan and Michael Gregory, are splitting the proceeds from iTunes sales of their song with Dodson.

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