Looks like Jay-Z may now be up to 100 problems.
After a perceived attempt to cash in on the populist Occupy Wall Street protests through the sale of T-shirts with the slogan “Occupy All Streets” for $22, the duds were removed from the “Otis” rapper’s Rocawear website Saturday with no explanation.
All in a 48-hour span. So what happened?
Jay-Z came under fire after it was reported that Rocawear didn’t plan to donate any of the proceeds from the sales to the Occupy Wall Street movement he claims to support.
That fact was later confirmed by his label.
“The ‘Occupy All Streets’ shirt was created in support of the Occupy Wall Street movement,” a Rocawear rep said in a statement Friday. “Rocawear strongly encourages all forms of constructive expression, whether it be artistic, political or social.”
Needless to say, those involved in “Occupy Wall Street” were not happy.
“To attempt to profit off of the first important social moment of 50 years with overpriced pieces of cotton is an insult to the ongoing fight for economic civil rights known as #occupywallstreet,” an Occupy Wall Street leader who goes by “Grim” said.
Meanwhile, Russell Simmons, an avid supporter of the Occupy Wall Street movement, said the shirt in question “takes #OccupyWallStreet to the next level.”
It did. The shirts, which were sold for $22 a pop, are no longer available.