That Chuck D versus Flavor Flav feud may have been staged to promote their new music.
In an interview with Talib Kweli on the Uproxx podcast “People’s Party,” Chuck said he orchestrated Flav’s firing from Public Enemy and it was inspired by Orson Welles’ War of the Worlds. He claimed Flav was in on the whole thing.
“We felt that over the past few years, Flavor’s stock was low,” Chuck said. “Anybody that could take a shot at him could get a good shot at him.”
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When asked about Flav’s status in the group, Chuck said Flav is a founding member and can’t be fired.
“He can’t, he’s a partner. You can’t fire partners. You just walk away from ’em.” Chuck explained that they’ve been working on a new Public Enemy Radio album since February, and said he wanted to make a few headlines.
“We takin’ April Fools,” Chuck said. “We takin’ it over. It’s April Flav Chuck Day.”
But then, Flavor Flav took to Twitter Wednesday, to say Chuck is trippin’.
“I am not a part of your hoax @mrchuckd… there are more serious things in the world right now than April Fool’s jokes and dropping records… the world needs better than this… you say we are leaders so act like one…donate to those in need,” he tweeted.
I am not a part of your hoax .@mrchuckd,,,there are more serious things in the world right now than April Fool's jokes and dropping records,,,the world needs better than this,,,you say we are leaders so act like one,,,donate to those in need here: https://t.co/7hioasSwuV
— FLAVOR FLAV (@FlavorFlav) April 1, 2020
The back-and-forth has been going on since Sunday, March 1, when Public Enemy announced that Flav was out.
“Public Enemy and Public Enemy Radio will be moving forward without Flavor Flav,” the group said in a statement. “We thank him for his years of service and wish him well.”
The supposed feud was sparked by a cease-and-desist letter Flav sent to Bernie Sanders objecting to a “misleading narrative” that the entire group had endorsed the Democratic presidential candidate, after Chuck D agreed to perform at a Sanders rally in Los Angeles.
