A social media influencer is accusing Hulk Hogan of racism, saying the wrestling legend fired her from a job as a brand ambassador for his new beer line, after they met in person and he learned she’s Black.
Essence Jenai made the accusation in a video she posted to TikTok on July 6.
As proof that she was hired to work for the beverage brand, Jenai included footage of herself at a liquor store with cases of Hogan’s “Real American Beer.” She was also shown sharing a shopping cart with another Black model, and later posing for a photo with Hogan as he signed autographs.
Jenai captioned the video, “POV: Hulk Hogan paid you to be a brand ambassador and cancelled your contract the next day because he realized you were a BLACK brand ambassador.”
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Hulk Hogan cancels contract with brand ambassador after he finds out she's black
Hulk Hogan has been accused of firing an ambassador due to their ethnicity. Essence Jenai, an influencer, took to TikTok to reveal that Hogan paid her to be an ambassador for his ‘Real American… pic.twitter.com/3I4uCxujwo
— The Art Of Dialogue (@ArtOfDialogue_) July 7, 2024
In a second post, Jenai uploaded a slideshow set to Kendrick Lamar’s Drake diss track “Not Like Us.”
The caption read: “STORY TIME: Hulk Hogan paid me to be a brand Ambassador and this happened…My contract was for a week…After one day of promoting his brand…He cancelled my contract because ???”
The images showed Jenai posing once again with Hogan, this time as he flashed a thumbs up. Another photo showed her with the other Black model as the pair posed with cans of Hogan’s beer on July 2. The next photo showed two white models holding cans of the beer and is dated July 3.
Jenai also included a string of text messages in the slideshow. In one message, she asked if there was a reason she was let go. The other party responded: “Essence. You didn’t do anything wrong at all in fact, I’m sure you did great. But this client wants us to cancel the rest of the events this week.”
Hogan, real name Terry Bollea, has been on a national tour promoting the beer brand. Jenai didn’t say the location of the store where the two met.
Urban Hollywood 411 contacted Hogan’s team about the woman’s claims. We’re still waiting to hear back.
