It turns out Public Enemy didn’t fire Flavor Flav after all.
During an interview Chuck D conducted with Talib Kweli on the Uproxx podcast "People's Party," which Pitchfork reported was recorded March 10, the New York rapper said Orson Welles' "War of the Worlds" inspired him.
» RELATED: Public Enemy has fired Flavor Flav after he sent cease-and-desist to Bernie Sanders
“We felt that over the past few years, Flavor’s stock was low,” the rapper, whose real name is Carlton Ridenhour, said. “Anybody that could take a shot at him could get a good shot at him.”
In March, news emerged that Public Enemy gave Flavor Flav, whose given name is William Drayton Jr., the pink slip after Drayton’s attorneys sent a cease-and-desist letter to former Democratic presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders over Chuck D’s concert at the campaign’s rally.
Now, Chuck D has explained that he and Flavor Flav had been working on new music for Enemy Radio since February. Ridenhour had initially explained the firing wasn't real on "The Library with Tim Einenkel" podcast.
“I figured March would be that time that we would put together this agenda, finish up the album,” Chuck D said. “But really, at that time in the world, I was looking at April 1 as the day that we would say, ‘This is not April Fool’s but April Flav-Chuck Day’ to talk about how we need not to be so soaked in into all these signals that are actually transmitting to us and not challenging us — almost like a ‘Don’t Believe The Hype’ 2020.”
» RELATED: Public Enemy: Prophets of Rage
On “People’s Party,” Chuck D joked Flavor Flav “don't know the difference between Bernie Sanders, Barry Sanders or Colonel Sanders.”
“We already talked about this beforehand,” Chuck D added. “Public Enemy Radio went up, his lawyer sent a cease and desist, I'm like, ‘Good move.’ Then, publicly, I'm like, ‘Man, you don't sue me again.’ He ain't suing me. But I can say it!”
Chuck D also made it clear there’s no way Flavor Flav can be fired.
“You can’t fire partners,” he said. “You just walk away from ’em.”
Regardless of the fact that the firing wasn’t real, Chuck D said that the move was not meant to promote Enemy Radio’s new album, “Loud Is Not Enough” a press release for which was emailed March 31 but dated April 1, which is April Fool’s Day.
"They have the masses slobber (so) they make it seem like I did it for a record. I do records regardless on my calendar," he tweeted in part before adding, "they don't want to acknowledge they clickbait sloppy."
Flavor Flav has yet to publicly comment on Chuck D’s remarks.
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