SAN ANTONIO – Killer Mike, half of the rap group Run the Jewels, announced Jay-Z as a partner in a soda line brought to life by the rapper’s Netflix show.
The sodas, Crip-a-Cola and Blood Pop, aim to give gangs and gang members a different avenue of expression and a form of entrepreneurship, similar to how The Hell’s Angels were able to market their own brand successfully.
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The soda line was brought to life on episode 3 of the rapper’s show ‘Trigger Warning With Killer Mike.’ On the show, Killer Mike attempts to give the gangs a rebranding by turning their already infamous brand into commercial soda companies healthier than the most-popular soda brands.
“This is what I know. I’ve seen white gangs be legitimate, legitimized and be able to create money, streams of revenue,” Killer Mike says in his show. “‘Well, Mike, what gangs are you talking about?‘…I can go buy a Hell’s Angels T-shirt right now that sends money to that organization and that organization can take care of their own members. And I said to myself, ‘why haven’t any of my Crip homeboys done something like this?’ So, I would like to propose that you all start a business.”
The rapper argues that while the gangs may have gotten a bad rap in the media and in popular television shows and movies, other mainstream companies have killed more people with the use of artificial sweeteners and other ingredients in their products than people affiliated in street fraternities have.
The National Gang Center says that individuals in gangs are significantly more criminally active during their active membership in the gang.
“Gang membership is a strong predictor of individual violence in adolescence and generally has been observed to be an even more powerful predictor than two of the most highly regarded factors (i.e., delinquent peer association and prior violence),” The center said on its website. “Survey research has consistently demonstrated that individuals are significantly more criminally active during periods of active gang membership—compared with before joining the gang and after leaving the gang—particularly in serious and violent offenses. Further, prolonged periods of gang involvement and/or greater embeddedness in the gang is associated with higher levels of criminal involvement.”
On Pharrell Williams' latest song, 'Entrepreneur, 'Jay-Z talks about the soda brand and also continues the rapper's dialogue in his music about generational wealth.
“Black Twitter, what’s that? When Jack gets paid, do you?,” Jay-Z raps. “For every one Gucci, support two FUBUs Sippin’ Crip-a-Cola consumer and a owner, uh, ‘Til we all vertically integrated from the floor up.”
You can stream Killer Mike’s show now on Netflix and buy both sodas by clicking here.
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