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26th Nov 2011

Occupy Wall Street protestors turn on Jay-Z after ill-judged t-shirt release

Rapper and entrepreneur Jay-Z has become the unlikely inspiration for a totem pole sculpture from Occupy Wall Street protestors that decrys the power of the 1% of top earners.

JOE

Rapper and entrepreneur Jay-Z has become the unlikely inspiration for a totem pole sculpture from Occupy Wall Street protestors that decrys the power of the 1% of top earners.

The totem pole features Jay-Z covered in necklaces, alongside Mr Burns of The Simpsons and Richie Rich, in a sculpture from artist Daniel Edwards.

Considering that the rapper, real name Shawn Carter, grew up in poverty, he would appear to be an unlikely source of hate. That is until you hear about his ill-judged Rocawear t-shirt from earlier this month.

The fashion label, founded by Jay-Z, attracted huge criticism for releasing a t-shirt with the statement “Occupy All Streets”, which appeared to show solidarity for the protestors. That was until it was discovered that all proceeds from the t-shirt’s sales were going straight into Jay-Z’s coffers and that the label were financially piggybacking on the anti-capitalism protests.

Def Jam pioneer and Phat Farm creator Russell Simmons has since defended the Rocawear tee by stating: “What’s wrong with selling goodness? There’s nothing wrong with it. You should sell things you’re happy about. You should sell products that you’re inspired by, that promote lasting and stable well-being.”

However, the artist behind the totem pole, the aforementioned Daniel Edwards, believes that “Jay-Z has made himself a face of Wall Street that Occupiers are protesting against… rap stars who turn ‘Scrooge’ have to suffer some damage to their street credibility”

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