Capitol drops ‘virtual’ rapper FN Meka after claims of racism

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The man who previously spoke up for the controversial FN Meka project – Anthony Martini – has announced that he is no longer involved with the ‘virtual’ rapper or the company behind it, Factory New.Following the accusations of racism that were made against the project – which resulted in the rapper being dropped by Universal Music’s Capitol label earlier this week – he says that he “should have done more diligence before joining” the venture, and also admits that there was much less AI involved in the creation of the virtual rapper and it’s musical output than previously claimed.Although previously named as a co-founder, Martini says that he joined Factory New in 2020, after the release of the first two FN Meka singles, ‘Moonwalkin’ and ‘Internet’.He also claims that he only learned this week that Kyle The Hooligan, the rapper who voiced those tracks and seemingly wrote their lyrics, had been cut out of the project, insisting that “while I was involved, artists on the project were always compensated fairly and participated in the revenue from their work”.Capitol announced that it had signed FN Meka earlier this month, releasing the single ‘Florida Water’, featuring Gunna.

AI star FN Meka and in turn has accused Capitol Records of ghosting him after he was promised equity in the label.Kyle The Hooligan has posted notes and videos in which he claims that the Universal-owned label have left him “high and dry” and shared information that purports to prove that he is the formerly unknown voice behind the viral robot rapper.FN Meka, made in collaboration with Factory New, was dropped by Capitol less than a fortnight after launching after its critics highlighted the way the project trivialised elements of Black culture and used them for shock value. The label alluded to this in a formal apology shared online earlier this week by The New York Times’ Joe Coscarelli.Meka was marketed as the “world’s first” AI rapper to sign to a major label, with Ryan Ruden, Capitol Music Group’s executive vice president of experiential marketing and business development, saying that the project “meets at the intersection of music, technology and gaming culture” and “is just a preview of what’s to come”.Capitol released its first FN Meka single, ‘Florida Water’, on August 12, which featured guest vocals from real life rapper Gunna and ancillary involvement from gaming streamer Clix.But controversy followed when Meka, who’d garnered more than 10million TikTok followers, was seen to use the N word and appeared to make light of police brutality.

The artist who voiced controversial ‘virtual’ rapper FN Meka has denied claims that he has been leading the project, adding that he has been cut out of the financial gains the company behind the venture, Factory Now, has made.Previously anonymous, rapper Kyle The Hooligan came forward as the voice of FN Meka yesterday, after Universal’s Capitol label severed ties with the project following accusations of racism.“They came to me with this AI shit and was like would I want to be the voice of it, and I thought it was going to be some collaboration”, he said in a video on Instagram. “They promised me equity in the company, percentages, all this stuff, so I’m thinking, ‘OK, this about to be some collab, something different for me, so I can do my music and do some AI stuff with this FN Meka character”.Capitol announced that it had signed FN Meka earlier this month, releasing a single, ‘Florida Water’, featuring Gunna.

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Jem Aswad Senior Music Editor Presented in its worst possible light, the FN Meka controversy — in which Capitol signed, and then quickly dropped, a virtual rapper that used the N-word in its songs and was depicted in racially stereotypical scenarios in videos — seems like an inconceivable blunder. But a closer look at the details, along with conversations with sources close to the situation, suggests that, while inexcusable and loaded with oversights, Capitol’s role in the FN Meka fiasco may not have been as insensitive as it might seem. However, above all, it is yet another glaring result of the lack of diversity throughout the music industry — not just at Capitol, not just at major companies, but everywhere.

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