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XPost: atl.general

The director of an upcoming docuseries on Tekashi 6ix9ine says
the rainbow-haired rapper is “truly a horrible human being” with
no morals or talent — but a “social media mastermind” with an
uncanny ability to “spark a reaction.”

“I think viewers will be shocked to realize how hyper
calculated” the rapper is, “Supervillain” director Karam Gill
told us. “Tekashi was someone who never did anything online on
accident. Every click, word and action online was designed with
care to spark a reaction.”

Gill told Page Six that he was at first reluctant to touch the
project. “I never really wanted to explore Tekashi’s story
specifically, and actually was hesitant about the project at
first because of how he has been such a toxic individual in our
culture,” the director said. But, “from a wider scope, I
realized it’s an extremely important story that shines a light
on where we are as a culture. We’re living in the era of
manufactured celebrity, where people can create inauthentic
online personas and rise to fame without any talent or morals.
Tekashi’s story is exactly that — he’s someone who realized the
power of having your own platform.”

Gill told us that while making the series, “I was surprised to
find out how much of a social media mastermind [Tekashi] truly
was. His understanding of how human beings operate on these
platforms is incredible.”

Tekashi (real name Daniel Hernandez) was sentenced in 2018 to
two years behind bars for racketeering and other charges. When
he was released last spring, he announced his return to music
with a Times Square billboard promoting a new single recorded
under home confinement. The tune, “GOOBA,” broke YouTube’s
record for the most-watched hip-hop video in a 24-hour span.

On Sunday, a long-simmering beef between Tekashi and Philly
rapper Meek Mill reportedly nearly came to blows in an Atlanta
parking lot, and both parties posted video footage of the
incident from their perspectives.

The director also told us, prior to the latest Meek Mill run-in,
of public fascination with the outrageous rapper and online
troll, “the public and media hates him because he is truly a
horrible human being who has done terrible things. And from an
overall perspective, he loves to instigate and aggravate which
is something that naturally sparks a reaction.”

Gill did not meet Tekashi in person to make the docuseries,
based on a Rolling Stone feature. “I have never met him nor
spoken with him,” Gill, whose credits include the rap doc “Ice
Cold,” told us. “The interview we have in the film is from
unreleased post-prison tapes that our larger production team
acquired.”

Gill said the themes in the docuseries reach beyond Tekashi.

“To me this project was an opportunity to capture this time in
human history,” he said, “a time where we have seen pop culture
figures, and even presidents, shape their own realities and
manipulate us all through digital media.”

In the trailer for the project, Tekashi declares, “If I was to
die today, I’d be a legend. I know that for a fact.”

The three-part “Supervillain: The Making of Tekashi 6ix9ine”
debuts Feb. 21 on Showtime. Its executive producers include
Imagine Documentaries’ Brian Grazer, Rolling Stone’s Gus Wenner,
and Jonathan Chinn and Simon Chinn of Lightbox.

Tekashi’s attorney, Lance Lazzaro, fired back when reached for
comment: “It’s the furthest thing from the truth. Danny’s talent
speaks for itself, and Danny is a good human being.”

Lazzaro added, “Daniel Hernandez never was interviewed for [the
docuseries], and never participated. It is interesting and
almost unbelievable without ever having met the person… how [the
director] characterized him. It’s hard to fathom. No one can
comment about his talent… and how he characterized him when he
never met the person.”

Lazzaro pointed to Tekashi’s charity work, saying, “maybe he
should go back and look at the things Danny did for people when
they were on their last days of life.”

In 2018, the rapper visited a 5-year-old fan in the hospital
with cancer, and gifted the patient a diamond ring and cash as
well as supported his family’s GoFundMe page. Last year, he
intended to donate $200,000 to No Kid Hungry, but the charity
declined the gift, reportedly stating, “As a child-focused
campaign, it is our policy to decline funding from donors whose
activities do not align with our mission and values.” The
controversial rapper also has donated proceeds of a merch line
with Nicki Minaj to The Bail Project.

https://pagesix.com/2021/02/15/tekashi-6ix9ine-doc-director- calls-him-a-horrible-human/
 

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