Hip hop journalism pioneer, Dee Barnes, has revealed she is homeless.
Barnes is well-known for kicking down the door into hip hop journalism, eventually becoming the first female hip hop reporter to host the broadcast TV show “Pump It Up!” back in 1989. Now, Barnes is opening up to fans about being homeless and has launched a GoFundMe in hopes to change her living situation. So far, she has raised $3,000 of her $5,000 goal, according to the New York Post.
“Right now, I am officially homeless. My goal with the campaign is to regain stability, which is imperative for survivors of any trauma,” she told the website HipHopDX in an interview this week. Barnes said she decided to reach out for help because of the quote: “You can overcome anything in life, but you must first be willing to live in your truth.” “I realized that I had come too far and had been through too much to just give up without trying,” she said.
Back in the day, Barnes gained much notoriety for her high-profile interviews with celebs, including Ice Cube, Will Smith, Queen Latifah and more. However, her career hit a standstill after an altercation with Dr. Dre in 1991 at a Hollywood record release party. The rapper-producer attacked Barnes over a segment Barnes did about N.W.A that appeared on her show. He reportedly slammed “her face and the right side of her body repeatedly against a wall,” according to a statement released at the time. Dre, real name Andre Young, was charged with assault and battery, for which he pleaded no contest.
A judge ordered Dr. Dre to pay $2,500 in fines and was sentenced to two years of probation with community service. Barnes sued Dr. Dre for $22 million, which was settled out of court in 1993. Barnes said she remembered fans sending her money to cover her legal fees. The former host also said she still gets migraines from the assault and feels the incident caused her to be blackballed from the industry that she greatly contributed to. “Survivors should be able to hold people in positions of power accountable for their actions without losing their own power. Times up,” she said.
