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Daniel Caesar is revisiting one of the most polarizing moments of his career with a clearer sense of perspective. In a recent interview, the singer opened up about the 2019 controversy that erupted after he publicly defended media personality YesJulz, who faced backlash over accusations of cultural appropriation tied to an old post showing her wearing a shirt that read “N*ggas lie a lot.” Julz, who has white ancestry, later apologized, but Caesar’s defense of her actions and his challenge to fans to cancel him intensified the backlash.
“N***as lie a lot,” on a shirt. Remember that BS? She had some damn nerve.
With distance from the moment, Caesar now says his response was rooted in unresolved personal issues. He described recognizing a form of internalized self resentment and acknowledged that the criticism he faced was justified. “As time has passed, I’m like, ‘Oh, they were 100 percent right,’” he said. “When you accept this type of behavior from people that throughout history have exemplified to you that they hate you, and then you accept the behavior to get out of the circumstances that you’re in, it’s undignified. You’re giving up your own dignity.”
Caesar has previously addressed the incident, including in a Billboard interview last year, where he characterized his behavior at the time as reckless. “I was canceled for being drunk and foolish in public. But that was something I was always allowed to do. No one gave a s–t [until I started to get famous].”
He also framed the moment as part of a larger family pattern. “I’m literally my father’s son,” he said. “My dad was the guy at sabbath lunch talking about how the government was going to put microchips in our arms. And I’m the same. If you get me riled up at a party, I’ll start talking about some crazy s–t. People roll their eyes, but that’s just the way we are.”
Now, Caesar appears more focused on accountability than defense, using hindsight to reassess how fame amplified a moment that forced deeper self reflection.