Method Man Apologizes For Calling Destiny’s Child “Hollywood,” Blames Self-Esteem Issues

Method Man’s continued transition into a crossover, mainstream darling has been a joy to witness for longtime fans of the rapper. However, Meth admits that the journey has come with moments he’s not so proud of that were a result of self-admitted insecurities and bouts of social anxiety he had within himself at one point in time.

During an appearance on the My Expert Opinion podcast, hosted by famed battle rapper Math Hoffa, the Wu-Tang member recalled an instance in which he once gave R&B stars Destiny’s Child the cold shoulder upon meeting the group. He shared that he felt the trio had ignored him during a previous interaction and that they were acting “Hollywood” towards him.

More from VIBE.com

• Method Man Announces Forthcoming Rap Album With His Son PXWER

• Beyoncé, Jay-Z, Drake & More Celebrate At Mike Rubin's Fourth of July Party

• ESSENCE Festival Performances And Programming To Livestream On Hulu

The rap vet begins by revisiting his first encounter with Destiny’s Child at an award show overseas, which Beyonce’s future husband, Jay-Z, and former Roc-A-Fella CEO Damon Dash were also present for, and Meth remembers as being a pleasant introduction.

“Jay, Dame, all of us were over there,” Meth explained. “We were doing the MOBO Awards. That’s like their Soul Train [Awards]. And the girls were there—very nice. This is when it was still four of them, the original members. Very nice, very cordial and all that. I always kept that in in my head, like these are some decent young ladies and shit.”

Meth then points to a subsequent interaction he had with the group following its lineup being revamped, in which he felt he wasn’t given the respect that he deserved. “Fast forward, now it’s three members, they got the two new girls,” he continued.

“We were at Janet Jackson’s Icon and I remember I had just come off stage and where we were sitting, there were nothing but VIPs. We had *NSYNC up here, Destiny’s Child right there, Tommy Lee was over here, [Pamela Anderson]. And I see the girls, so I kinda moseyed out of my seat to go over and say what’s up to them. Now, this is still me in my low self-esteem era. But I’m thinking like, comfort zone here, I’m gonna say what’s up to the girls. I love them, I’m just gonna say hi. I go over to say hi to them and when I said hi, they didn’t even turn around and acknowledge me.”

Admittedly hurt by the perceived slight at the time, in hindsight, Meth admits that he may have not assessed the situation properly, such as the noisy environment they were in at the time, which may have prevented Destiny’s Child from hearing him approach them.

“Now, my ass, in my head, with my low self-esteem is like, ‘They just shitted on me.’ When in fact, they didn’t even hear me. It was so loud in that motherfucker. That’s the excuse that I’m giving right now—they didn’t even fucking hear me,” Meth states.

However, when producer and collaborator Rockwilder attempted to introduce him to Beyonce, Kelly, and Michelle, in the moment, Meth says he decided to return the favor by refusing to shake their hands, a move he still regrets to this day.

“Afterward, Rockwilder, he was gonna do the ‘Bootylicious’ song for them. He comes over, he’s talking to them, he’s like, ‘Oh, you know Red and Meth?’ And they put their hands out to shake, and I kept my hand here and was like, ‘Go ’head with that Hollywood shit.’”

With two decades having passed since that encounter, Meth has had time to reflect on his actions, admitting that he was wrongfully disrespectful to the group due to the fact that, “neither Kelly, Beyoncé, or Michelle ever did any-fucking-thing to me.”

“But me being so miserable and in that fucking moment, I felt like they wasn’t treating me the way I should have been treated,” he explained. “Who am I to think that about these girls? They’re here to promote themselves and break records and things of that nature. And it was not about me, it was about Janet fucking Jackson. And to this day, man, I don’t think I’ve ever apologized for that.”

Meth concluded his story by looking directly into the camera and atoning for his actions towards the group, which he attributed to his own bitterness at the time. “I apologize to Beyoncé, I apologize to Kelly Rowland and Michelle—y’all did not deserve that, at all.”

In other news, Meth has been incredibly busy with new work in music, like his upcoming project with his son PXWER, a just released NFT collab with Sotheby’s and hosting a 20th Anniversary podcast with HBO for the hit show he was featured on in The Wire.

Click here to read the full article.