During his set at Rolling Loud in July 2021, DaBaby came under fire for homophobic comments he made during his set. “[If] you didn’t show up today with HIV/AIDS, or any of them deadly sexually transmitted diseases that’ll make you die in two to three weeks, then put a cellphone light in the air,” he said. “Ladies, if your p—y smell like water, put a cellphone light in the air. Fellas, if you ain’t sucking d–k in the parking lot, put a cellphone light in the air.”
After the comments sparked backlash online, DaBaby later tried to justify his comments at the festival by saying that gay fans of his do not have HIV/AIDS because they are not “nasty gay n—as or junkies.” Following the incident, several festivals removed him from their lineups, including Lollapalooza, Governors Ball, Parklife Festival, Day N Vegas, Austin City Limits, Music Midtown and the iHeartRadio Music Festival. He later deleted an online apology and met with HIV advocacy groups and LGBTQ organizations in what he claimed was an attempt to understand the harmful impact of his hate-filled statements.
A spokesperson for Rolling Loud Miami had not returned requests for comment on DaBaby’s booking at press time; in late 2021, Rolling Loud backed a U.S. tour by the 30-year-old North Carolina-bred rapper (born Jonathan Kirk), Live Show Killa, which is slated to keep him on the road through a June 26 date in the Netherlands.
More recently, the rapper and his crew were filmed getting into an altercation with Brandon Curiel — the brother of the rapper’s ex-girlfriend DaniLeigh, with whom he shares a child — at a San Fernando Valley bowling alley called Corbin Bowl in February 2022. Video of the incident shows DaBaby and Curiel swinging at each other, slipping onto the bowling lanes, and other members of the rapper’s crew jumping in to fight.
Curiel filed a lawsuit following the incident that DaBaby is legally liable for physically assaulting him “suddenly and without warning” as he walked by the rapper. He also claims that the incident has caused him “severe injury and pain” and left him “psychologically damaged,” though DaBaby has publicly stated he was protecting himself as a means of self-defense.
Among the other acts slated to perform at Hard Rock Stadium for Rolling Loud 2022 are: Lil Yachty, Three 6 Mafia, Saweetie, Fivio Foreign, Kevin Gates, City Girls, Soulja Boy, Curren$y and Tyla Yaweh, among others.