Why has no one ever asked Vince Staples for his commentary on the January 6 insurrection before?
The 32-year-old rapper and actor couldn’t help but share his thoughts during a recent sit-down with Ziwe — and, true to form, he delivered them with his signature dry wit.
After clarifying where he was on the day in question, Staples explained why he thought the chaos was, in his words, “amazing.”
“We were watching on the bus. It was amazing,” he told Ziwe, leaving her visibly startled by his phrasing.
And if she wasn’t ready for that, she definitely wasn’t prepared for what came next.
“I want us to do that,” he continued, referring to Black Americans. “And we would do better because they were just ugly. Like, the problem with revolution is that it will be photographed. So sloppy loose T-shirts, nobody got a pump, nobody drunk their cayenne and their lemon. It’s just not beautiful.”
On the notoriously questionable fashion of some Jan. 6 rioters — from horned faux-fur ensembles and red, white, and blue body paint to plain hoodies, sweatshirts, and tactical gear — Staples didn’t hold back.
“So you’re fighting the government, and you look like sh—,” he said.
Asked how a hypothetical Black-led insurrection would differ stylistically, Staples didn’t hesitate: at the very least, the looks would be immaculate.
“Met Gala amazing…” he said. “Wales Bonner everywhere, you know?” he added, name-dropping the celebrated Black-owned luxury brand.
And while Staples kept things humorous, the real events of Jan. 6, 2021, were far from it. The day saw a violent mob storm the U.S. Capitol in an effort to stop the certification of the 2020 election, leading to multiple deaths, brutal assaults on D.C. and Capitol Police, and extensive damage to the building. Thousands have since been charged, with several people still serving prison sentences for their roles in the attack.
