Gawvi, an artist and producer in the Christian hip-hop community, has been dropped by his label, Reach Records. He was also removed from the label’s upcoming tour in light of what has been a developing scandal involving sexual misconduct. Gawvi has been accused of sending unsolicited sexually explicit photos to multiple women while married.
Several credible sources have spoken up regarding this developing story which was followed by an official direct statement from Reach Records Monday afternoon:
“Due to behavior that is inconsistent with our core values, we have ended our professional relationship with GAWVI,” Reach Records said in their statement released on social media. “This was a tough decision for us because of the level of complexity and because we invest in our artists not just for their talent, but also as brothers and sisters in Christ. This is something we have been processing for over a year and have wrestled with what would be the right way forward. New details that were provided made us realize today’s decision was necessary.”
(See the full statement from Reach Records below.)
This news was released only 5 days after Reach Records announced their upcoming tour featuring the full Reach roster. The tour will still continue in March and April as planned with the the artists currently remaining on the label – Lecrae, Andy Mineo, Trip Lee, Tedashii, 1KPhew, Wande, WHATUPRG and Hulvey.
Gawvi announced he was getting divorced on his Instagram account Saturday, saying he and his wife had separated back in 2020. He also included in his statement “There is no scandal to gossip about.” This statement released floodgates of backlash from multiple women including reputable women within the CHH community such as Mogul business owner Butta P and well known Multi-hyphenate and visual artist Cataphant. Cataphant has been known to never shy down from supporting women and bringing light to unjust practices among them within the CHH world. In 2017, she took a bold stand to speak up against sexism within CHH which fueled the CHH sexism conversation on Twitter. Cataphant is also the wife of CHH artist Wordsplayed who has stood by her as she made her claims.
Both women among others shared posted that hinted details of the situation at hand. Click on the tweet below to view the post from Cataphant that created the thread that followed. Their statements were followed by the official announcement from Reach Records breaking all business ties with Gawvi.
Man oh man I’m on the verge of exposing this little boy. 🤦🏽♀️
Had to cut the grass I found some snakes in the camp.
Years ago I made album artwork for @gawvi. For my next project I’m going to make a collage of all the unasked for dick pics he sent to women while he was still married.
When another user admonished the designer that “dragging people in public is not scriptural,” and that any admonishment of Gawvi should have been kept to church circles, Cataphant responded, “Do u think I’d be doing this if he actually listened to his circle? They did address it, he cut them all off. He’s got like 3 friends left.” Cataphant also had exchanges on Twitter with other users who claimed to have had or know of similar incidents involving the rapper.
In all honesty I felt guilty for not coming out sooner. There’s a lot that comes with speaking up. The people who needed to hear & see it for themselves did.
The website Rapzilla posted a detailed story that originally included a series of TikTok videos from Gawvi’s estranged wife, Brianna Azucena, that the article said “seem to allude to infidelity, trauma, and healing,” but the TikTok account was made private after the story was posted.
Gawvi could not be reached for comment. The artist’s Twitter account has been deleted, and his Instagram page now includes no material newer than early December.
Reach Record’s statement concluded well stating, “We also want our actions to be a reflection of love, care, and concern for those who fail and those who are affected by our failures. Each of us needs God’s grace and we invite you to pray for the families and individuals whose lives are being impacted. This is not a chance to throw anybody away. We continue to hope for restoration to be the outcome.”
Lecrae, Gawvi’s most famous and frequently collaborator, has tweeted just once since the news broke of his labelmate being dropped — to quote scripture: “Whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy. Prov 28:13,” he tweeted.
Whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy. Prov 28:13
Gawvi, 33, has won or been nominated for several Dove Awards, gospel’s highest honor. He was signed to Reach that same year and released four full-length solo albums, the latest of which was 2021’s all-Spanish-language “Noche Juvenil,” along with three EPs. His peak to date on the Billboard Hot Christian Songs chart was the No. 25-charting “Fight for Me,” featuring Lecrae, in 2018; the song won a Dove in the rap/hip-hop category the following year. Two of his releases have made the top 10 on Billboard’s Christian albums chart.
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As a perfect close to Women’s History Month, Beyonce opened the 2022 Oscasrs with a live performance of her single “Be Alive”. This was the first single from her Black Pride album released in 2020 and was featured in the movie “King Richard” highlighting the story of Venus and Serena Williams.
The song was cowritten with artist Dixson and featured on the soundtrack for “King Richard’ in honor of the film and the legacy being created by Venus and Serena Williams. The live performance was done live by satellite on the Compton tennis court where the Williams’ sisters’ dad coached them.
The movie was also nominated for Best Picture starring Best Actor nominee Will Smith as the patriarch of the legendary tennis sister act.
[Intro] It feels so good to be alive Got all my family by my side Couldn’t wipe this Black off if I tried That’s why I lift my head with pride
[Verse 1] I got a million miles on me They want to see how far I go The path was never paved with gold (Gold) We worked and built this on our own (Own)
[Pre-Chorus] And can’t nobody knock it if they tried This is hustle personified Look how we’ve been fighting to stay alive So when we win, we will have pride Do you know how much we have cried? How hard we had to fight?
[Chorus] It feels so good to be alive (It feels so, so, so, so good) Got all my sisters by my side (I got all my sisters by my side) Couldn’t wipe this Black off if I tried (Black off if I tried) That’s why I lift my hеad with pride Now we’re sitting on top of thе world again, huh
[Verse 2] I got a million miles on me They want to see how far I’ll go (They want to see how far I’ll go) The path was never paved with gold (No) We fought and built this on our own (We fought and built this on our own, own)
[Pre-Chorus] And can’t nobody knock it if they tried This is hustle personified Look how we’ve been fighting to stay alive So when we win, we will have pride Do you know how much we have cried? How hard we had to fight?
[Chorus] It feels so good to be alive (It feels so good, so good) Got all my family by my side (And we gon’ sit on top of the world again) Couldn’t wipe this Black off if I tried (And I wouldn’t trade nothin’, and I wouldn’t trade nothin’) That’s why I lift my head with pride (So baby, lift your head, yeah) It feels so good to be alive (Darling, it’s a celebration for you, yeah) I got the tribe all by my side (You’re doin’ everything they said you couldn’t do) Couldn’t wipe this Black off if I tried That’s why I lift my head with pride (Lift your head, yeah)
An Oscar’s official confirmed on Sunday night that Will Smith slapping Chris Rock across the face during the live taping of the 2022 Oscars was not a planned stunt.
Ramin Setoodeh, the Variety executive editor tweeted from the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood saying, “Someone who works for the Oscars told me that Chris Rock was not interrupted by Will Smith at rehearsals yesterday… It was not supposed to happen. It was real. #Oscars.”
Smith (53), surprised the world when he walked on stage and struck Rock (57) in the face after the comedian joked about Jada Pinkett Smith’s bald head — resulting from her struggle with alopecia.
WATCH THE UNCENSORED EXCHANGE BETWEEN WILL SMITH & CHRIS ROCK
VIA JAPANESE TELEVISION: The uncensored exchange between Will Smith and Chris Rock pic.twitter.com/j0Z184ZyXa
Following this incident with Will Smith’s assault on Chris Rock at Sunday’s ceremony. The organization behind the annual film awards show initially said it condemned violence without mentioning Smith by name, but now it is making its displeasure over the incident more explicit.
“The Academy condemns the actions of Mr. Smith at last night’s show,” a spokesperson for the organization said. “We have officially started a formal review around the incident and will explore further action and consequences in accordance with our Bylaws, Standards of Conduct and California law.”
It appears that Smith may face some type of disciplinary action or sanction, though it’s unlikely he will be made to forfeit his prize. In its official= standards of conduct, the Academy states it is “categorically opposed to any form of abuse.
Smith was named best actor later in the evening. He used his time at the podium to apologize to the Academy and to his fellow nominees — he did not mention Chris Rock.
HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA – MARCH 27: Will Smith accepts the Actor in a Leading Role award for ‘King Richard’ onstage during the 94th Annual Academy Awards at Dolby Theatre on March 27, 2022 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Neilson Barnard/Getty Images)
Smith, who was named best actor for his portrayal of Richard Williams, the father of tennis greats Venus and Serena Williams, in “King Richard,” had his big night tainted by his outburst. After Chris Rock made a joke about Jada Pinkett Smith’s close cropped haircut, referencing “G.I. Jane,” Smith charged the stage and slapped Rock. He then screamed at Rock to “leave my wife’s name out of your F-ing mouth.” Pinkett Smith has said her hair loss results from alopecia.
“Love will make you do crazy things,” he said, adding, “To do what we do, you got to be able to take abuse. You got to be able to have people talk crazy about you. In this business you got to be able to have people disrespecting you. And you got to smile, you got to pretend like that’s okay.”
Olympian Jordan Chiles scored her first perfect 10 in an NCAA gymnastic routine during the UCLA versus Utah match on Friday.
The 20-year-old college freshman performed an upbeat floor routine to a song mix featuring Doja Cat‘s “Boss B*tch,” Lizzo‘s “Truth Hurts” and Normani‘s “Motivation.” The has since gone viral!