Nick Cannon has teased an upcoming episode of his YouTube series Cannon’s Class, which features a very special guest. Following the incident in which Cannon and guest Richard “Professor Griff” Griffin made anti-Semitic remarks, the host has brought Rabbi Abraham Cooper on as a guest, which he previewed Monday on Instagram.
“I made a lot of people mad,” Cannon says in the clip. “[I made] your community mad, I made my community mad by apologizing.” Cooper then interjects, saying that “the question in my community is ‘is he sincere,’” regarding the apology in question. Cannon then asks him if he believes that he’s sincere, to which Cooper replies succinctly, “At this point, yes.” Cannon then proceeds to talk about how hatred is “an energy,” as well as the commonality of oppression that’s shared between Black and Jewish people.
Videos by PopCulture.com
View this post on Instagram
Following the comments made by Cannon and Griffin, ViacomCBS opted to part ways with the Wild N Out host on Thursday, ending a professional relationship spanning two decades. Cannon initially apologized with a lengthy statement on Facebook, which wasn’t exactly met with praise. Cannon then issued a follow-up apology in a lengthy thread on Twitter.
On Twitter, Cannon said the remarks “reinforced the worst stereotypes of a proud and magnificent people, and I feel ashamed of the uninformed and naïve place that these words came from.” He added in a follow-up tweet that “the video of this interview has since been removed.”
“I want to express my gratitude to the Rabbis, community leaders and institutions who reached out to me to help enlighten me, instead of chastising me,” Cannon continued, where he teased that he’d be engaging in a dialogue with leaders of the Jewish community, including Cooper. “I want to assure my Jewish friends, new and old, that this is only the beginning of my education — I am committed to deeper connections, more profound learning and strengthening the bond between our two cultures today and every day going forward.”
Amid the backlash, Cannon had posted to Instagram that he’d considered dying by suicide over the ordeal. Early Sunday morning, Cannon paid tribute to friend Ryan Bowers, who had just committed suicide himself. Before hearing the news of Bowers’ passing, Cannon says he was dealing with a “dark contemplation” about continuing his “physical existence on this planet.” However, the death gave him a renewed perspective.
