XXXTentacion is the focus of a new report from the Miami New Times, where the rapper talks about his upbringing, music career and his 2016 arrest for aggravated battery on a pregnant victim, domestic battery by strangulation, false imprisonment, and witness tampering on then-girlfriend Geneva Ayala (who's also interviewed in the story).
The report, written by the Times' Tarpley Hitt, speaks on information already known surrounding the case. But the piece does reveal how Ayala has allegedly been harassed by XXX's fans in the aftermath of the case.
"Much of the harassment often came online. Ayala's Twitter account was hacked and taken over by an impersonator, who tweets often about [XXXTentacion]. Her Instagram account was deleted after too many fans 'reported' her posts."
"But people tracked her in real life too. She took a job at a Dunkin' Donuts but had been working there only a week before [XXXTentacion's] fans found her. They began showing up every day, harassing her, taking photos of her, and trying to follow her home. Ayala quit after three weeks."
Ayala added that the harassment has been so severe that she can't leave her home "without being noticed and eyed down."
Recently, Spotify reversed its Hate Content & Hateful Conduct policy that specifically targeted the removal of XXX and R. Kelly's music from its official playlists. The reversal came after the streaming service faced a backlash from employees and artists alike for the policy.
Among those that spoke out against the policy was Anthony "Top Dawg" Tiffith, CEO of Top Dawg Entertainment.
"I don't think it’s right for artists to be censored, especially in our culture," Tiffith said to Billboard. "How did they just pick those [artists] out? How come they didn't pick out any others from any other genres or any other different cultures? There [are] so many other artists that have different things going on, and they could’ve picked anybody. But it seems to me that they're constantly picking on hip-hop culture."
