2 Chainz’s Clash With Keith Lee Over Whether Celebs Should Get Special Treatment at Restaurants Has the Internet Pissed

Rapper 2 Chainz and popular online food critic Keith Lee became the talk of the timelines over the weekend after their recent clash over Lee’s food opinions and the rapper’s feelings on the preferential treatment celebs deserve. But the conversation exposed a completely different side of the rapper than his fans expected, and now they’re sounding off about him!

If you missed it, the conversation came as part of Kirk Franklin’s popular podcast, “Den of Kings,” where he featured online comedians Desi Banks, Mojo Brookzz, Lee, and 2 Chainz. At one point during their chat, the “Mercy” rapper decided to address Lee and how he became a household name through social media and sharing his food opinions. However, it quickly became clear that 2 Chainz was trying to broach the topic of some negative reviews that Lee may have given his Atlanta-area restaurants.

“Today is the day where you can actually create who you are, create a job, create revenue, create ways to take care of your family. So, I can never take that away, 2 Chainz said. “Obviously, you’ve been to a couple of my restaurants, whether the response was good or bad…I saw you do my restaurant; I seen you do other people’s restaurants. And I really can’t judge it because it’s your opinion. It’s your taste buds. It’s your opinion.”

Related: TikTok’s Keith Lee Is Exposing the Tragic Atlanta Restaurant Culture

The “I’m Different” rapper went on to say that since society is so “opinion-based,” it raises red flags when someone comes into a majority Black place like Atlanta and seemingly disparages the food because Black folks have to work even harder to establish their businesses there.

When it became clear that 2 Chainz may have been alluding to a negative review Lee left of one of his own restaurants, Brooks encouraged the Grammy-winning artist to speak his peace and “get it off his chest.”

“It’s not bothering me,” he said. “I swear I’m not irritated.”

Lee responded, saying that when he does his reviews, he leads with the fact that it’s only his opinion and that his tastes are informed by the fact that he used to be a former pro athlete and that he’s just a lover of Black people, Black culture, and someone interested in food science and how flavors work.

He also touched on the preferential treatment he often receives at restaurants and explained that he usually sends his mother-in-law or another family member or friend so that he can observe what the customer service and food presentation are really like.

That part, in particular, got 2 Chainz a bit riled up, as he felt like since he worked “his ass off” to get to the successful place that he’s in, special treatment just comes with the territory.

“I’m an entertainer, and obviously we get perks that other people don’t get. Not just in Atlanta, that’s just period, my boy…I don’t stand in line at the airport. I don’t do none of that because I done worked my ass off to do this,” he said. “So to say, like, I’m supposed to stand in line 45 minutes to get something—that’s bullsh*t.”

As you can imagine, Black folks were taken aback by the rapper’s stance and wasted no time calling him out.

“Keith is not going to give you a better review of your restaurant just because you’re a celebrity. That would be kissing ass,” wrote one user on X/Twitter. “And I’m definitely not going to give you a better review just because you’re a Black-owned business. Just be a better business all around and be a better product.”

“Sounds like he mad cos his food nasty & Keith Lee exposed it to the masses, shoulda took the criticism & improved instead of arguing this dumb ass point,” said another.

One other user broke down the crux of the issue, writing: “The reason 2 Chainz looks weird with the exchange with Keith Lee is that Keith himself had said on multiple occasions he don’t want special treatment because then it makes it seem like the service and food is made to a better quality when it should be consistent for everyone regardless of who you are. Chainz literally prioritizes the ‘Celebrity’ experience. And is wondering how can a ‘Celebrity’ give him a negative review or criticism as a whole when he was supposed to be given special treatment. That was the issue.”

One X user commented that hearing 2 Chainz’s words is yet another example of why rappers should stay off podcasts. Another felt as if the “It’s A Vibe” rapper just undid decades’ worth of “good PR” over his reputation by showing how he really feels about rich people and the treatment they deserve versus working-class folks.

“He ain’t no different than the rest of them,” they wrote.