Michael B Jordan faces accusations of cultural appropriation following the announcement of his new rum.
The 34-year-old actor and producer shared pictures of his new rum, J’Ouvert, on Instagram. The rum takes its name after the Antellian Creole French term meaning “daybreak.”
The rum’s packaging defines the name. It “originated in the pre-dawn streets of Trinidad, as celebration of emancipation combined with Carnival season to serve as the festival informal commencements…crafted on those same islands, J’OUVERT Rum is a tribute to the party start.”
J’Ouvert signals the beginning of an annual two-day carnival event in Trinidad and Tobago. It is a celebration with costumes and parades.
Twitter users accused Joran of cultural appropriation, criticizing him for trademarking the name of a celebration he has no connection to.
imagine trying to explain what jouvert is to someone and they go “oh michael b jordan rum” 😕 https://t.co/kmTtYuBRYb
— nika🦦 (@spxcyy) June 20, 2021
Michael B Jordan never been to jouvert or mass. But has the nerve to want to profit off West Indian culture and call it Jouvert Rum…. pic.twitter.com/RT8O3InIwm
— 🛍: de-aesthetic.com | IG:_iamdda 🇻🇨✨💅🏾🐰 (@_iamdda) June 20, 2021
Even rap superstar Nicki Minaj joined in the dialogue.
Hey guys so @NICKIMINAJ has shared our sentiments on the matter of Michael B Jordan calling his rum Jouvert and has publicly and kindly asked him to change it. Appreciate this 🙌🙌🙌 pic.twitter.com/U5zUEoxFtO
— Lil' Bitts (@LilBitts) June 22, 2021
Some users disagreed with the controversy, and thought Twitter users were going too far.
Them American people commenting on the Michael B Jordan situation not sitting right with me pic.twitter.com/Dh4qInTDtX
— 🐉 (@marieswrld4) June 22, 2021
