The Drake-Kendrick Lamar social media firestorm that burned one reporter’s reputation

EDITOR’S NOTE: The first portion of this story is written by Brooklyn Eagle reporter Mary Frost, followed by a first-person opinion piece by Christopher Alvarez.

Christopher Alvarez is a freelance reporter and filmmaker who lives with the serious skeletal disorder Thanatophoric Dysplasia and reports on issues affecting disabled people like himself, as well as celebrity interviews. He recently graduated from Columbia Journalism School.

Now Alvarez — who has written several articles for the Brooklyn Eagle’s sister publication, the Queens Eagle — finds himself caught up in a media firestorm that involves the bitter rap battle between Drake and Kendrick Lamar, which recently culminated in the Billboard Hot 100 number one hit “Not Like Us.” A bizarre alleged blackmail scheme — or maybe just a scam — played out via tweets and creepy videos staged in Brooklyn Bridge Park, led to wholly unsubstantiated speculation that Alvarez may have been abused.

Throw in Q-Anon-style Epstein conspiracy theories and screenshots of alleged negotiations to buy items linked to dark deeds somehow related to Drake, and you have the virtual equivalent of “Tiger King” — all condensed into one weekend.

‘EbonyPrince2K24’ makes allegations that go instantly viral

It started on May 10, when X (Twitter) user “EbonyPrince2k24” tweeted a threat of legal action at Drake and a close associate, hinting about having evidence of something awful, as well as a video showing items allegedly left by Drake at The Mark Hotel in Manhattan, including an old laptop, medications with Drake’s legal name, Aubrey Graham, on the bottles, receipts and clothing. Some of these items had been used as cover art by Lamar on the diss track “Meet the Grahams” — implying there was a mole in Drake’s camp. There was also a photo of Alvarez, and a copy of the May 8 Brooklyn Daily Eagle, used to time-stamp the video.

In the video, the items were arrayed on a balcony of the 1 Hotel Brooklyn Bridge, overlooking Brooklyn Bridge Park. Some speculated that EbonyPrince intended to imply that the laptop had evidence of wrong-doing.

“You’ve had many things discarded over the years. I wonder if you can remember them all,” EbonyPrince cryptically tweeted.

A second video, filmed at night on a scenic overlook in Brooklyn Bridge Park, shows more items, including jewelry. “It’s about diamonds,” EbonyPrince wrote. Other tweets make vague and unsubstantiated allegations of child abuse.

Another X user posted screenshots of what appears to be negotiations with EbonyPrince to buy the video footage for $800,000 in cryptocurrency, although other users later called these out as fake. A deadline of noon Monday was set for Drake to apologize and retract what EbonyPrince called “lies,” after which he vowed to turn everything over to a lawyer.

The full story, began to emerge, according to internet sleuths, who pored over the user’s X page: EbonyPrince appeared to be an employee of the Mark Hotel, and had intended to sell Drake’s unclaimed items following a period in the hotel’s Lost and Found, but was unable to do so after Drake’s associate DJ Akademiks claimed on a livestream that the articles were stolen property. It is still unclear how the photo of the items made its way to Lamar’s camp.

The noon deadline came and went with only more vague and speculative posts from the user, leading some to speculate the whole thing might have been disinformation, but EbonyPrince shortly afterwards uploaded a shaky video of his laptop, showing more security footage of Alvarez.

Almost 10 million views over the weekend

All of this has set off a firestorm of social media speculation so intense it ranked on Google Trends and X’s Trending Topics. The first video generated nearly ten million impressions on Twitter, with thousands following EbonyPrince’s account. Online sleuths and content creators dug up background information on every aspect of Drake and Lamar’s infamous feud, and threw in references to Lamar’s “6:16 in LA,” which includes 13 seconds of what some believed to be ventilator noise.

The location of the first video was traced to Harriet’s Rooftop Bar atop 1 Hotel. Users noted that Lamar owns a penthouse near the 1 Hotel, and initially speculated that the footage could have been shot from his balcony, though there is no evidence that EbonyPrince has anything to do with him.

Twitter users dubbed EbonyPrince “The Riddler,” after the cryptic Batman villain, in reference to the user’s ominous and confusing posts.

Alvarez dragged into the media maelstrom

Alvarez has since been subjected to intense online speculation and ugly rumors, including that Drake may have been involved in a physical altercation with him, flattening his enormous struggles and equally enormous accomplishments.

“I don’t know what any of this means,” a bemused Alvarez told the Eagle on Sunday.

Although Alvarez uses a wheelchair, he gets around and enjoys rubbing shoulders with celebrities and international pop stars, including DJ Khaled, who gifted the reporter one of his chains in 2016; and has dreamed since high school of becoming a broadcast journalist.

One of those celebs was Drake.

“I was with Drake that night because we briefly met after dinner, but all the accusations are false,” he said.

What follows is Alvarez’ statement of the facts: who he actually is, why people should stop spreading misinformation about him, and how this whole debacle is not just hurting him, but others in the disability community.

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Living as a journalist in a ‘post-truth’ society

By Christopher Alvarez

My childhood friend and brother texted me this morning: “I tried my best not to say anything about it to not bother you but I’ve seen your name all over the internet all weekend… sorry you gotta deal with all this.”

The evolution of social media has opened a new era of disinformation, and it poses a critical question. What does a post-truth society mean for journalism? Platforms like Instagram, Twitter and Reddit, in many ways, have become fake news factories whose algorithms are routinely gamed for personal pleasure, income or political persuasion. It has come to a point where it is no longer sufficient for a journalist to simply exist as an esteemed byline. Rather, it is now his job to build audiences by leading an authentic and bold digital life across various social media platforms to still be called a reporter. The work of self-representation in social media spaces is certainly time-consuming and frequently challenging given the pervasiveness of cyberbullying, but the seriousness of how social media now governs much of public perception is no joke.

This weekend, a video with a screenshot of me that has been viewed more than 8 million times went viral, and once again, I was in the eye of a media storm — this time, for the worse.

Clickers are going to click, but now it’s time for me to introduce myself and clear the air.

I am a 26-year-old, trapped in a nine-month-old’s body. I was born to a Hispanic couple from Colombia. When I was two years old, I was diagnosed with Thanatophoric Dysplasia Type 2, a severe skeletal disorder in which the person affected has a narrow chest, a small ribcage, small limbs and underdeveloped lungs. Children born with this condition die soon after birth due to respiratory failure. Currently, I am the only one in the world with my disability, breaking the lifetime expectancy record with ventilator support via tracheostomy keeping me alive.

These physical challenges have shaped the way I communicate with the world around me. My partial hearing loss would make some conversations difficult and my tracheostomy causes my voice to be rough. But through the years, I have constantly worked on improving my speech, by speaking in public and engaging in conversations. My listening skills have also improved with the help of hearing aids. My own struggles with communication, and a lifetime of conveying my story in a way that people understand and are inspired by, have been a driving force as a Latino journalist, one who prides himself on being open-minded and valuing different perspectives and experiences, with an eye toward telling impactful stories.

Because of my physical limitations, I don’t look like the ideal friend, boyfriend, employee, or journalist. That is why I created THEYWANTCA on Instagram, to show myself living life without limitations and enjoying each day with a smile on my face. I’m not disabled, I just do things differently — and I belong here. My following are friends and people I’ve worked with, of all ages. It’s a play on words that by spreading motivation, my positive outlook on life, and inspiring individuals with disabilities to overcome any challenges they encounter, high-profile people would want to hang with me or us.

I’ve had the privilege to be with Drake, Kendrick Lamar and other celebrities who have been very nice to me, but I don’t understand where it all got blurred with the fans.

I can confirm that I was with Drake on the night of Jan. 22, 2023. After his NYC concert with 21 Savage, I was called to meet Drizzy at The Mark Hotel, and we had a blast listening to new beats. I am not in the position to talk about his character outside of our meetings but I can say I was not violated in any way. Growing up in a society that was not meant for me to succeed in, I would never put myself in a position that would further dehumanize the disability community. According to the CDC, approximately 80% of women and 30% of men with developmental disabilities have been sexually assaulted, and 1.8% of women with a disability have reported rape in the last 12 months. I know the struggle and to be put in that light has been scary for my other friends in this community.

There are rumors that a hotel security guard was fired for letting me wait inside the hotel instead of leaving me out to freeze. I believe this is true, and I feel bad. I’m sorry to him and his family. Good people doing good things out of the kindness of their hearts should not be condemned, and The Mark Hotel should reassess who they put at the top of the chain. (The Brooklyn Eagle has reached out to The Mark Hotel for comment and will update with their response.)

Lastly, I have been getting a lot of spam phone calls, texts, emails and social media messages saying that I am the “snitch” in this beef, that I accepted “hush money” from Drake and that I was somehow in on the plan because I follow “underaged high school girls.” First, I don’t know anything about Drake and Lamar’s beef because to me life is too short to hate and I don’t follow it. Second, I’m a hard-working journalist who holds elected officials and private entities accountable; I don’t have rappers on speed dial to be “the mole” or “snitch.”

Going forward: In light of recent hate speech incidents against Alvarez and for his safety, THEYWANTCA’s publicity team has advised him to unfollow all minors. Please don’t take this personally; we are just trying to protect him and his family and ensure that he can keep delivering the impact journalism that really matters to him and his readers.

As part of Alvarez’s work as an activist, he has always sought to connect and build bridges with all other members of the disabled community, including by following families and children who experience the same struggles he has, but the negative remarks being made about his character as a result of this outreach are distracting from THEYWANTCA’s mission.