Bay Area rapper E-40 alleges racial bias in ejection from Kings-Warriors game at Golden 1
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Bay Area rap artist Earl Stevens, who goes by the stage name E-40, was ejected Saturday night from the playoff game at Golden 1 Center between the Sacramento Kings and Golden State Warriors.
Stevens, a Warriors fan and frequent attendee of professional basketball games, alleged racial bias was behind the decision to kick him out of the game. The influential artist, who is Black, said in a statement to reporters that he was approached by Kings security after addressing a heckler, a white woman, “in an assertive but polite manner.”
In response, the Kings said it took the claims seriously and were “investigating the facts and circumstances regarding the situation, as we do anytime an accusation like this is made.”
Videos posted on social media accounts show security officials interacting with Stevens. In one, he appears to be escorted from his courtside seat.
“Security saw a disagreement between a Black man and a white woman and immediately assumed that I was at fault,” Stevens said in the statement.
The rapper said the interaction happened in the fourth quarter of the Kings’ 126-123 win in Game 1 of the best-of-seven series.
Stevens was scheduled to be in Sacramento earlier in the afternoon signing bottles of wine released under a label that features his name, according to his Twitter account.
This story was originally published April 16, 2023 at 10:31 AM.
