KARMA IS A BITCH

Hip-Hop World Fights Back Against Ian Connor, Accused Serial Rapist and Kanye Muse

The fashion stylist—and A$AP Mob affiliate—was attacked by A$AP Bari on the streets of Paris, Kerwin Frost in an apartment, and confronted by Theophilus London.

The hip-hop world giveth, and the hip-hop world taketh away.

On Thursday, video emerged of fashion stylist and Tumblr sensation Ian Connor sucker-punching rapper Theophilus London in a Paris store. The fight then spilled outside, with A$AP Bari, A$AP Mob’s resident style expert, swinging at Connor in the streets of Paris.

Video also cropped up of Kerwin Frost, a 15-year-old and one half of the art/DJ duo Spaghetti Boys, in a brawl with Connor in a nondescript apartment—though it’s not clear when the footage was taken:

Following the melee, both London and Bari took to Twitter to air out Connor, with London alleging that Connor is a “dirty fucking rapist” who tried to hide “dirty boxers under my sink” in order to cover up “two [rape] charges already added to the 10 u got.” London also claimed he knew “a girl u did wrong,” and London and Bari said that they were going to fight Connor every time they come across him in public in the foreseeable future.

Connor responded by ripping both Bari and London, and tweeting the following:

While violence is never acceptable, it is good to see the hip-hop world finally begin to turn on Connor, who stands accused of rape by at least seven women (and counting). The first accusation hit the internet back in April, with a young woman named Malika Anderson penning a disturbing blog post titled, “Ian Connor Is a Rapist, and I Know Firsthand”—a piece detailing how Connor allegedly raped her on Oct. 5, 2014, and expressing her frustration with the police after reporting the incident.

“I am speaking now because my case is basically closed. And I am finally ready to share my entire story,” wrote Anderson. “I want the world to know who they are praising… I know the truth. And I know that I did not want to have sex with Ian Connor. He raped me.”

Anderson’s allegation was followed by another blog post courtesy of artist Jean Deaux titled “For Malika,” where she claimed that Connor raped her as well. A total of seven women (and counting) have since come forward with horrifying stories of alleged rape at the hands of Connor, who has yet to be formally charged with a crime.

Connor also has a disturbing history of speaking out against sexual consent on Twitter, including a disturbing (and now deleted) tweet from January 2013 which seems to echo Anderson’s story, with Connor tweeting, “If I Eat You Out or Buy You Something You Have No Choice but To Fuck Me. I’m As Serious As Can Be With This One.”

For years, the hip-hop world has enabled Connor, elevating his stature by welcoming him into their inner circles, thus granting him the cachet that comes with celebrity. Connor began his ascent working closely with Wiz Khalifa, before becoming an affiliate of A$AP Mob—the rap collective led by emcee A$AP Rocky—and getting signed to A$AP’s art direction squad AWGE (A$AP Rocky even referred to Connor as “king of the youth” for his streetwear rep). Connor then began collaborating with Kanye West, working on his Yeezy Season 2 fashion line and appearing as a model in the accompanying fashion show this past spring at Madison Square Garden.

In late May, over a month after the rape allegations surfaced, Connor appeared as a face of the OVO summer fashion line—the clothing company owned and operated by Drake.

Despite London and A$AP Bari turning against Connor, some of the accused serial rapist and fashion muse’s biggest supporters—including Kanye West, Drake, A$AP Rocky, and Wiz Khalifa—have remained frustratingly silent.

It’s time for them to speak up.

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Marlow Stern

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