At the end of January, rapper NLE Choppa responded to an unfortunate but ever-lingering criticism about him. The issue at hand this time was an image from a recent photo shoot for Playgirl.

“The gay baiting is seriously out of control now,” the X user claimed.

“Never been gay baiting,” NLE Choppa, born Bryson LaShun Potts, wrote in response on X. “It’s me showing freedom. Anything now a days is called gay or it’s baiting. In reality I’m comfortable enough, and have the upmost confidence in how good God designed me head to toe. Call me what you want but a straight man comfortable in my skin, I AM.”

After his initial response, NLE Choppa followed up with a video where he talked about the androgyny and ass cheek displayed in the Playgirl photo.

“Do not say that I’m a gay-baiter because I’m comfortable enough to show off the perfection that God has orchestrated over my physical, my mental, my spiritual and even my emotions,” he said. “I am not a gay-baiter because I post a selfie in the mirror showing off how beautiful I am. I am not a gay-baiter if I post a picture showing off how much God has blessed me from below the waist with something that got women going crazy. I am not a gay-baiter because in Playgirl shoot I showed a piece of my ass. I can’t show a piece of my own ass without being called a name?”

The rapper has repeatedly stated that he is a straight man who just so happens to respect every letter member of the LGBTQ+ community (so much so that he has performed at Pride events). He has endured a lot of criticism as a result of that support. Now he has queer people accusing him of “gay-baiting.” The term, also sometimes called “queer baiting,” refers to heterosexual celebrities or performers who attempt to pander to LGBTQ+ audiences through styling, artistic expression or other tactics.

It’s depressing that he has to explain to strangers that showing his body does not constitute gay-baiting. Some men, even men attracted to other men, have no clue about their deluded sense of entitlement.

I genuinely feel sorry for the onslaught of stupidity and projection NLE Choppa has had to contend with since he rapped: “If I was a bad bitch, I’d wanna f**k me too” in “Slut Me Out 2.”

The ongoing criticism about NLE Choppa’s styling started with that video and supporting performances. What’s silliest to me is that the “Slut Me Out 2” video and this new picture from Playgirl scream Rick James and Prince more than any particular group of people.

Choppa mentioned James as an influence in a Paper magazine interview in 2022, saying, “Rick James from the ‘Give It To Me Baby’ video was actually the prime inspiration.”

Last December, during an appearance on the “Holdin’ Court” podcast, R&B singer Tank said of James, Prince, Michael Jackson, Cameo and others known for their androgynous looks, “That meant you were in. It didn’t mean you were gay.”

Now, a lot of people are back to more primitive ways of thinking about how Black men should and should not express themselves.

Tank has shut down homophobic comments in recent years, and as a result of that, he has been subjected to gay rumors. He is straight.

“The first thing somebody’s going to allude to — whether you are gay or not— when they trying to assassinate your character or get off the highest joke imaginable, they’re going gay first,” he said on the podcast. “It stems from something within our culture that has created this stigma that somehow there’s a program to make Black men gay. You see it everywhere; there’s an attack on strong Black men. But who’s the attack coming from?”

Hypermasculinity has long been pushed in mainstream hip-hop. Throw in the decline of public education, including arts programs, and social media algorithms boosting incel culture, and we now exist in a climate where Black men are barely allowed to bathe daily without being questioned about their sexuality.

And yes, there are so many conspiracies claiming that there is an agenda to turn Black men gay. I have been accused of being part of such an agenda — if only I were as powerful as some imagined me to be. I would have integrated “Basketball Wives” years ago.

Prince had to contend with gay rumors at the start of his career. He, along with Rick James and many others, would be subjected to worse and nonstop rumors about their sexuality over how they dressed on stage in this era.

There are bigger problems in this country right now than a flamboyant rapper being taunted by simpletons on social media. Ultimately, NLE Choppa will be fine.

Even so, straight men in hip-hop can play with androgyny and enjoy widespread success in ways their gay counterparts in rap cannot; it’s so frustrating to watch in real time how far we continue to fall.

At a moment when genuine freedoms are being trampled on, the least we can do is allow each other the space to express ourselves without it being attached to our sexual identities.

NLE Choppa should be allowed to dress as he pleases and is correct in his assertion that a lot of people think everything is “gay.”

This type of thinking lacks imagination, but I’m glad NLE Choppa, no matter what people say about him, remains steadfast in not joining that homophobic wave.

I wish people would let him be a baddie in peace.