Michael Irvin Calls Out His Son’s ‘Thug Life’ Rap Persona

It’s not an uncommon trend for the sons of celebrities to pursue rap careers, from Tom Hanks’ son Chet to T.I.’s son King. NFL Hall of Famer Michael Irvin is a parent to an up-and-coming rapper himself; his son Elijah has released two albums under the name Tut Tarantino. But Irvin isn’t exactly impressed with his child’s creative pursuits. 

The former Dallas Cowboys star shared his thoughts on Tut Tarantino’s bars in a recent episode of Fox Sports’ Undisputed. 

“If you ever listen to some of his raps, I’m like, ‘Oh my God.’ Where does this come from, son?” he said. “You grew up in a gated community your whole life. But he’s rapping my life. Because we romanticize and fantasize about that old thug life, ghetto life, and all of that stuff.”

“We used to work to get away from [that]. Now, we’ve gotten to a place somehow where we’re running back towards it. In the music, in everything,” he added.

NFL legend Michael Irvin puts his son’s rap career on blasthttps://t.co/3Yh0bOWXIA pic.twitter.com/XvMVVlTjJ9

— HipHopDX (@HipHopDX) October 21, 2023

Tarantino debuted in 2018 with the album Tarantino World. His sophomore LP Free Brack, Pt. One dropped later that year. Since then, he’s released one-off singles like “First” and “Whip Work,” racking up thousands of streams on Spotify. 

Back in 2019, after his son first arrived on the hip-hop scene, Irvin was just as confused then about his son’s lyrics as he is now. “He raps about some of the hardest stuff in the world,” he said on The Dan Patrick Show. “I say to him, ‘Son, you grew up in a 20,000 square-foot gated community! Where does this stuff come from?'”

“I worked hard to get you out of this, and you’re rapping right back to it,” he quipped. 

It’s safe to say Tarantino probably won’t be seeing his parents at his concerts any time soon.