Faith Rapper Dee-1 Searched by Police in North Carolina, Calls Out Racial Profiling

Faith-driven rapper Dee-1 found himself in an unexpected situation on September 24 when North Carolina Highway Patrol officers pulled over and searched his rental car during his Hipocritical Hop Tour.

Dee-1, born David Arnold Augustine Jr., shared footage of the stop on social media. In the clip, officers claimed a K-9 unit “hit” on the car after detecting what they believed to be the odor of narcotics. “When a narcotics odor gets on the car, and the K-9 hits on it, that’s what led to the car being searched,” one trooper explained.

Instead of drugs, police found boxes of tour merch — hoodies and copies of Dee-1’s children’s book. The rapper revealed that one officer even asked if he was a “dope dealer.”

“But he asked me if I’m a dope dealer, bro,” Dee-1 told viewers. “That’s my children’s book. That’s my hoodies I was telling you about.”

The NAACP award winner kept his cool, later posting:

“They just knew they found some dope. Nope. Just a man of God on tour right now.”

In his caption, Dee-1 stressed his clean lifestyle:

“I have never used or sold drugs in my life. 🤷🏽‍♂️ They pulled my tour bus over and just KNEW they found something… But ultimately, I stayed cool.”

Dee-1 also pointed out the broader issue of racial profiling. According to the ACLU, 41% of Black Americans say they’ve been stopped or detained by police because of their race. Dee-1 hopes his experience serves as another reminder of the challenges Black men face in encounters with law enforcement.