Overview

The Anthony Fantano Trayvon Martin and Racist Slur Controversy refers to backlash towards music critic and YouTuber Anthony Fantano over alleged resurfaced clips of him saying the n-word and the f-slur in a past video and, in a seperate video, laughing at a joke related to Trayvon Martin's death with other content creators. The clips went viral at the end of July 2025, with the Akademiks TV X / Twitter page spreading the n-word f-slur video. The clips inspired some to dig further into Fantano's recent and past content in an effort to further expose him for racist behavior. Others came to Fantano's defense, citing the alleged age of the clips and the fact that Fantano said the slurs in the context of reporting on someone else saying them, not in an effort to offend anyone in particular. Fantano responded to the controversy on August 1st, apologizing for the clips and discussing how he changed his stance on using slurs in certain contexts. He also showed the full context of the Trayvon Martin clip, suggesting it was clipped out of context.

Background

N-Word, F-Slur Clip

On July 31st, 2025, X^[1] user @AkademiksTV posted a clip from an unknown video of Anthony Fantano talking about YouTuber iDubbbz and his use of the term "N----r f----t" as a catchphrase. In the clip, Fantano can be heard saying both slurs clearly. The post reads, "Alleged audio has leaked of white closeted hip hop reviewer Anthony Fantano saying the n-word 😳🤦‍♂️" and gained over 12,000 likes in a day.

Trayvon Martin Clip

On July 31st, 2025, TikToker^[2] @dialuptv posted a clip from an old stream featuring Fantano and several other creators. In the clip, a chatter sends a message about Trayvon Martin's death. One of the people in the stream jokes about "Black names" and says he's from the "Slapahoe tribe." Fantano can be seen smiling and laughing. The video was reposted by X^[3] user @YouOnlyLive2x that day, garnering over 500 likes in a day.

It is unclear when the stream aired or if it has been fully archived online.

Developments

On August 1st, 2025, Fantano posted a response to the controversy on X.^[8] In the video, Fantano talks about how back when the n-word clip happened, he had a different opinion on using slurs and language like that in quotes. He believed it was okay to say the word as long as he wasn't directing it to anyone and explains why he has changed his opinion on that now. He apologizes for saying the words.

In response to the Trayvon Martin clip, he admits it "doesn't look good" but says that the clip is edited and out of context. He says it comes from an epsiode of the Drunken Peasants podcast and that the humor "runs edgy." He claims they are not right wing. He then shows the full context of the clip, in which the host mixes up Trayvon Martin's name with someone else's and Fantano calls him a "moron."

Online Reactions

The clips inspired reactions online. On July 31st, 2025, X^[4] user @MatthewTheStoat quoted the post sharing the n-word clip, writing, "He says it so eloquently, flows like water. This man is clearly versed in the n word," garnering over 8,100 likes in a day.

Later that day, X^[5] user @JustDuin_ItBIG made a long post criticizing Fantano over the clips that garnered over 11,000 likes in a day.

On August 1st, X^[6] user @Jasp3r_0 posted screenshots of several of Fantano's controversial album reviews, writing, "This whole Fantano drama is just karma for these reviews," garnering over 1,100 likes in under two hours.

On the same day, producer Alchemist made a post on X^[7] reading, "Anyone surprised about @theneedledrop? SMH," garnering over 8,400 likes in under a day.

Search Interest

External References