The Root‘s recent piece, “Malik Yoba Says He No Longer Identifies As A Black Man,” was definitely cause for pause. Not just because of the so-called controversy. We paused at the very first line: “former heartthrob.”
Former to who?
Malik Yoba is alive, active, and regularly giving rugged, poetic uncle energy across the boroughs of New York. So let’s correct that first. Here at noirpress, we recognize that he is a forever heartthrob—an archetype of the Black man who wore both the badge and the blues with grace on New York Undercover, who kept a generation of girls and grown women invested in Thursday night TV, and who still commands a quiet kind of attention when he walks into Brooklyn Navy Yard or a Black arts event uptown.
But beyond heartthrob status, what intrigued us most was Yoba’s statement in response to criticism of his now-viral Instagram video:
“The lack of nuance, critical thinking, assumptions, lack of research, misinterpretation, distractions, vilification, etc. will never take me off the path of doing God’s work for the liberation of our people.”
So let’s talk about it.
No Longer Black
The controversy originated with Yoba’s Instagram post from last weekend, in which he declared:
“I decided I’m no longer a Black man. No longer a person of color. What I am is a non-white man… and I think we should all start calling ourselves non-white.”
To some, it was a joke, a challenge to the political language of race. For many, it felt like another in a long line of public figures playing semantic games with Black identity in a time when clarity is needed most. The backlash came fast, prompting him to follow up with a post about “nutrition facts” that labeled him as “5000% Authentic” and “2500% Sarcastic”, among other identifiers.
And while some of y’all on social media offered him grace, others didn’t. But here’s where things get complicated. This isn’t Yoba’s first time in hot water for trying to disrupt our understandings of identity.
Public Accountability, Private Complexity
Back in 2019, Yoba stunned the public when he openly stated that he was attracted to trans women—affirming his attraction without shame. In a culture where trans people, particularly Black trans women, are constantly erased, fetishized, or brutalized, his statement was seen by many as an act of solidarity. He even sat down with Black trans women on The Breakfast Club to speak publicly about it. That moment felt like a radical risk—particularly from someone who had been romanticized for his hypermasculine roles.
But the story doesn’t end there. In the aftermath, Yoba was accused by a trans person of soliciting sex twenty years prior. Yoba denied the allegations vehemently. When The Root later attempted to question him about the claims during an interview that followed a four-hour prep conversation, he stormed out, yelling that they were “f**king with [his] life.” A video of that walkout went viral too.
This is not just about PR. This is about the tightrope between public accountability and private complexity. Between sincerity and spectacle. Between being a Liberator and being in an industry known for abuse, excess, and blurred lines.
Which brings us to the core question:
What Does Malik Yoba’s Liberation Look Like?
It’s easy to write Yoba off as another celebrity preaching what he doesn’t always practice. But that would ignore the deep and decades-long work he has done to uplift marginalized youth, long before social media, long before hashtags.
- In the 1990s, he worked with City Kids Foundation, building workshops on cultural diversity, community organizing, and self-esteem.
- He co-founded Iconic 32, a creative agency and impact collective focused on culture and cause.
- He started Yoba Development, an initiative designed to bring youth of color into real estate and property development.
- He produced The Real Estate Mixtape—a docuseries tracking his journey in the commercial real estate world.
- He’s currently preparing for Flipping the Hood, a real estate empowerment event May 9–10 at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, through which he’s reminding his followers: “The first real estate you own is your mind.”
This is liberation through mental ownership, through economic empowerment, through structural change. This is the type of Liberatory strategy we need more of.
The Challenge of Celebrity Activism
For all his real-world efforts, we also have to recognize his complexities. While his role in New York Undercover inspired many, the role he played in Empire upheld anti-Liberatory narratives: brutal violence, toxic families, hypermaterialism, and the perpetuation of industry corruption.
It brings to mind a question many of us in movement work ask:
Can artists who seek to Liberate Black people afford to play roles that reinforce the very traps we’re trying to escape?
Malcolm X warned us that only in Black communities are entertainers considered leaders. Other communities do not let celebrities be spokespeople for them.
And he was right. We, the people, must stop looking to artists—especially those shaped by “hollyweird”—as singular saviors or archetypes of truth. Instead, we should examine their work, their impact, their contradictions—and decide what to keep, what to discard, and what to learn from.
The Verdict?
Malik Yoba is not a perfect man. He is not a simple man. He is also not a former anything. He is a living artifact of the complexities of Black liberation in the public eye.
He’s the heartthrob who showed up to youth centers.
He’s the Hollywood star who’s now working to flip abandoned buildings in the hood.
He’s the advocate who stood beside trans women—and the man accused of harming one.
He is the real estate developer who teaches you to own your mind.
He is the actor who has played both hero and problem.
And maybe that’s the point. Liberation, like love, is not linear. It’s messy, contradictory, public, private, and sometimes painfully incomplete.
But as long as we’re still alchemizing our way to freedom—we owe it to ourselves to do so with nuance, clarity, and a refusal to exalt anyone who doesn’t serve our wholeness.
If you can appreciate the complexity of the work of Liberation, and the power of flipping the hood–from the mind to the land–we encourage you to show up at Flipping the Hood. Bring your whole self. We’re sure Malik will bring his.