Jada Pinkett Smith says her “heart dropped” when she heard Snoop Dogg’s comments directed at Gayle King.
In a preview for Wednesday’s new episode of “Red Table Talk,” Jada spoke with the rapper about his criticism of Gayle and recalled how his comments made her feel.
“When you first came out and you said what you said in regards to Gayle, my heart dropped,” Jada began. “I felt like not only were you talking to Gayle, but you were talking to me.”
“I was like, ‘Oh no. Snoop has taken his power flow away from me, away from Willow, away from my mother,'” she continued, gesturing toward her mom, Adrienne Banfield-Norris and daughter, Willow Smith, who were both sitting at the table.
As Jada continued to speak, Snoop shook his head in disappointment. “I was like, ‘Not Snoop,'” Jada explained. “And so that’s one of the reasons why I felt like I really wanted to have this conversation with you in the spirit of healing.”
Watch the preview clip, above.
Last week, Jada took to Instagram to tease the upcoming episode, which drops on Wednesday. Captioning a photo of Snoop at the table with the group, Jada wrote, “@snoopdogg is coming to @redtabletalk Wednesday, February 26th to have an in-depth and insightful conversation about The Culture of Disrespect Between Black Men and Black Women. Join us❣️”
Earlier this month, Snoop became the center of controversy for the way he criticized Gayle, who during an interview with the late NBA star’s friend, WNBA player Lisa Leslie, broached Kobe Bryant‘s assault charge, which was later dismissed. Soon after, Snoop took to Instagram to slam the veteran journalist, urging her to “back off, bitch, before we come get you.”
During the interview in question, King said to Leslie, “It’s been said that [Kobe’s] legacy is complicated because of a sexual assault charge that was dismissed in 2003, 2004. Is it complicated for you, as a woman, as a WNBA player?”
“It’s not complicated for me at all,” Leslie replied. “I just never see — have ever seen him being the kind of person that would be — do something to violate a woman or be aggressive in that way. That’s just not the person that I know.”
“Lisa, you wouldn’t see it, though. As his friend, you wouldn’t see it,” King noted.
“And that’s possible,” Leslie replied. “I just don’t believe that.” She added that the media “should be more respectful at this time.”
After receiving backlash for his initial response to the interview bite, Snoop later clarified his intentions. “I’m a non-violent person,” the rapper insisted in an Instagram video. “When I said what I said, I spoke for the people who felt like Gayle was very disrespectful towards Kobe Bryant and his family… Have a little bit more respect for Vanessa, her babies and Kobe Bryant’s legacy.”
Last week, two days after sharing the Instagram video, Snoop offered a public apology to Gayle, and admitted that he “overreacted.”
“Two wrongs don’t make no right. When you’re wrong, you gotta fix it,” he began. “Gayle King, I publicly tore you down by coming at you in a derogatory manner based off of emotions, being angry at questions that you asked.”
“I would like to apologize to you publicly for the language that I used and calling you out of your name and just being disrespectful,” he continued. “I didn’t mean for it to be like that. I was just expressing myself for a friend that wasn’t here to defend himself.”
In response, Gayle issued a statement where she accepted Snoop’s apology.
“I accept the apology and understand the raw emotions caused by this tragic loss,” the “CBS This Morning” anchor said in a statement to the Associated Press. “As a journalist, it is sometimes challenging to balance doing my job with the emotions and feelings during difficult times. I don’t always get it perfect but I’m constantly striving to do it with compassion and integrity.”
Snoop Dogg’s special “Red Table Talk” episode will air Wednesday at 12 p.m. ET on Facebook Watch.
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