Ray J Explains To Nick Cannon Why He Lost Lead Role In "Drumline"

BY Cole Blake 912 Views
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BET Awards 2024 - Arrivals
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - JUNE 30: Ray J attends the 2024 BET Awards at Peacock Theater on June 30, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Bennett Raglin/Getty Images for BET)
Ray J says he wasn't prepared.

Ray J says he failed to properly prepare for his audition for the 2002 coming-of-age film, Dumline. He recalled losing out on the lead role during an appearance on the latest episode of the We Playin' Spades with Nick Cannon and Courtney Beed podcast. Cannon ended up starring in the cult classic alongside Zoe Saldaña, Leonard Roberts and Orlando Jones.

"So I had to come to the reading just to go in there and do it one time," Ray J said, as caught by Complex. "So it was already done and when I went in, bro, I was underprepared. I was a mess. It was disgusting. Performance was at an all-time low. Terrible. They will tell you it was really supposed to be locked in but again it wasn't for me it was for [Nick Cannon]. So whatever kind of manifesting you were doing, it curved me." Elsewhere in the conversation, Ray discussed growing up in the spotlight, whether he'd collaborate with Monica or his sister, Brandy, and more. Check out the full conversation below.

Ray J Recalls Losing Lead Role In “Drumline”

As for how Cannon came to land the gig, he revealed during an interview with The Pivot last year that Will Smith played a key role in helping him. "People don't even know this when it was up between me and another individual for Drumline, [Will Smith] personally made the phone call to the head of the studio and said 'this is the person you need to give this job to," he said. Ray J isn't the first artist to discuss losing out on a roll on Dumline. T.I. previously discussed a similar situation while appearing on Club Shay Shay in 2023. "I just didn't want to commit myself to it at the time. It wasn't there. But I read, and I didn't get it, and that movie went on to be Drumline," he said at the time. "Yeah, I was reading for Nick Cannon's part."

In addition to Ray J, former NBA player Glen Davis also appeared on the episode of We Playin' Spades. His appearance comes after he's been making headlines for his fiery comments about Doc Rivers.

[Via]

About The Author
Cole Blake is a current staff writer at HotNewHipHop based out of New York City. He began writing for the site as an intern back in 2018 while finishing his B.A. in Journalism at St. John’s University. In the time since, he’s covered a number of breaking stories for HNHH. These include the ongoing YSL RICO trial, the allegations surrounding Diddy, and much more. His work also extends outside of hip-hop, having written extensively about a myriad of topics including politics, sports, and pop culture. He’s attended several music festivals to provide coverage for the site as well, such as Rolling Loud and Governors Ball.