Kirk Franklin is famous for being a gospel producer, singer, and rapper. He won his first GRAMMY for Best Contemporary Soul Gospel Album in 1996 for Whatcha Lookin’ 4.
In 2021, audio recordings of his heated argument with then 32-year-old son Kerrion became viral. In the recording, Franklin is heard cursing at his son during a phone call. The gospel legend is heard saying, “Get your skinny m*therfu**ing a** out before I put my foot in your a**.” and “I will break your neck, ni**a, don’t you ever disrespect me!” To which his son responds, “I dare!” Originally uploaded on to Kerrion’s Instagram account, the post of the recording has since been deleted.
The singer joined former Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton in the former’s Funky Friday podcast. Talking about the 2021 rift, Kirk admits that he was, “ashamed for the lack of control,” He continues, “Because I’m the father, I still have the responsibility, and because I know my son, I have the responsibility to take in totality the environment that I was in. I didn’t do a good job because he’s still my son, and because he’s still my son, the manner in which I talked to him was not the best, and so I owned that.”
In 2022, Kerrion came out after being essentially forced to admit that he was bisexual on an episode of Bad Boys: Los Angeles. Speaking about the issue, hosts of The Real defended Kerrion saying, “It is absolutely wrong to out somebody.” They added, “accept somebody with what they accept about themselves,” and that, “It shouldn’t have to be this uncomfortable moment.”
The older Franklin has since reflected on the incident and says, “I am praying that my son will feel and see the support that is there for him to become his best, and the discipline and the work that takes. I know that it can be overwhelming for him but I hope that he will see through it that he’s worth it. He’s worth it to himself to do the hard work with what God has, in his sovereignty, placed in your lap as a 36-year-old Black man.”