E-40 won’t attend Game 2 of Warriors-Kings after controversial ejection: report

SACRAMENTO — Bay Area hip-hop legend E-40 reportedly won’t attend Game 2 of the Warriors’ playoff series with the Kings on Monday after his controversial ejection from Game 1.

E-40, whose real name is Earl Tywone Stevens Sr., was escorted from his seat near the Warriors bench in the fourth quarter of Saturday’s game. Stevens alleged that his ejection was racially motivated.

Several videos circulated on social media over the weekend showing E-40 talking to Golden 1 Center security before leaving his baseline seats. It was unclear from the footage what led up to the conversation and subsequent ejection. A league source with knowledge of the incident said arena security received several complaints that E-40 stood excessively, blocking the view of fans behind him. The source said the rapper refused to comply with a warning to stay in his seat.

But the 55-year-old artist painted a much different story Sunday morning.

E-40 released a statement, saying he had been “subjected to disrespectful heckling” during the game. The rapper “turned around and addressed one of the hecklers in an assertive but polite manner” in the fourth quarter. It was then that arena security approached him, believing he had instigated the situation.

“Unfortunately, it was yet another reminder that — despite my success and accolades as a musician and entrepreneur — racial bias remains prevalent,” E-40’s statement said. “Security saw a disagreement between a Black man and white woman and immediately assumed that I was at fault.”