Music critic and YouTube personality Anthony Fantano has issued a public apology after old video clips resurfaced showing him using racial slurs and engaging in content that some viewers found racially insensitive.
Fantano, who runs the popular review channel The Needle Drop with over 3 million subscribers, addressed the backlash in a video posted to his secondary channel and on X (formerly Twitter). The resurfaced clips stem from his now-defunct side channel thatistheplan, which featured surreal, meme-based content popular in the mid-2010s. That channel and its content were previously the subject of a 2018 Fader article that linked Fantano to the alt-right, an allegation he later challenged in court. The article was eventually taken down following a settlement.
In his recent video, Fantano acknowledged two specific clips drawing criticism. One features him quoting both the N-word and the F-slur. He admitted it was a poor decision, explaining, “Early on in my YouTube career, I had some pretty lax views when it came to quoting the language of others… My point of view was, ‘what does it matter?’ But I now realize it was in bad form and unnecessary.”
He added, “All I can do is take ownership of having quoted these words in this way. And obviously say that I’m sorry. Which, I am, in fact, sorry about this.”
The second clip suggests he laughed at the death of Trayvon Martin. Fantano strongly denied that accusation, stating the clip was heavily edited. He clarified that he was reacting to a viewer’s super chat, and played the full version of the clip, where he calls a co-host a “moron” for confusing Trayvon Martin with YouTuber Tre Melvin.
Fantano concluded his statement by addressing DJ Akademiks, whose fan-operated AkademiksTV page helped recirculate the clips. Fantano distanced himself from any platform or narrative promoting offensive or harmful content.
“I’m going to continue doing my best to make sure that I’m not sending across the wrong idea,” he said. “Especially considering a lot of the music I review deals in heavy, serious topics—topics I firmly stand against as someone who is not a bigoted weirdo.”