Fact Or Fiction: John Cusack A Graffiti-Writing B-Boy? (Photos)
In the 1980s, John Cusack was something of an Everyman. The Illinois native appeared in a host of teen comedies, usually playing likeable, nerdy guys with the best of intentions. He was a boombox-blaring romantic in Say Anything, a suicidal hamburger cook in the black comedy Better Off Dead, and Anthony Michael Hall’s nerdier homie in Sixteen Candles.
In the 1990s and 2000s, it only continued. Cusack grew with his generation, playing offbeat parts—whether it was a mercenary, a grifter, or a chain-smoking record store clerk, all the while, taking on male leads in romance films, still being the proverbial “guy next door.”
All of that said, would you have ever guessed Joan Cusack’s brother to be a B-boy? Well, now a four-decade Hollywood celebrity, Cusack is BELIEVED (by a few online destinations) to have been tagging, bombing and thriving off of graffiti writing. Slam X Hype recently pointed out (see some of the clever I.G. captions there), after a trip through John’s Instagram that “CusackShakur” seems very real, with a portfolio to boot:
So, since the news cycle hit on December 27, ?uestlove (a conduit to celebrities like John) asked Cusack about it on Twitter. Cusack kinda waved it off, upset with how one of the sites painted him. But then again, does any REAL graf writer take ownership of his/her work? Remember the days of pulling the shirt up to hide your face? If Cusack admitted this art, he’d likely get in some trouble.
Spray Anything http://t.co/qj2PHV3B2L
— Questlove Jenkins (@questlove) January 3, 2014
@questlove don't believe the hype from celebrity -drafters ambulance chasers site 🙂 me and Choe are pals though .. Only true thing ..
— John Cusack (@johncusack) January 3, 2014
dammit. i hate when @johncusack ruins a graf art fantasy. you know how hard i worked on that big pun?
— Questlove Jenkins (@questlove) January 3, 2014
@questlove but I hate the idea of imagining tagging myself -!
— John Cusack (@johncusack) January 3, 2014
*sigh* @johncusack, can i at least borrow your copy of "Hey Love" Soul Classics?
— Questlove Jenkins (@questlove) January 3, 2014
@questlove I am granted , up to some legendarily weird shit – Choe knows too much – but that story had too much wrong not to smash –
— John Cusack (@johncusack) January 3, 2014
Perhaps this is akin to Joaquin Phoenix’s documentary-inspiring Rap career? Or perhaps not. What do you think?