EA has recently come under fire after it was discovered that former NFL player Colin Kaepernick’s name was censored during one of the songs on Madden NFL 19.
The song in question, YG’s “Big Bank,” features a line from rapper Big Sean that states, “You boys all cap, I’m more Colin Kaepernick.” The track as featured on Madden NFL 19 censors Kaepernick’s name in the same way that curse words would be stricken from the clean version of an explicit song.
After this information became widely known–with Big Sean himself even chiming in on Twitter–EA released a statement via the official Madden Twitter account stating that the removal of Kaepernick’s name was an accident and it will be rectified in an upcoming update. EA’s full statement is as follows:
“We made an unfortunate mistake with our Madden NFL soundtrack. Members of our team misunderstood the fact that while we don’t have rights to include Colin Kaepernick in the game, this doesn’t affect soundtracks. We messed up, and the edit should never have happened. We will make it right, with an update to Madden NFL 19 on August 6 that will include the reference again. We meant no disrespect, and we apologize to Colin, to YG and Big Sean, to the NFL, to all of their fans and our players for this mistake.”
This whole situation has been very bizarre to watch unfold and the drama surrounding it is built upon much more than a simple athlete having his name removed. For those unaware, Kaepernick was one of the first and most-recognizable football players that started the kneeling during the National Anthem movement that began before NFL games a few years ago. This act has since become one of the major talking points surrounding the NFL and while Kaepernick has since not had another job in the league, he remains the face of the movement.
Whether or not this controversy was as simple of a mistake as EA says it is, I still don’t understand how it even got to this point. If this was going to be an issue, why even include this song on the soundtrack? And how did no one at EA realize that by censoring Kaepernick’s name from the song that this would stir up controversy? This entire story has been strange, to say the least.
Regardless, if you’re still waiting to get your hands on Madden NFL 19 for yourself, you won’t have to wait much longer. The game releases next week on August 10 for Xbox One, PS4, and PC. Currently, those with EA Access on Xbox One can play their trial version of Madden NFL 19 right now.