HOLLYWOOD, Calif. — Joaquin Phoenix insists he's getting a bum rap from the media.
The star, who announced in November that he was leaving his acting career behind in order to pursue his passion for music, insists that his intentions are real.
"There's not a hoax," the 34-year-old Phoenix tells The Associated Press. "Might I be ridiculous? Might my career in music be laughable? Yeah, that's possible, but that's certainly not my intention."
In January, Phoenix made what was proclaimed to be his rap debut at a Las Vegas nightclub. The three-song performance at Lavo on Jan. 16 featured the wannabe rapper falling off the stage as critics howled over his exploits. Most of Phoenix's recent outlandish behavior has been captured on film by his brother-in-law Casey Affleck, leading many to speculate about the true nature of his sudden rap calling.
"I don't know who said that people were booing ... because that was not happening," Phoenix explained to AP of the fallout from the performance.
"My experience afterward was I had a lot of dudes come up and say, 'We really respect you for doing it, putting yourself out there, and going with it,' " he continued. "Because I think true hip-hop heads know that it's hard, it's going to be a hard transition, and people are going to be lining up just to make fun of me."
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