Kentucky's governor apologized to a man named Tupac Shakur after he accused him of using a fake name to file for unemployment

insider@insider.com (Rosie Perper)
·3 min read
Tupac Shakur
The rapper Tupac Shakur in 1993 in New York City.

Walik Goshorn/MediaPunch/IPX

Gov. Andy Beshear of Kentucky apologized to local a man named Tupac Shakur after publicly accusing him of using a fake name to file for unemployment.

Beshear called out Shakur during a press briefing on Monday, criticizing people who he said were using fake names to reap state benefits.

"Unfortunately, it's going to take a little bit of time," he said, adding that "a couple of bad apples can make this challenge that much more difficult."

He went on: "For instance, we had somebody apply for unemployment for Tupac Shakur here in Kentucky, and that person probably thought they were being funny."

But Shakur wasn't being funny — the 46-year-old lives in Lexington and was laid off from his job as a cook at a restaurant that closed because of the coronavirus pandemic. He filed for unemployment last month.

"I'm hurt, I'm really embarrassed, and I'm shocked," Shakur told the Lexington Herald-Leader.

Shakur, who goes by the name Malik, told the newspaper he legally changed his name in 1998 after converting to Islam. He said people usually laughed or thought it's cool upon hearing that he shares a name with the rapper, who died in 1996.

According to the Herald-Leader, Beshear called Shakur on Tuesday morning to personally apologize.

"I understand, he's dealing with a lot," Shakur told the outlet. "Mistakes happen."

Beshear on Monday said Kentucky was sifting through an "unprecedented wave of unemployment-insurance claims" and had processed nearly 283,000 claims from March. He said an additional 149,000 claims from March and April would be processed Monday night.

"Our goal is to get through those last March claims this week," Beshear said. "If you filed in March and you haven't received anything yet, I'll be darned if we are not going to get it done this week."

An unprecedented number of people have filed for unemployment in the US in recent weeks after losing their jobs because of lockdown measures imposed to stop the spread of the new coronavirus. As of Tuesday evening, the US had reported more than 1 million coronavirus infections, with more than 58,000 deaths.

The Labor Department on Thursday reported that 4.4 million Americans filed for unemployment insurance in the previous week, raising the five-week total to about 26.5 million.

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