Thomas Petrou explains why he regrets Hype House’s 6ix9ine collaboration

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The Hype House incited outrage from their fans after collaborating with rapper Tekashi 6ix9ine — and co-founder, Thomas Petrou, has explained why he thinks the pairing might not have been the best idea.

Tekashi 6ix9ine surprised the entire internet after collaborating with several high-profile social media stars, including the likes of YouTuber Logan Paul and TikTokers from the Hype House.

However, these creators were almost immediately met with backlash from fans, with many pointing out the accusations against 6ix9ine (which include assault, attempted murder, and even less savory claims involving minors).

Despite the rapper’s huge success coming out of law enforcement custody with ‘Gooba,’ it seems like public sentiment surrounding him has largely changed, and even caused several of the Hype House’s members to delete the videos they’d taken with him.

Paparazzi from the Hollywood Fix caught up to the Hype House’s Thomas Petrou and asked him about the outrage around his collaboration with 6ix9ine — to which the co-founder had a surprising answer: “[It was] definitely not the move, but we all make mistakes and move on. I try to learn from them and not make the same ones in the future.”

“I didn’t really know all of the backstory to him,” he continued. “I knew the snitching stuff and the gang affiliation, and I was like, ‘Probably not the best collab.’ But I wasn’t aware of half the s**t that was going on. That was my bad. Won’t happen again.”

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Petrou likewise admitted that he’d worked out the collaboration with Tekashi’s team in a single day, explaining that they were each using each other to gain views and exposure in a “mutual thing.”

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While he also acknowledged that many Hype House members have since taken down their videos with 6ix9ine, Petrou is leaving up his own vlog with the rapper, claiming that merely deleting an offensive post doesn’t make a situation “go away,” nor is it indicative of real change.

However, it doesn’t look like critics are convinced of Petrou’s claims, with many accusing the star of hoping to get revenue from views for the vlog by leaving it up.

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No matter which way you swing it, the reception around the 6ix9ine collaborations haven’t been positive, and it seems like many influencers are thinking twice about the next celebrity they decide to bring aboard.