Thursday, May 1, 2014

PaRappa the Scammer IV: Chapters of the Chosen

Well, it's been quite some time since I posted an update, hasn't it... the reason being Dred Foxx blocked me from seeing anything he posts. It's come to digging through what scraps I get from folks willing to screencap his BS for me. I feel like the family dog at the dinner table!

In any case, let's start back in early March (around the 11th IIRC) where Dred posted this:


Rather than actually address and resolve the situation, Dred chooses to hide from it by making a new group. He also vows to take to Youtube with his side of the story (which he still hasn't done) and also hit up "his man Treezy" with a juicy helping of TRUTH (he hasn't done that either). Also, he has again revised his fan count from 500 million to a mere 500+ thousand. Or maybe he actually means 500 + 1000. That'd be a much more likely number, at least.

The same chuckleheads who defended him before are back to kiss more ass, of course. What is it about Dred Foxx that causes some people to collectively lose IQ points?

You may recall that Dred threatened a lawsuit shortly after this, but he ended up dropping the idea a day or two later after Jacob started getting worried and asked him to not do it. (I don't have a screencap of this ATM, but if I find one I'll add it.) It's a shame, I really would have loved to watch Dred admit that he never had a case and was dropping all farcical charges.

March 25th:

  

"This misunderstanding is done"? It's done when you pay us, not when you decide you're tired of the negative posts! And since all these internet comments he's forced to read are draining his focus, he has to head to Florida to clear his hea- wait, what? WHAT? You can't cough up a measly $100 but have enough dough to fly across the country?

April 12th:



"The legend" has been off the grid feeding his family, apparently.  I think "avoiding Cameron and Jacob" is probably a more accurate statement, but whatever. I'm honestly surprised that he's still getting negative comments at this point, I didn't think people would keep it going for so long.

Oh, and don't forget kids - Life is such, don't waste it on Cow Pucks!


And finally, here's the last update I've got for you, on April 22nd. We get to enjoy another classic Dred Foxx rant. He has now lost his grip on reality and is convinced that the people requesting that he stop being a scam artist and just return our money are DEVILS and that his situation is comparable to assorted celebrities that haven't ripped college students off.

(By the way, this isn't the first time Dred has made a poor choice regarding which celebrities to compare himself to.


Our friend Curier on NeoGAF said it best... "...Did he just compare himself to a puppeteer that allegedly touched kids?")

Dred's adoring fans agree with his assessment of the situation (one even manages to "cleverly" slip in a request to be a moderator on the fan group!) Finally, he leaves us with these immortal words:

"Negative comments post them to you loved ones"

Wow, only a true visionary of our time could have written such a profound statement! Can we get a source on tha- oh, Dred Foxx wrote it.

Now, as you may already know, this blog has gotten quite a few hits. According to the statistics, it's already reached over 70,000 pageviews! And as such, at least a few of those people felt strongly enough about the situation to provide their own take on it:

What Dred Foxx is up to these days. - Yesujira reveals Dred's secret life!

You Gotta Believe (Me)! - An Interview with Dred Foxx - TheSpoiler has a chat with our Foxxy friend.

Oh Dred. - LookAtMeGo got the flow, comin at ya live, brings the place alive every single day he jives!

But none brought the heat more than RyanBankz, who dropped an epic two-part rap saga that not even PaRappa himself could hope to match.

PETA (Dead Foxx)

Speed Dial (PETA 2)

There were also numerous text raps and a few hilarious pictures being posted in the NeoGAF thread. It'd take ages to hunt them all down, but feel free to dig around if you want. Thanks to everyone who made something, they provided a lot of laughs throughout this whole thing. And thanks to all of you for reading this blog! I don't know if we'll ever get our money back, but hopefully this will make others think twice before doing business with Dred Foxx again. (And remember Dred, if you just pay us back like you should have done ages ago? My offer still stands - this whole blog disappears!)

36 comments:

  1. "Negative comments post them to you loved ones."
    Wha-what does that mean?

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  2. I haven't really supported him, but I've always been giving positive responses when he said he was going to fix this. However, after hearing he didn't do a single thing, I just want to take back everything I've ever said to him. If he really do projects, he should have a lot of money to spare. Either that, or he's a drug addict

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  3. Hey Camjo-Z, I'm sorry for sending a positive comment Dred's way on the PTR3 FB page. when I saw the one post stating that the misunderstanding was done I thought that he payed you back and apologized for his behavior but unfortunately he didn't do such a thing as he had stated. It saddens me to see you and your college friend go through this and I hope that you'll eventually earn back what you have lost in the future but for now let karma run it's course on Dred, he will get what's coming to him eventually. ~Johnny and P.S keep believing in yourself, the same thing goes for your college buddy who also was involved in this messy and unpleasent situation.

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  4. Word has it that Dred still hasn't paid you guys back. Is that true?

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    1. Send him to court sue him honestly this situation as a whole could have been done over two years ago really...

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  5. this is so sad, that a VIP(in the gaming space) has done something this shameful to a fan.

    its also not right of the rest of the community to actaually ignore this fact.

    thats why i start to hate my own kind... gamers who do not care how companies exploit them.


    also thanks a lot for sharing your story on GAF and here in this blog. nice to see people who write down this mess, what happened.

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  6. Are there any updates on it? What he did was so awful and just wrong. If he can afford to go to Florida and everything why can't he just get over himself, admit he was wrong and pay you back the cash. The $100 shouldn't be anything for someone as big and famous as him. I really hope that you get your money back. If there's anyway I can help please tell me because I would love to.

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    1. The only update is that he sent a death threat (check out the NeoGAF thread if you want info on that), and I still don't have my money back. I've come to accept that it's never going to happen at this point, but thanks for your offer anyway.

      Delete
    2. Any update yet? Really enjoyed your blog.

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    3. Barring something totally insane happening, I don't think there will be any more major updates. Dred's made the wise decision to stop contacting me and I have no interest in dragging things out to punish someone who's already recieved more than his fair share of retribution. Besides, I can't think of a clever subtitle for a potential Part 5.

      But since you've taken an interest, this screencap from May is all I've heard about since the death threat stuff. Clearly he hasn't changed his ways. https://i.gyazo.com/570e5be4fd32d8c96471a386735fb448.png

      In addition, shortly after that someone who knows Dred contacted me asking that I remove a small reference I made regarding someone in one of the blog posts. It admittedly had little to do with the topic at hand, so I obliged. They also revealed some things that explain Dred's erratic behavior, but they requested that I not say anything about it. I'll keep that promise as well, but... let's just say it's not exactly difficult to fill in the blanks.

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  7. I understand that this is late and most likely forgotten but Dred Foxx dose not own the likeness of Parappa the Rapper, Sony does. I can understand if he had copyright issues to deal with but he could at least tell the guys instead of ripping them off. Just saying...

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  8. I know I'm waaaay late to the party, but did you ever get your money back man?

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    Replies
    1. Nope, and I'm pretty sure I never will. Thanks for asking though!

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    2. Thats a shame. I actually wanted to book Dred Foxx for a PaRappa anime dub I was scripting. But after seeing this I decided to quit the project. Its a shame some actors take advantage of the fact that they worked with the big time in order to bully someone. I worked with numerous actors like Vic Mignogna and Todd Haberkorn and they were cool cats. I even worked with Antoine Dodson. Despite the complications we had, he still honored the deal and I got the voice I wanted in a neck of time with no hassle. Its sad that you never got your money back. To quote Ralph Bakshi "Good artist, not great person"

      Its not just actors; even cartoonists too. A similar but different situation happened with me with cartoonist/musician/voice actor Kyle A. Carrozza who created MooBeard on Nickelodeon, Frog Raccoon Strawberry on Dumm Comics.com and Cartoon Network's Mighty Magiswords. You can find more info on http://www.tvskylejerk.blogspot.com done by a friend of mine which was actually inspired and took inspirations and influences from this blog.

      Delete
  9. Boy oh boy...
    At first, I was like everyone else, supporting Dred Foxx as a voice of a iconic character, not only as a rhythm video game, but as character with a cathfrase that makes us beliving in ourselfs, you something about that we always love about PaRappa. At first I thought that he's a nice guy and such, as a soul of a beloved character.

    ...and then I read the blog...

    I don't even know what to think right now... after seeing stuff like THIS, I don't think I ever gonna have a positive things about him, whenever I'll listening OST from games, because when I hear of PaRappa The Rapper, what am I supposed to think of? As "I gotta belive?" Or as a scammer? ...It's just sad, to be honestly.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's OK to like someone's work while acknowledging that they're not so great in real life.

      Delete
  10. How can someone contact you if they have info?

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    Replies
    1. I've set up "dredfoxx(at)outlook.com" as an alternate e-mail account, send whatever info you'd like.

      Delete
  11. I know you've probably made your peace with never getting your money back and all, but I see you're still replying to comments and I just felt like letting you know that there's still people out there who appreciate what you did, like me. I've been following this since the second update and despite nothing new in the past 2 years I still check in every few months after thinking "did anything ever come out of that Parappa the Scammer thing?"

    Good luck with whatever you have going on in your life now!

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    Replies
    1. Thanks. My only regret about this blog is that I didn't monetize it before the pageviews went through the roof (currently sitting around 110,000). I could have made a solid $3.50 from ad revenue!

      Delete
  12. It's 2016, and... Yep. People are still waiting for it to happen. Also, just mentioning here, Cameron, after reading ALL of this, It's one thing to act like a Douchebag, but Dred Foxx took it on a whole new level by persistently BEING one!I'm glad this event got some attention like from Reddit, escapistmagazine, GameSpot, ScrewAttack etc. But I'm really not convinced by the person who voiced a cult classic be scamming people and then denying it. I could understand why people kept defending him. He's the star of a cult classic, but COME ON, DRED!!! No Star, from any sort of media would do such stuff! You went too far!

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    Replies
    1. People defended Foxx, not because he's a star, but because they were so enamored with Parappa that they idealized the dude who played him. They couldn't separate the man from the character he played even as he was behaving like an underhanded, unhinged shithead right before their very eyes. They were blinded, not by his star power, but because they were the worst sort of waterheaded fanboys.

      But yeah, I don't think anyone should be scamming anyone else regardless of whether or not they once did voice work for a few games that only managed to sell a few million copies combined on various platforms over the course of 20 years. Seems to me like being a good person is something that everyone should strive for.

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  13. I feel so sorry for you. I hate it when people take advantage of their fans like that. You just wanted 10 lines for him to record and it escalated into this madness. So unnecessary. Maybe he hasn't realized it yet, but at this point, if he just gave you the $100 and sincerely apologized, many would forgive him and little by little he could restore his broken reputation. I didn't grow up with PaRappa, I haven't even played them, but it must feel horrible to be scammed by someone whom you looked up to as a child. Heck, I love the Knuckles rap in Sonic Adventure, something I grew up with, but now I can't listen to it knowing the rapper is an arrogant con-artist.

    Anyways, have my kindest regards! Even if you don't get your money back, know that life goes on, with many people exposing the truth and supporting you!

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    Replies
    1. I think he probably lost the goodwill of those potentially willing to forgive him after the whole "I'm sending a gangbanger to shank you with a boxcutter" thing. Personally, my offer to erase this blog from the internet if he simply apologizes has never wavered, but I doubt he'll ever take me up on it. Anyway, thanks for reading... and don't give up on the Knuckles rap! Marlon Saunders' golden pipes must live on!

      Delete
    2. Why erase it? It would make no difference if he apologized because people will always remember this. Part of me once to *"believe"* that this is a fake Dred Foxx - one with a motive to smite his internet status. Remember those fake Miyamoto tweets? I want to "*believe*" that Dred Foxx is not this scam artist who ripped off two college students. That reminds, you both were in college. Why did you agree to lend $100 to a stranger on the internet?

      Delete
    3. Regardless of the effect deleting this blog would have (or lack thereof), I said from the start that I'd delete this if he apologized and I see no reason to go back on that promise. Somebody might as well keep their word in this whole ordeal.

      As for why we gave $100 to a stranger, I'm pretty sure this blog explains it well enough but basically - though a bit steep for a meager 10 lines, $100 is not that outrageous of a price to pay for high quality voice work. In addition, prior to this incident Dred was completely amicable on the fan page and seemed eager to please his fans. He had just gotten done recording for Sony with PlayStation All-Stars, so why would we think he was anything but a professional?

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  14. U Rappin'
    Bad

    That's all I have to say about Dred

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  15. This was just mentioned on the Giantbomb Podcast and it's a hard story to read. Always disappointing when a a person is taken for a ride. Wonder of this will lead to more messages about this to him.

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  16. Finished reading the blog. This whole situation is fucking horseshit. I feel sorry for you guys.

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  17. I don't get Dredd Foxx and his behavior.
    If only he'd actually listen and pay you guys back. Imagine a world like that.

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  18. 'Eeeey,got yourself an indirect mention on a Completionist episode, how bow dah? 100 bucks is a solid gram of crack though, you can't blame him for holding on to it.

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  19. Hi, I know this is super mega ultra late, but I've found this, it backed up my positive thoughts about Dred, let me show you the last part. Foxx stands up, angry, ready to turn and leave,(was asked about you) when he stops for a moment. It’s brief, but noticeable – he gets it. The voice actor realizes he hasn’t done any real work in over a decade, and that the majority of his fans are rabid lovers of nostalgia.

    They are defending Parappa blindly, not this caricature of a man. The dog taught us to believe, not him.

    More revelations come cascading over Foxx as tears well up in his eyes.

    He made himself look like a fool, and it’s forever on the internet, existing as a pure example of a has-been who can no longer return to the former glory he so briefly enjoyed. The alter-ego regrets his decisions, but this is his life now, one of a permanently crazy asshole. He can’t stop now.

    He can’t bare his wrongs to the world. It’s too late.

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  20. This comment has been removed by the author.

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    1. At the time he was a cool, friendly dude and I had no reason to believe he wasn't going to do lines for us. Not really ironic.

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