Music

High school principal loses job over rap video cameo

by Jeremy Mersereau

Who can really blame the assistant principals of the world for wanting to take a break and inject some excitement into their lives? If you spent your days mostly confiscating smartphones due to sexting and disciplining students for playing Hooky (the hottest new hook-stacking mobile game), you’d jump at the chance to appear in a music video.

If you work for the Southampton school district, just make sure the video in question doesn’t depict a debauched pool party beforehand and you’ll probably still have your job the next day. Learn from others’ mistakes: Southampton High School assistant principal Esther Adler-O’Keefe has lost her position and is being re-assigned after playing a role in a music video for St. Louis rapper J.R.’s song “Best Friend”:

Adler-O’Keefe, easily identifiable in the video as the only fully-clothed woman over 25 who actually gets to speak, has reportedly lost her position over the role and has been re-assigned to oversee “a variety of academic support services throughout the district,” according to school officials. Eh, no biggie, it’s 2015, we’ve all been there. Really, who HASN’T lost their job just for playing a woman going on vacation with her husband and therefore giving J.R. and his best friend Trey Songz an opportunity to engage in threesomes at a pool party? Glass houses, etc.

“The video in question showcases behaviours and language use that is not promoted by the Southampton School District,” said Superintendent Dr. Scott Farina in an email to 27east.com. “In fact, we actively teach our students the importance of good character and making smart choices. Additionally, this is not representative of who we are as a district, nor of our students and staff.” Sounds like a deeply uncool district then, Scott.

For her part, Adler-O’Keefe maintains that she knew nothing of the video or song’s content going onto the set, and that she never would have appeared in the video, as she finds “the lyrics and content of the music video vulgar, offensive, and demeaning.” That’s exactly what. Oh well, she’ll always be the most legendary assistant principal those high schoolers ever had… at least until Mr. Anderson shows up twerking in a Travis $cott video or something.