Influencer accuses Hulk Hogan of firing her due to race

The allegations come after the launch of Hogan’s new beer brand, “Real American Beer.” His representative calls it a misunderstanding.

Hulk Hogan is facing allegations of racial discrimination after reportedly firing a social media influencer because of her race.

Essence Jenai shared her accusations on TikTok, saying she was let go from a promotional tour promoting Hulk Hogan’s “Real American Beer” brand after working the event for just one day. The model and digital creator shared pictures and videos of her with Hogan as proof that she was part of the tour. A caption in one of her two videos read:

POV: Hulk Hogan paid you to be a brand ambassador and canceled your contract the next day when he realized you were a BLACK brand ambassador.

In a captioned video, Jenai explains that her week-long contract was canceled after one day. The footage also shows text messages between Jenai and an alleged representative of Hogan’s, who said she did nothing wrong but that the client canceled the rest of the week’s events. When Jenai asked if she was being removed or if the events were canceled entirely, the person replied, “All the rest of the events are canceled completely.”

The video continues with a caption, “I was told the events were being ‘canceled completely,’ but I see this the next day,” before showing Hogan promoting his beverage with non-Black models.

In the aftermath, “Real American Beer” released a statement following the accusation, saying:

“We are deeply troubled by the false rumor circulating on social media that a brand ambassador hired by a third-party marketing agency was terminated by Hulk Hogan for racial reasons. Real American Beer simply terminated its short-term relationship with the third-party marketing agency. Hulk Hogan was not involved in that decision, and race was not a factor. We are in communication with the agency in an attempt to clear the misunderstanding and incorrect information, and believe that this false statement will be withdrawn.”

The allegations against Hogan recall racial comments he made on a sex tape that became public in 2015. Hogan was immediately released by WWE and temporarily removed from its Hall of Fame. After a three-year suspension, Hogan was reinstated to the WWE Hall of Fame in 2018 and was inducted a second time in 2020-2021 as a member of the New World Order.

Hogan has not commented publicly on the matter. However, when asked about the allegations, Hogan’s manager Richard Paraiso told Metro.co.uk:

Is my client racist? The answer is No.

As a Black man, who can confirm better than me that Hulk Hogan is not racist? More than that, he respects the African-American community, you can trust me.

There must have been a misunderstanding with Essence Jenai, and Hulk is very sorry about that.”

In June, Hogan launched “Real American Beer," a nod to his WWE wrestling persona in the 1980s and 1990s. The lager will be distributed in 17 states this summer and available in various supermarket chains and alcohol retailers, according to a press statement.