Photo by Francis Chung // www.seeingaspects.com

Rising rap star and D.C. area native Wale will make a guest appearance at this weekend’s DC Black Pride festival after all, Metro Weekly is reporting.

Wale had originally been scheduled to headline Black Pride’s main concert event on Sunday, but a week ago, organizers told reporters they had received word from the rapper’s agent that he would not appear. The agent at first said that Wale had a family obligation, then later explained that he didn’t know Black Pride was a gay-related event when he agreed to perform, according to festival spokesperson Earl Fowlkes.

Local LGBT leaders were quick to condemn the move and accuse Wale of homophobia. Responding on Twitter, the rapper claimed he never knew about the show or the cancellation. Then on Tuesday, he followed up to say he would try to be there.

“I’m cancelling what I was supposed to be doin..to go …yeah ILL BE THERE!! I’m not scared nor do I have any hatred for ANYBODY,” read the tweet.

Wale will reportedly appear for free as a guest artist. Rapper R&B singer J. Holiday, who stepped in after Wale backed out, will remain the headliner.

Here’s the key quote from Fowlkes:

“This whole situation can be looked at as a turning point for our black LGBT community. I can’t imagine this happening ten years ago. I think that what has matured is not just our reaction, but that we had the kind of people on our board to be able to reveal to the world that the perception of homophobia is wrong.”