Alex Stein’s freestyle rap on the COVID-19 vaccine in front of the Dallas City Council last week went viral across the country. He thinks it’s kind of silly that some people were upset with his performance.
“The reason why it triggers people on the left and the right so much is because they don’t know if it’s real or fake,” Stein told The Dallas Express. “So, all the people on the right are like ‘Look at these crazy liberals’ like ‘Oh, they love it,’ and if you’re on the left, they’re like ‘Oh my God, this guy is so cringe.’ So, it triggers both sides. I think that’s why it has this kind of response.”
Stein has been admittedly “trolling” the city council for over a year. He is only allowed to speak once every thirty days per council rules – and said his viral rap was inspired by Joe and Jill Biden inviting a singing and dancing nurse to the Whitehouse to perform in December.
“That’s when I went to Walmart and brought the scrubs, and I was almost mad that I didn’t have enough doctor stuff,” Stein said.
Stein’s vaccine rap was all freestyled (he practiced the verses on his drive to the meeting, but nothing was written down), and when his three minutes of speaking time started, his phone wouldn’t play his background music, “The Real Slim Shady” by Eminem. Stein then proceeded to rap for the next three minutes, beat-less and a capella.
At one point, he picked up a bottle of hand sanitizer sitting on the podium in front of him and started dousing himself with the liquid.
“I didn’t use enough Purel,” Stein said of the performance.
Stein said that he has not been vaccinated against COVID-19, nor does he plan to be. He lost his mother, Kelly Stein Fahey, to acute respiratory failure in October of 2021 at the age of sixty, so he does not fault anyone for getting vaccinated, but he doesn’t believe the shots should be forced on people.
“I believe that the vaccine was not created for the virus but that the virus was created for the vaccine,” he said. “I just don’t think there’s enough long-term data for me.”
While many saw Stein’s performance for what it was, satire, others weren’t as quick to get the joke.
“Vaccinate your babies, vaccinate them, even if they have rabies,” Stein spat. “Vaccinate your DNA, vaccine created by the CIA’ and ‘You gonna get corona from Mona.”
Media pundits and politicians on both sides of the aisle took note of Stein’s rap, and some took it other than how he says he intended. ABC News Live anchor Linsey Davis said, “I love that guy.”
Amy Tarkanian, former chair of the Nevada Republican Party, tweeted, “The TikTok nurses have taken to doing routines at City Council Meetings. Here’s a nurse in Texas giving a performance that is one-of-a-kind. I wonder who he voted for….”
The TikTok nurses have taken to doing routines at City Council Meetings.
Here’s a nurse in Texas giving a performance that is one-of-a-kind.
I wonder who he voted for… pic.twitter.com/8OTpupYgtm
— ⭐️Amy Tarkanian⭐️ (@MrsT106) January 12, 2022
Stein, in fact, voted for Donald Trump twice.
Stein hosts a podcast called the Conspiracy Castle and admits he doesn’t believe NASA landed on the moon in 1969 and that he does believe the 2020 presidential election was rigged.
He said he lost faith in Donald Trump as the former president did not pardon people who were at the January 6 protests at the U.S. Capitol.
Stein sat with The Dallas Express to talk about his city council rap going viral, and he also made a “pre-announcement” during the visit.
“I believe I may, in 2023, run against Eric Johnson for the mayor — yes for the mayor, of Dallas,” he said. “You know, obviously, the chances of me winning are very slim.”
Stein said a platform he may run on in the 2023 Dallas mayor’s race is one of his “crazy plans” in which he would designate a portion of Dallas as a Red-Light District where the use of illicit drugs would be “legalized.”
“Of course, this is a crazy, radical idea, but there’s other countries that do it, and it’s actually seen great results,” Stein said. “Our private prison industry is filled with nonviolent drug offenders; that’s not an accident. So, we have to change that whole idea of sacrificing all these young black men then forcing their kids to be raised without a dad because they smoked weed or because they, you know, did ecstasy.”
Stein added that he does not condone drug use in any fashion: he lost a close friend to a drug overdose. However, he explained that he does not believe the illegality of drugs in the U.S. deters people who want to use drugs from doing so.
Stein has acting credits on his resume and has appeared on at least two reality television shows. He said he decided a few years ago to start creating and posting his content on his YouTube channel, Prime Time #99.
While his methods aren’t understood by all, he has proven to have a significant impact. Stein reported an increase of over 30,000 followers in less than a week across his platforms, and the original rap video on Instagram has over 265,000 views, not including shares, remixes, and other posts.
Stein said that his mission statement and advice to others is “I’m not a role model. Do the opposite of me in every decision I make, and you will be successful.”
While Stein provides comedy to many, he sees his mission as far deeper than laughs. He said he has sacrificed himself to draw attention to the issues he cares about.
“You know that I am chosen to fall on the sword so you can use me as a bridge to walk the path to freedom,” he said. “That’s the mission statement.”
