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Thursday, 2 March 2006, 10:42 GMT

Minor cuts for Oscar rap number

Three 6 Mafia Oscar-nominated rap song It's Hard Out There for a Pimp - taken from the film Hustle and Flow - will be performed at Sunday's ceremony with minor changes.

At the request of the Academy and host broadcaster ABC, rap trio Three 6 Mafia have replaced the profanities in their lyrics with less offensive words.

However, Hustle and Flow actress Taraji P Henson will still use the word "bitches" in the chorus.

"As long as the Academy approves it, it's cool," said rapper Juicy J.

A spokesman for Gil Cates, producer of the Oscars show, confirmed that it was not one of the words changed by the nominated artists.

'Artistic integrity'

The song - which portrays the life of a pimp in Memphis, Three 6 Mafia's home town - is the first rap song to feature in an Oscar ceremony.

Eminem's Lose Yourself, which won the best song Oscar in 2003, was not performed at the 2003 event.

Taraji P Henson Three 6 Mafia's lawyer Aaron Rosenberg said his clients were sensitive to decency concerns surrounding their track.

"They worked hard to clean it up as much as possible without compromising their artistic integrity," he said.

As with last year's ceremony, hosted by controversial comedian Chris Rock, ABC is expected to impose a five-second time delay.

It is not the first time concerns have been raised over the lyrical content of an Oscar-nominated song.

At the 2000 ceremony, Robin Williams performed a sanitised version of the song Blame Canada, taken from the film South Park: Bigger, Longer and Uncut.



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