Killer Mike thinks Georgia's jumped the gun with reopening on Friday -- potentially risking lives -- so, he is NOT rushing to open doors at his chain of barbershops.
The rapper joined us Tuesday on "TMZ Live" and told us he's concerned about Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp's plan to lift much of the state's lockdown restrictions Friday, allowing barbershops, salons, gyms and several other businesses to reopen.
Killer Mike and his wife, Shay, own a string of barbershops in Atlanta, called The Swag Shop, but tells us they're opting to keep all the locations shuttered.
While he sees strong incentives to reopen the shops -- businesses are around to make money -- Mike says concern over the health and safety of his employees and customers outweigh the company's bottom line.
He also admits race is a factor, because African Americans are being impacted by COVID-19 at a very high rate, and that's the community he serves -- so he doesn't want to put anyone in danger by opening too soon.
Sounds like Killer Mike thinks Dr. Anthony Fauci is right when he says lifting restrictions too soon could backfire. Mike's hoping governors and mayors can get on the same page, and formulate a better plan. So far, that hasn't happened in Georgia ... where several mayors are vocally opposed to the Gov. Kemp's move.
Until then, Mike has a message for the average American worker who feels they might need to rush back to work.