“Sopranos” star Drea de Matteo is slamming cancel culture and its effects on society.
In an interview with Fox News Digital, the Ultrafree founder called online hatred “volatile and vile.”
“Stop canceling everybody,” Drea said. “You know what I also can’t relate to — because I’ve seen some people send me, like, real, nasty hate stuff on the internet that people have said about me just for fun and — it’s not just about me. It’s about anybody in the world.
“Why is everybody so angry? Like, why is everyone so mad? Why can’t we get back to a place where we really do want to see people do well and feel included and not be destroyed constantly by people sitting behind computers?
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“Sopranos” star Drea de Matteo slams cancel culture for being “volatile and vile.” (Getty Images)
“The cancel culture thing couldn’t be more volatile and vile and — again, how do you use these words, how do you use this inclusivity? — and it just doesn’t make sense at all,” she continued. “So, it only works for a moment in time when it’s convenient, and it’s not going on across the board.”
De Matteo has launched a streetwear brand that helps “promote free speech.” Matteo told Fox News Digital her brand, Ultrafree, was created after a series of events over the last three years.
WATCH: ‘Sopranos’ star Drea de Matteo slams cancel culture
“Let’s start with a lockdown, and then let’s start with mandates — not being able to work,” she said. “Heroes becoming zeros. I mean, you name it, every ideology that sort of got pushed forward.
“It seems like that’s been hijacked to a degree, like the whole idea of democracy. And I think a lot of the ideologies that sort of got pushed forward were never meant to free anybody.”
Drea de Matteo launched a streetwear brand “devoted to promoting free speech.” (Ultrafree)
Matteo launched her brand Ultrafree this month. (Ultrafree)
De Matteo’s brand Ultrafree. (Ultrafree)
De Matteo said the idea for her brand wasn’t inspired by politics, but the idea was to unite people despite their political beliefs.
“This is about you and me as people, as human beings,” she said. “I feel like politics should take a back seat at this point, and everybody needs to sort of come together and recognize there’s a war on the truth and on humanity and on what really unites us.
WATCH: Drea de Matteo says clothing brand is aimed to ‘make freedom cool again’
“There are more things that unite us than divide us.”
One of de Matteo’s biggest inspirations to start her streetwear brand was from her son due to his love for streetwear and overall curiosity about what is going on in the world.
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“My kids know a lot about what’s happening in the world, and they like to examine both sides,” she said.
De Matteo, who starred as Adriana La Cerva on “The Sopranos,” shares daughter Alabama Gypsyrose Jennings and son Waylon Albert “Blackjack” Jennings with musician Shooter Jennings.
Drea de Matteo is a mother of two. She’s pictured here in 2019 with her daughter Alabama and son Waylon. (Jim Spellman/FilmMagic)
Michael Imperioli as Christopher Moltisanti and Drea de Matteo as Adriana La Cerva starred in “The Sopranos.” (HBO)
“I mean, my kids teach me more about what’s happening in the world than I would know,” de Matteo explained. “I’ve always lived in kind of a bubble of just literature and fantasy land actors, and they go to school, and they bring all that information.
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“So cancel culture, it is real, and I probably learned not to fall into these sort of ideologies based on their criticism of them all. They hate it. They literally hate the woke culture. Even though these kids really are the most inclusive and open-minded.”
De Matteo explained what she hopes her fans will take away from her brand, Ultrafree.
“Let’s just get back to being kids again. You know, even as an adult, let’s be kids again, man. Let’s love each other. Let’s not see all these differences and see what we have in common,” the actress said.
De Matteo has recently become aware she has been “shadow-banned” on social media. According to the Oxford Dictionary, it means to “block (a user) from a social media site or online forum without their knowledge, typically by making their posts and comments no longer visible to other users.”
Drea de Matteo told Fox News Digital her social media accounts have been “shadow-banned” since she began promoting her streetwear brand. (Christopher Polk/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images via Getty Images)
She believes it’s a result of using her social media platforms to promote her brand and using words and hashtags such as “ultra,” “free” and “freedom.”
“I can’t believe we live in a day like this, but the more you hashtag the words ultra, free or say the word freedom – it’s not desirable,” de Matteo said.
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De Matteo launched Ultrafree earlier this month, and her streetwear brand includes clothing items, such as hats, T-shirts and sweatshirts. Her favorite item from the line is a hat that isn’t being sold just yet. It says, “ULTRA F—ING FREE.”
“Even if I’m not wearing a hat that day, I have to bring it with me everywhere I go. And everybody wants them. And we haven’t started selling them yet.”
De Matteo noted that everything is made by hand in a printing studio in her home.
“There will be a lot of limited-run items. And it’s such super streetwear. It’s all heavy prints and big bold. … You can see everything now [on the website], and it is about, you know, it’s about having a good time. It’s not about politics, but it is about making freedom cool again.
“I mean, that’s kind of what we say. Like, let’s make freedom cool again. Let’s make it rock and roll. What happened? Freedom is a four-letter word. This is a right.”