AceShowbiz -

Nick Cannon recently sparked racial controversy after he sported lighter skin to promote his new album, "White People Party Music". The rapper/TV host defended his action when he visited "Good Morning America" on Monday, March 31.

Cannon appeared on the show in a white suit and black tie paired with colorful shoes that matched his new cheetah-print hair coloring. He then told host George Stephanopoulos why he did the stunt even though he knew it would land him in troubles.

"Everybody's really sensitive when it comes to race and that's the reason I did it," he explained. "I knew it would spark some controversy, but I felt like it's a conversation that we needed because we all have differences we embrace. I talk about it in my standup all the time. It is not a new conversation, but a topic of sensationalism."

"It's even funny they're using this term 'whiteface,' " he continued. "Like, I don't really know what that is. I know blackface is a term that was created in 1869 to describe offensive minstrel shows. Whiteface, if you look it up and Google it, it's a ski slope up in upstate New York. I was doing a character impression. Blackface is about oppression."

Mariah Carey's other half then added that the "whiteface" stunt was just his way to "have fun." He said, "Yes we have issues with race in this country, this world, but it doesn't have to be with hatred. There's a big difference between humor and hatred."

Cannon's "White People Party Music" is coming out on Tuesday, April 1. "I'm an artist. I get the opportunity to create. Everything's going to come with consequences and a little heat, but if I can take the heat, let's ride," he said of his first album in more than a decade.