A friend and I walked into an empty bar. The bartender, a young woman, pleasantly greeted us & served us some drinks. Have you heard the new album yet? she asked, referring to the music playing from her phone. We gave her confused looks. Iggy Azalea! Its really good, you guys should listen to it. Even more confused looks. Oh what,you guys are hating on her just cuz shes a girl? You should be more open minded. My friend politely explained that he simply didnt care for her sound, but I just sipped my beer. I knew better than to say what was really on my mind. First, I could have asked this woman why she assumed I didnt like Iggy just because shes a girl. Did this woman automatically assume this because she figured that we, as two black males, are so hyper-masculine that the idea of a white girl rapper makes us uncomfortable & threatened? Very disappointing, especially since if this woman had actually talked to me rather than try to prove some type of point, she would have found that I am all about women empowering themselves and would love to hear even more female voices in hip hop. I could have simply told this woman that the reason I didnt listen to the new Iggy album had nothing to do with her talent or ability. I could have explained that the idea of an Australian white woman making rap music is fine. I would love to hear some hip hop about a white Australian girls life. But what I hear when I hear Iggy Azalea is an Australian white woman rapping how she thinks American southern Black people sound. What I see when I see her public persona is someone who loves Black music, uses Black dancers, but has no regard for the way Black people are treated in society. I could have explained that she is simply the face in front of a marketing scheme which includes someone who writes her lyrics, a producer who DJ Mustard claims used his signature sound, and Clear Channel who forces their media outlets to play her music & videos over 100 times a day. I could have explained that Iggys advocating for herself to be able to use the word nigga and rapping about being a slave master is offensive to me. I could of explained that her casting of a 12 year old black boy in a video for a song of hers called Pussy disturbs me. I could have explained that she shows utter disregard & disinterest for the history & traditions of hip hop culture. And I could have explained that the fact that artists such as herself are being considered the new standards of excellence in hip hop music and marketed to our youth as icons saddens me. I could have explained all that. But I really dont think that person would have wanted to hear it.
Posted on: Mon, 22 Dec 2014 19:47:58 +0000