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Azealia Banks has done it again. And by “it” I mean force other people to focus more on her behavior more than her talent. As we all know, Cardi B. achieved an amazing feat this week when her song “Bodak Yellow” reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 charts.
While the feat might not be all that surprising considering the song was and still is everywhere. But what made the moment so memorable was the fact that her song reaching that spot was the first time a female hip hop artist had achieved that level of success, without a male feature, since Lauryn Hill, 19 years earlier.
It was a moment. And everyone from Missy Elliot to Nicki Minaj acknowledged Cardi and the milestone this win represented for her and for women in Hip Hop.
But Banks was not among the celebrants. Instead, in a series of deleted tweets, captured by XXL Mag, she wrote:
“She’s only black when black want to include themselves in a success story. Because I thought she was going to be a Latina hottie and not a poor mans nicki. It went the other way now I’m over it.
Charlemagne and black men in hiphop should have gotten me, remy AND nicki a number one before they gave cardi or iggy one. But literally white guys buy black men away from black women and it’s soo cringe.
I’m sorry. Black industry men are too hype for this Latina girl I’ve never seen them jump like this for remy or nicki. Spinning this ‘for the culture’ story when they are simply letting white men at Atlantic buy them into hating their own women.”
Sad.
I did see some folk who believed that Banks had a point about Cardi being celebrated because she was a step away from Black. But that’s just not true. Taking Black men and their denial and issues with Black women out of the equation, just for a second, Cardi has never denied her Blackness. She talked about Black hair and Black looks during the most recent Olympic season when folks were still talking about the Black gymnasts’ hair and edges. She always notes that she’s Trinidadian and Dominican which really is Black on Black, with sprinkles of European in the mix…much like American Black folk. So this argument that she’s only Black to advance her career is just not going to work.
As far as Black DJs playing her song, it’s possible that they didn’t and don’t see her as Black. But also, I don’t know how any Hip Hop DJ could avoid playing “Bodak Yellow” and maintain his job. The song was too hot to be denied. The people wanted to hear it, race politics aside.
And for the last time, Black is not always the darkest of shades or thick, pronounced features. Being the original man, we come in a variety of ways, including Cardi B. We don’t need a DNA swab test to prove that.
But Cardi didn’t write a whole dissertation addressing Banks’ hateration. She shut all of her chatter down with one ten second video.
Boop.
If we learn anything from ladies and gentlemen, it’s to keep your receipts at the ready.
Check out the Twitter reaction to the back and forth between the two ladies on the following pages.
