Flighty Whiteys and White Male Vulturism

Is there anything more abhorrent than folks that profit off of Black ingenuity, cultural innovations and struggles without knowing and actually appreciating Black people? 

Without honoring the diaspora. 

Or even being familiar with it? 

This goes waaaay beyond Vlad. 

It’s been on my mind and spirit for a minute, actually. There are folks out there that legitimately don’t care to distinguish the difference between hip hop culture and Black people. 

It seems to them that Blackness is caricature, foolishness, circus and outlandish drama. But appealing because it’s dangerous. Except not really when you’re not actually Black right?

The thing is, we know that’s how they see us. But there are very little standards and practices put in place. 

Folks that think that growing up poor or having lived a life of crime makes you more Black. These folks are loudest. I had a White boy say to me the other day that he earned the right to use the N word. He said it with his chest too. Like...... he really meant that shit!

I had another one before that tell me that he grew up in the group home system and underprivileged so he’s entitled to it. 

I had another one say to me that he’s “blacker” than I am because he’s been more in the streets than me. Blacker than me? 

A girl with two African parents who speaks a tribal language and lives in South Bronx, been to Africa and has MELANIN. 

Has been held back because of it too. 

There’s no concept of monolith concerning Blackness in this mental space. It’s pure vulturalization. It’s willful ignorance. It’s one dimensional. It’s ignorant. It’s harmful! 

Vlad always looked like one of these Flighty Whiteys to me. 

People like this seldom have Black friends that don’t reaffirm stereotypes or have major clout. 

They’re swagger jacking off in one way or another. 

Reminds me a lot of the White men you see running shit in high roller nightlife. They don’t want Black faces in their establishment but need Black public figures around and hip hop bumping through the speakers to look cool. 

“They try us on like costumes” Jesse Williams said. 

Why does this always go so undetected? 

There’s such an emphasis placed on White girls that appropriate trends and so little on White men like Vlad! 

There’s a blinding subconscious objective for White acceptance that’s incepted within the minds of Black people. 

This keeps shit going. 

But I don’t give a fuck and I’ll tell you to your face. I’m with the shits. 

But the lines get blurry when we talk about hip hop and what’s going on within the industry. Hip hop is not definitive of Blackness and she’s very much for the streets right now.
Hip hop has become heavily commercialized and has turned a lot of Black people into millionaires and business men. But it’s turned quicker wealth for the White folks behind the scenes. Less affected by the stress and traumas, more business wired gives them that exploitative reign.
But does it really make sense to complain about it if there seems to be so much vested in these alliances? And buffoonery so rampant?
I don’t know. Black people need to be accountable for how they fit into this mess.

Its time to wake up.

Butthurt Blackness

He mad at ya’ll.  Ya’ll really got to him! 

I love the message of the video. Black potential, excellence and success. Who can argue with that. Nobody. 

And also.....Jay Z and Pharrel needed to remind ya’ll the importance of entrepreneurship in the Black community to deflect a little from their lack of physical involvement in the movement. 

I mean.... that’s what I got from the track. 

But they care! The chorus is “Black man” chanting a zillion times. Because if you can’t hold the sign saying it in front of the police, why not just record the message in a state of the art home studio over beaucoup thousands of dollars worth of production? 

I’m kidding...... but seriously. 

I know where Jay Z is at and I’m at peace with it. I was conflicted at first but the visibility of an influential Black capitalist of this magnitude is needed in America. It’s about time.

I have come to the understanding that there is no way America would afford him his next phase of upward mobility and wealth without some proper hazing from the good ole boys of America. 

You can’t just have it all. He know this—as his pockets continue to grow more and more he is simultaneously condemned to an eternal balancing act. 

He can’t get too “in the streets” and shit because of the good ole boys! But his ass is still Black and he’s a capitalist not a coon so to a large extent, his heart is still with the community. 

He needs to appease The Blacks. So here ya’ll go. You happy? Shit. Each side wanting more of him for its own vindication and proliferation. 

Ima just let this man exist in the grey for me. He is what he is and there’s much to learn from it.

And as for the song Jay Z maintains his genius level bars in that lone rap verse. The song is aiight and I’m cool with that too. It progressively starts sounding better and affirmed. Neither of them have shit to prove and it shows. It grows on you. 

Pharrell falsetto ain’t what it used to be. 

And what’s really good with those Eisenhower samples he’s been throwing over his latest tracks? 

It’s a White man speaking like he’s delivering a speech. There’s some motif continuity to it but I dont know what it is. I’m not sure many others do either. I know I heard it on the NERD and Rihanna track Lemon and on Ariana Grande The Light is Coming track. 

I wonder how Pharrel Williams “New American” identity ties into all this. “New Americans” are sort of a diet version of conservative Black “free thinkers”. 

Raven Symone and a few others talked about it. They’ve been quiet as of late but I wonder where Pharrell is at with it. 

There’s a butthurt vulnerability and vibe to this track because Jay Z comes for the social media platforms in his bars. It’s very capitalist. Do for yourself self starting but also “stop waiting for folks to throw you a bone” he raps. hmmmm. That gave me some pause. It sounds like a reinvention. A little conservative? I’m intrigued. 

I  truly love seeing the times referenced like this. Jay Z is of Gen X and didnt have to worry about much of social media like this for the majority of his career, now that he’s older and having to deal with it, I truly wonder how he’s dealing with it. 

Hopefully he’ll continue to channel it artistically and more butthurt brilliance will come of it. 

Check your lipstick before you come and talk to us

I grew up in NYC and went to a predominantly LatinX H.S.  in downtown Manhattan. I live in The Bronx and had a lot of Latin (Dominican in particular) friends over the years. NYC is a showbiz town so I grew up with a lot of kids that were into theater and drama. Albeit successful, LatinX kids that I heard about like 20 years ago,  doing indie projects are still not where I’d expect them to be in a Hollywood. Victor Razuk is someone who’s name I’ve been hearing that long, who’s just now breaking into more mainstream roles. Concurrently you have the likes of Timothee Chamalet who’s much younger but a city kid nonetheless who attended my elementary school that shot out from the gate! It’s hard not to notice these things. The LatinX community is underrepresented in Hollywood and doesnt have as solid of a community that drives change. The roles aren’t there and neither is the level of advocacy. I understand that frustration. 

But this sour response given by Dascha Polanco and John Leguizamo to a joyous historic of Black excellence doesn’t sit well with me. 

Even though Dascha is nowapologizing— I believe this issue is being brought up because this is how the majority of LatinX Hollywood and even much of the community at large feels. It’s been brimming beneath the surface for a minute now. That’s kind of the problem.
The shade of lipstick hasn’t been checked. Gina Rodriguez voiced this a couple years back after Black Panther’s success and she got dragged! So, let me hold up a mirror because we are back here again! 

I believe that the colorist hierarchy within the Latino community has skewed a general perception of where they stand in America. I’m sorry if that sounds harsh but that’s the only way I know how to put. When we talk about leveraging power in a country with generations of systemic racism these observations need to be made. 

It’s interesting because hip hop and the baller world readily embraces Latin women but White America and LatinX representation in politics and old institutions and spaces of power, function differently. 

From the outside looking in the LatinX communities in America are fractured. They function on their own social hierarchy based on skin tone and class. You have a huge portion of the Latino population that supports the Trump administration inspite of his very flagrant disrespect and policy choices towards the community. 

Latino men fall below Black women on the national pay scale. There is disunity and anti Blackness that carries forth on top of the already racist systems. 

Becayse of the long-standing othering that the Latin community has created to approximate whiteness they are left somewhat on an island. Am I being unfair in pointing this out? 

African Americans built America and everything they have has been long earned. The work towards equality is a tough, ongoing devastating struggle and journey that many people lost their lives for. It’s freedom as a whole that was the fight. Expressing disappointment at not being right on par in this extremely racist country speaks to their own beliefs— not necessarily America’s! 

This was not an appropriate reaction to this historic Emmy moment. It was rather disappointing and ineffective. All it does is create more division. You can come together to fortify your community without this.

I hope moving forward...... at the very least more tact will be employed. 

we want everyone to win and be happy for our wins. Bridging together communities and people of color in Hollywood should be more of the general goal.

What are your thoughts?

Demon Sex finds its way to the WH

Bruh! When I tell you that this Nigerian doctor and her demon sex theories being linked to Trumpland took me the F out!!! I was watching Don Lemon talk about it and the look on his face! How incredulous and blown away he was by the fuckery of it all!  

I had a friend who was a born again Christian from Kenya who would tell me stuff like this as well. Everytime she talked about God it was a scary warning. Aliens and implants etc. She even travelled to to Nigeria to see this “prophet” dude and came back with this holy water source! She was super into it. I believed because she believed and in turn it sorta worked. I think that’s how it all more or less works. 

I’ve always been particularly open to sleep theories because I’ve had night terrors, nightmares and sleep paralysis for a good portion of my life. I write about it openly in my book. I eventually began to attribute it to anxiety and not facing shit that needed to be faced. I did the necessary healing and shadow work to eliminate these issues and started looking at my dreams as updates on my psyche and subconscious. 

But I’ve definitely heard of this incubus and succubus thing. I’ve heard it all. If you read my book there’s a chapter about my cousin’s schizophrenia diagnosis and the shaman woman who treated him. Her theories sounded crazy but she helped him. It was substantiated by plant medicine though. If you know me you know I love my sacred plant baths and cleansing. Although this is all very different, I never actually expected this to seap into Western consciousness from the WH. So weird. That’s the part that I probably find most hilarious about it all. This woman now having this insanely large platform is interesting to me. What’s next? I’m curious. We are definitely heading somewhere….. maybe a demon seance?

I always believed that blaming spirits for everything was just a messed up way Africans and fundamentalist folk avoid accountability for the real traumas and demons that THEY perpetuate and create onto society and their children. Mental health is substituted by spiritual attacks. Nothing gets addressed. 

As a child of an African family—that has always been one of my biggest issues with the community. 

Demons exist as a binary. 

Psychological as well as spiritual. 

Anyway, maybe there’s an answer for us in there with Covid somewhere. 

At the very least I do believe our universal collective spirit is definitely in need of healing. Covid is a sign of that. America being behind is even more indication.

And if we really want to get into it maybe the WH and this demon connection isn’t as far fetched as people might think. The soulless agenda of this administration and the proliferation of this white supremacist agenda and the desperate attempts at self preservation mirrors though here. The world is changing and all the demonic sperm that we allowed to run rampant for centuries now won’t save society from progressing forward.

Demons shooting blanks these days.

COVID’s Nevuary movie release limbo. Hell for Cinema Escapists.

I was really looking forward to Tenet. One of the standout things about this pandemic for me is that it took my movie theater experience away. Movies are not just an escape for me but also a way of re-engineering some creative inspo. I am a fully immersed and emotional viewer. A good film can impact me very deeply and have some serious long term effects. I typically like to go alone and find that other people’s insight and comments throw me off from the solitary realizations I need to have. 

Christopher Nolan’s movies are worldwide events and not to be trifled with. I’m not an extreme super fan of the Super hero stuff like the rest of them—but Inception is one of my favorite movies and Tenet gave me that tease. 

Tenet stars John David Washington (Denzel Washington’s hot thespian offspring) alongside Robert Pattinson, Michael Caine and some noteworthy others. I actually like Robert Pattinson as a grown actor and removed from the vampires and all that mess. 

From the trailer Tenet looked stylish, cerebral, action packed and centered around John David Washington and bad guys and time travel type shit. Listen, I don’t exactly know what the plot it is. I mean....... do you? I reckon that mystery is what Nolan was gunning for. Plus, it’s a Black action star in a mega budget film. Will Smith is the only Black man I’ve ever seen occupy this space! So we good just on the strength of that!

The teaser trailer was released pre COVID and had everyone buzzing and ready. We were told July. At the time we all believed that. Even when COVID later showed up, we still believed that the heavens would atleast grant us this square. We had been through enough and were under the false notion that somehow Summer time would come around and this crazy pandemic would throw in the towel. But No. Our country is still divided and at odds about how to even manage this health crises and theaters worldwide would that were open would have to social distance. 

That leads us to the greatest gag of them all............ that over the top budget! The studios spent an estimated 200M+ on this movie and require 800M to break even altogether. Given the hype and the energy they put in I figure that would be cake to recoup. Afterall everybody and they mama was fixin to go see this. 

Then, next I heard August. That immediately seemed kinda bold to me! My first thought was, maybe ya’ll need to talk to a few mayors and governors before you start deciding shit like this. 

Before you knew it, shit got too real and they basically told us that it would come out eventually. Warner Bros has taken the film off their release calendar, with no confirmed date, though studio chair Toby Emmerich says a date will be announced “imminently”. I still don’t know how they are going to do that. If push comes to shove it will have to go the Home Video route so it won’t miss out on that summer release window. 

But even worse than this was the Candyman remake delay! The orginal is a favorite of mine and I have long since decided that if I was to be reincarnated as a horror movie villain of my choice, it would be Candyman. They are still at September for that release. Fingers are crossed! I could actually see a September Home Video still being a cool worthwhile experience for that movie. 

All this leads me to some new troubling thoughts. Are we ever going to get the fucking movies back? I feel like even if we were to enter the clear at some point, my governor Andrew Cuomo would do some extra due diligence so we aren’t at risk of looking like Florida. Cuomo dont play that and I’m very grateful that he doesn’t. 

Is COVID going to impact movie budgets going forth? Are directors going to defer to shoe string budgets now to make sure conundrums like this don’t happen again? We see Netflix with crazy budgets for home viewing but there’s more assurance with those gambles. 

I lost something special and important to me by not having that movie theater outlet. 

And it hurts. 

Made and ready

As a lot of people are now taking it upon themselves to unlearn and uncondition their minds of racist systems, it’s also important to deep dive into the other less publicized disturbing nuances of the Black experience. 

Understanding the Black man through the eyes of the media’s exploitation and fetishization is one. The history behind it all. There’s a whole lot to unlearn. 

Hung by Scott Paulson Bryant is one of my favorite books. It came out years ago. A double entendre for being well hung and being hung from trees. The book tackles the issue of Black Mens dick size and how society and media has historically equated that to their worth. The down side. It more or less deals with race through this particular issue. It explores everything from Emmitt Till to the film Mandingo.

Kanye’s campaign meltdown kind of brought me back to this book, more particularly how I am side eyeing The Kardashian’s. I have been for years, but now that the chips are down for Mr. West I’m brought to a place of really trying to unpack their thinking and mentality as it pertains to Black men. More than I’ve ever cared to. It always seemed odd but I never really thought as much about it until yesterday.
A majority of people were commenting that Kanye didn’t have any friends. Where are his friends folks kept asking. Which is, again odd because he married into a huge and very public family. None of who’s members were present during his huge and very public meltdown. 

Hung came to mind for me. There’s a clearly a pattern here with these women. 

But beyond the pattern, for me there’s a realization.  

You start to realize that in these elite circles of Black fishers and LA/worldwide baller culture there is very little concept of Black men as...... actual men! Humans outside of fetish, tropes and stereotyped common niggatries. Outside of popularity, high visibility and success. 

 It’s this specific type of Black man that validates something within these women though. This is all they want. You’ll never catch these types with a suited up low profile academic or Black tech business man type. It’s the most egregious depiction of Black American male star. I always found this so peculiar. Peculiar and disingenuous. I don’t mean to place blame here, perhaps it’s an even exchange.

But as one of my friends stated quite simply “they don’t want black men, they want niggas.”

But the question is, can they even handle these niggas? Because when I see how The Kardashian’s have handled this Kanye drama over the years—how detached and ill equipped they come across I come back to this understanding. 

A lot of these women didn’t grow up with Black men and probably didn’t know many Black boys. Black boyhood and community issues are altogether completely lost on them. 

They simply just show up years later packaged as trophies when these men are already made and ready! Seemingly...... ready. 

They then have no idea what to do when that inner black boy shows up and comes knocking with all his traumas and unresolved issues. How to quiet him down. And I’m not saying anyone else does or should. Black women have carried the burden of being the community’s mules for far too long. Being called bitter for even pointing out some of these discrepancies. 

But it’s uncomfortable to watch. The disconnection becomes very clear. 

It’s crystal clear to me. 

It’s sad and unsettling. 

Nobody whopped this niggas ass yet?

How nobody whopped this niggas ass yet is completely lost on me. I say that with the utmost sensitivity.

One thing I’m noticing as a pattern is everytime I read a Kanye headline I  unconsciously follow it up with a deep sigh. I know I’m certainly not the only one. I imagine that amounts to millions of deep sighs that go into sustaining this man. Kanye requires an astounding amount of goddamn energy and attention from people to sustain himself. If you’ve ever dealt with narcissists— you’ll notice the common thread is that they all do. 

Kanye also suffers from bipolar disorder. I’m not discounting any of that when I recommend this ass whopping. Primarily because he’s shared his mental health challenges. Secondarily because Im a fan of his music and persona. I too, am a June 8th out the box gemini individual. I’m no stranger to being misunderstood.

I grant him a lot of grace and I try to understand him as much as possible. But I’m also not going to dismiss that he’s still a Black man in America and knows the climate we are in. Period. Running for president may be the crazy but being a Black man in America is a constant. Kanye knows what the fuck is going on. He’s been known. He’s made his choices in life accordingly to the man he wants to be and his definition of success. 

He’s a Black man in America that most deem is so unique and above the fray— his talent, his catalogue and his enterprise! But lots of us can’t help but notice this very real and glaring OJ template that follows men like him around like a dark cloud. 

Black man makes it big, disconnects from the community, loses his grounding, floats the fuck off and then eventually lands back on that much needed ground with a loud resounding thud! 

 Kalief Browder was the face that popped into my head as I watched Kanye and I saw all the sympathy pouring in after the emotional portion of his campaign speech. Kalief Browder and the thought of all the silent cries of millions of other black men and women. That pain there. Made it really hard for me to match the public amount of sympathy. Made it hard for me to look at this billionaire nigga who married Kim Kardashian, lost his grounding and decided to shit on Harriet Tubman during his campaign speech—an instrumental black American deity that put everything on the line to Free. Black. People. How he was rewriting the narrative. So extreme that I don’t think I ever even heard the most racist of conservatives even go there. Speak her name to delegitimize. Blasphemy. Knowing that shitting on Harriet Tubman would be the cornerstone of more of his white nationalist support. Knowing that he walked into that room planning to say that and had probably repeated it to dozens of others before. 

Watching this nigga cry about Pro Life while the lives I was currently concerned with were already born and Black. That’s where the majority of Black America’s tears were during these times. None of that directly addressed by Kanye. This was just a lot of confusion. Kanye West wants to be president. Again, a billionaire nigga, who’s married to Kim Kardashian, lost his grounding and is now fighting for his name to be on a ballot box to thwart votes for the most important election of my lifetime! I can’t get there guys……

Thought a little deeper of all these people that would find sympathy for this billionaire nigga yet remain indifferent towards black men, women and children dealing with a spectrum of this pain in our communities at this moment. I thought about his environment and how many times he probably ranted off into madness in front of all these white folks and family members, how they probably just nodded and ignored everything. Giving him wings to fly. 

I immediately wanted to sage my house, take some plant baths and ward off any potential malevolent spirits and whatnot. I wanted to throw Kanye in that bath too! 

Dunk his head in the waters and then send him off to get his ass whopped. 

Who Gets to be angry?

I just finished watching a piece from The Take on the Angry Young Man trope and how society and film has distorted what was once noble into license for white male rage to run amuck. It inspired some thought. It coincided perfectly with something I’ve also recently noticed, which are white males actually searching for shit to be angry at. That’s another story. 

They brought up the Joker movie and it’s Alt Right following and how it’s just a movie about White male rage. I reference the Joker character a lot because he is more than just a comic book character. There’s a belief system around The Joker. I always bring up the The Joker when I talk about our mass cultural idol worship. I referenced The Joker in my Beyonce piece. People believe in it and follow it —that’s what makes it real and as powerful as any deity. We as a collective institute our deities. Whether we’re talking The Joker or Jesus. We give power to what we want and we grant grace to what we want as well. 

There are millions of dudes in America running around and screaming on some joker shit. Half of them ain’t really got shit to be mad at. Just screaming because they think it’s fucking cool. One of my biggest issues with this recent iteration of the Joker was when you take him out of the comic book realm and place him into the modern world and in front of an audience—there’s an underbelly that is reflective of some problematic things. 

For me specifically, the way people responded to him bothered me. All this sympathy. Everytime I brought it up, folks kept telling me it’s more universal and transcends race. But.... society’s response to the pain and disenfranchisement of others (IRL) seldom transcends race though. 

Someone who looks like me with that same experience in real life doesn’t get to spazz out like that and become a hero. Not even in a damn movie. Shit. Look how they did Killmonger. People still asking Spike Lee why  Mookie threw the garbage can into the pizzeria— even though his friend was murdered! And those folks were dead ass wrong. 

Stupid Black Girl is angry. Some of the passages in my book are flat out black out rants. I read them back like..... damn. But it comes from a deep place. There’s shit that I’ve experienced that I will never live down. The levels I have been TRIED out here in these America streets. Whew! 

But I can’t actually go postal beyond those pages. It’s funny though because when I have yet to read a description or summary about my book that uses the word “anger” directly. I wouldnt mind it.
It always feels great being able to release but what if I wasn’t a writer? What if I was able to make it all eloquent and didactic? What if there wasn’t a greater message I searched to find behind it all so folks would give a fuck? 

I’d be in a whole lot of shit. I’d be a lot less not okay. 

Anger is a natural response to being suppressed. It’s a God given right dammit.

So you decide.

WWW.STUPIDBLACKGIRL.COM

Know your stakes……. crosses and potatoes

Ima keep it short! 

I grew up on Nick Cannon, I like his personality and have always had a great deal of admiration for his business acumen and the level of success he’s created for himself. He seems focused as well as easy going and positive. He’s tapped into the culture and has the potential to really be around forever. 

But there’s another part of his persona that deals heavily with shit that I find questionable. I am invested in Black awareness and the proliferation of knowledge and consciousness— but his take on it has always been sort of  half baked. He’ll rant about politics for an hour and then conclude by telling folks that he doesn’t vote and votes don’t count. I couldn’t rock with a lot of it. 

I didn’t think it was anti Semitism that was going to get Nick into a world of shit but I knew it was going to be something. I’ve tuned into his esoteric outlet before and listened to him haul off into some non sensical rants and then throw a big sloppy pro blackness sticker on it. Sometimes he made some points and sometimes he didn’t. Some of the rhetoric was on par with the Black Israelites that would stand in the streets of New York raging and ranting! I didn’t buy it from them so why would I be buying it from Nick? 

He recently gave me further pause when he created that beef with Eminem and then tried to stick Black Women on him to finish his fight by finding an ancient Eminem track and playing a line of at as a chorus. It didn’t end up paying off. 

Those Black Israelites standing on the corner  had nothing to lose but Nick does. He has a longstanding relationship with Viacom. I need to understand how he thought extending his platform off to some random noteps with fake history would serve him? 

The Jewish community doesn’t fuck around. Trafficking conspiracy theories constitutes as anti Semitic to folks that don’t play about who they are as a people and where they come from. It’s that simple and it was grounds for termination. 

Nick’s G rated, Nickelodeon roots may be the reason he felt so compelled to speak out these past few years, it also might be a very real reaction to the fuckery and racism he’s seen and experienced over the span of his Hollywood career. Why not just address that directly though? Because he knew what was at stake. In this instance he didn’t. I wonder about that. He allowed himself to explore thoughts and ideologies that were offensive to a group of people— but he’s subject to contracts and stipulations. AKA he got shit to lose. 

Im sure this has taught Nick that he needs to be more mindful of his space and platforms. He also needs to take it upon himself to be informed and knowledgeable, all around. 

Know your stakes! 

Beyoncé’s Wheel Of Fortune Moment

Beyonce realeased her Black Parade single on Juneteenth. I loved it. I played it over a couple of times and thought it was an empowering anthem about black glory. I appreciated it and needed it, especially at a time like this! 

I appreciate Beyonce as a whole and have loved her music since Destiny’s child. I am not however a Stan. I Stan her greatness and insane work ethic. But I don’t love any celebrity to the point of losing my bearings, reason or my sense of objectivity. I keep it as fair as I possibly can. Sure, I’ve had debates with people about Beyonce. But that usually happens when folks say shit like, “she has no talent” or just seem to hate her without any real cause. I find it suspicious. As a black woman, it gives me questions. 

But after the snippet of her Black Is King movie I noticed instant backlash. There were many claims of her Pan Africanist blackness being performative. That her visuals were tone deaf and perpetuated unrealistic stereotypes about Africa. That she was a greedy capitalist using blackness for profit. That last one. Ouch. I’m sure she felt that one because even Mama Knowles felt compelled to step forward with her statements backing up her daughter. I was struck by all this because of the intensity. Shit. This was a lot. I think I even remember when they were casting for this. It was top secret but a friend of mine forwarded me to a casting director who was searching for Africans for a project for a major unnamed artist. The casting director contacted me and I submitted through my IG. I didn’t think my IG handle would help in selling me though. I didnt think my New Yorkness would help either and it didn’t. I think I knew what they had in mind. I also remember the casting director being pressed looking for African elders 50+. Im starting to think this may be the project it was for. Now I’m super curious about seeing it.

I’m a creature of duality. It’s not only about seeing both sides of a situation for me. It’s about seeing what’s in front of me as well as the bigger picture as a whole and then making sense of it. Sense as it relates to my insight and path that the universe has chosen for me to walk thus far. How I put my own pieces together for myself. 

Based on this I feel like Beyonce is now having her “Wheel of fortune moment. “Wheel of fortune moment” is a term I created based on a tarot card. I don’t play tarot so this isn’t any type of psychic card reading insight. The tarot contains a deck of 78 cards and each of them symbolize situations, experiences, people, acts of nature etc that occur in human experience. This has always fascinated me more than the actual outcome of when people draw the cards to determine fate. They are like mini stories. 

The Wheel of Fortune card is a card about understanding the ebbs and flows of life as a constant change. Taking the bitter with the sweet. It’s very much a reversal of fortune card when it’s pulled. A dramatic interpretation would be from winning the going from rich to poor or poor to rich. Beyonce will always be rich and famous, she acquired and earned that. As it relates to Beyonce I thought of it as a reckoning. Her 2020 moment. Because what I started to see with this reaction of her work and music is that the pendulum has swung. But I saw the duality of it. First, A reversal in her standing in the black community and then a standing on her pedestal. Because somethings happening. Let’s look at both. 

Beyonce has a remarkable career. She’s been performing and dominating since she was a child. Constantly winning and leaving folks in awe at the top of her game. Always. She’s greatness. She’s also had a very charmed existence. She came from an upper middle class family, her family invested a lot into her career and talent because they believed in her. That’s major. That belief that her family had in her transferred over into the belief that millions of people worldwide had in her too. 

This level of belief is unprecedented and rare. Her fans look at her like a diety. Because simply put, belief is what makes people into dieties and even religious figures. Whether we are talking about Jesus or The Joker. Just look at actors that play Jesus or The Joker. It becomes more than just a role, they notice coincidences, transcendence, fate, death. It soul stirring. That’s because they are not playing regular characters. The point I’m trying to make by this is— It’s the legions of folks that back things up through belief that make it what it is. It’s the masses that create it and how the perceived deities carry it along. I’ve always been so very fascinated by this—but moreso by the mind of the person being worshipped. How could they not start to believe it themselves? 

I don’t actually believe Beyonce thinks of herself as a human being. Who am I to say whether she is or isn’t, but I definitely don’t believe she does. This is something that I have thought for a long time. 

It started when I was in my teens. I had a bunch of older friends that were paparazzi. They ranged from 17 to into their 20s. I called them “the paparazzi kids”. 

They would track and hound celebrities in the city for photographs and autographs to sell. I hung around them because I was a teeny bopper in NYC and loved the idea of seeing my favs and maybe getting a picture. I remember one day one of the few black guys in the mix, that I used to see around often was telling us about an encounter he had with Beyonce. This was quite awhile ago in the Destiny’s Child days. He was waiting outside the hotel with the rest of the paparazzi for them. He said something very out of pocket, vulgar and misogynistic to Beyonce and the group at one point. He wasnt the friendliest kind of guy, very into the paparazzi game. He was very New York and didn’t give a fuck—all of this offset by a huge afro on his head too. After he came at her, Beyonce grabbed his hand and started praying over him. Biblical forgiveness stuff. I remember finding that very interesting but also odd. Very gracious and anointing of her. Very “forgive them father for they know not what they do” of her. 

Of course this was before she was who she is now. But I always remembered that and always thought she carried this kind of energy. Energy of a divine woman who floats above. Not a tacky my shit don’t stink type of proving yourself to the world energy. She had her talent, millions of believers and a charmed existence. She didn’t need to do that. Ever. Again, I think a lot of it had to do with the fact that she didn’t think of herself as human. So I always wondered about that. When the human part would occur, if ever. Would Beyonce ever have a moment of not floating above? Not having her Queendom and divinity as a shield from the world? Is this what’s going on now? Is this what Mama Knowles is protecting her from? Her fans? Is this her 2020 reckoning? I think it really might be.

The attacks and criticism of her lately have less to do with her quality of  music and visuals, they actually have more to do with her as a person. Who she is and what she represents.  This is what is most concerning about it. A lot of what is being said are people challenging her actual intentions for the cause.  In spite of all the money and charitable contributions. She’s now being painted as someone who appropriates black and African culture for gain. I find it a very strange thing to question about somebody— at this point. She’s been around for two decades now. She’s used Southern and African influences in her music in the past? She’s a proud black woman and like many of us she’s evolving and growing..... right?

Is it her status as Beyonce NOW that we have a problem with? Is it a threat?

This brings me to my second point. The wheel of fortune as it pertains to success in the black community. I read an interesting comment that somebody wrote today in reference to the current Beyonce criticism. He asked, why is it that black people always decide to come for, attack and bring down black public figures after they become mega wealthy and successful? It seems we stop rooting for them, he said. I don’t know the answer to that but that doesn’t mean there isn’t any merit to that observation. I think the obvious answer would be that there is a disconnection that occurs. People feel disconnected to her. The irony is that usually this occurs when a black public figure gets white washed. This time it’s occurring while she’s boldly displaying and showcasing beautiful black diasporic art and affirmations. I’m really perplexed by it because I just assumed this is what we want. But folks think she’s being performative. But...... isn’t she a performer? An artist here to make art? It’s just very odd. It sort of seems like the problem is not what people are saying it is. I don’t think her love of blackness is fake. If it counts for anything I remember a few years ago being out one night at a VMA after party with a friend of mine, who’s a gorgeous Sudanese model. Beyonce and Jay Z walked in out of nowhere. Beyonce began staring at my friend completely entranced and even smiled at her and sort of greeted her. Granted, my friend had that effect on people— but this was Beyonce we’re talking about. Beyonce might just love her Africans and her Africana, for real.

I consider myself a very wordy person. But I swear I had a hard time understanding what the fuck people were saying in their rants about Beyoncé’s movie preview. What I understood even less was how folks were so enraged by a one minute clip. 

My initial consensus was that perhaps an undercurrent of mass toxicity is sweeping through since we are dealing with a lot of trauma  as a community right now and the easiest target is somebody like Beyonce. A mega wealthy black entertainer who is grounded in two worlds. The black world royalty and the American super dream. She is no longer human. But not in the divine sense. They are making it insidious. But what about seeing her as human? Are we incapable now because she doesn’t actually get any human treatment. But maybe it’s not all us. 

Beyonce  and Jay Z floated into The Golden Globes late for the ceremony because they could and they stood seated when a couple major award winners went up to speak—because they could It’s asserting power. That’s what powerful people do. Something about that seemed like the wrong move to make. I can’t quite put it into words though....

Beyonce and Jay Z are the first of their kind. So we don’t really know if all this is a part of a black success life cycle and if black folks are indeed crabs in a barrel but its apparent to me that Beyonce might have to touchdown a little bit. 

We will gain a clarifier soon enough. 

WWW.STUPIDBLACKGIRL.COM

Beyond The Last Dance

We live in a society that historically set out to undermine and devalue black accomplishments as much as possible in order to uphold a system of white supremacy. What has always seemed even more dangerous than that was that this society set out to create a narrative that minimized black intellect and mind power as a whole. It even went as far as using pseudoscience and eugenics to further this agenda—which has long since been debunked. But what is intelligence...... exactly? And what ways does society have it wrong when it comes to black folks in America? Let’s probe. 

These thoughts first began to cross my mind in my first semester at college.  I came upon the theory of multiple intelligences in a book entitled Life Studies. Howard Gardner introduced his theory in Frames of Mind: Multiple Intelligences (Gardner, 1983). His theory examines the idea that intelligence does not exist as a singular general ability, but as several different sensory modes. His premise was that traditional IQ testing didn’t take into account that different people learn in different ways. Interesting enough, Gardner identified as many as eight different strengths most people utilize to learn and those include, but are not limited to: Logical-mathematical, musical-rhythmic, visual-spatial, verbal-linguistic, bodily- kinesthetic, interpersonal, intrapersonal, and naturalistic. It was a breakthrough that broke down barriers in our perception of what truly constitutes intelligence, acknowledging the subject is vast and multidimensional. It considers more than test scores, vocabulary, degrees, computations, or quotes. The mode that I found the most fascinating was bodily-kinesthetic intelligence. Gardner stated some people learn better through movement, like participating in sports, dance, or other rhythmic movement. It’s setting a clear goal through physical action and training the body to respond to physical cues. I am not particularly athletic in any way shape or form, but find this fascinating. The traditional perception of people with athletic or physical prowess does not often include being intelligent.

The topic came up one night. I was going to a party with my friend and a couple of her boys came by to pick us up. They were pretentious, but I found one of them particularly irritating. He was talking about his experience in school and the athletes on the football team. He mocked them by calling them ‘run and jump monkeys’. I was alarmed and immediately put off. Not only by his harshness and bold insensitivity, but that it was being said by one young black man about other young black men. Why were we as black people falling for the okie doke? Calling each other monkeys and assuming that football was a game that anyone could play sounded like some antiquated shit. Not to mention he sounded like a massive hater.  I took it all in and just simply asked him why he felt the need to degrade them. His response, “Anybody can play football,” and tried to defend the point by saying the sport can be mastered through practice. In turn, I offered some facts I learned from Gardner’s theory. Football, or any other sport, requires more than just running after a ball. There’s strategy, calculation, and knowing and understanding how to use your body while having the grace and ability to do so to play well or win. The mind is constantly at work, always thinking while the body is in motion. Having mastery over this is, in fact, a singular intelligence and should be treated and respected as such. I used Michael Jackson as an example. His dance innovations, performance skills, and the legendary moonwalk can all be attributed to kinesthetic intelligence. 

 I’ll never understand why most athletes are are reduced to ‘run and jump monkeys’ while MJ is heralded as a genius—a fact I am in no way disputing. I felt his comments unfair and a by-product of conditioning, racism, and an attempt to undermine the greatness of urban youth, since a majority of football players are black. A lot of these athletes are not scholarly, yet are successful solely based on their athletic abilities.

Floyd Mayweather, Mike Tyson and many other athletes were publicly mocked and regarded as ignorant men because of their obvious lack of education coupled with their socioeconomic backgrounds. Tyson’s lisp itself has been a running joke for decades in many comedy sketches that were created to depict him as a moron. 50 Cent once challenged Floyd Mayweather to read a page from a Harry Potter book in exchange for a charitable donation. Most people just thought it was funny, but it was right on par with how much of the world saw these men. 

Get them in the ring and their minds work like Einstein’s. Their intellect cannot be expressed verbally, but it’s certainly evident in their skillful strategy used to beat their opponents. It’s damn sure evident in the gains! 

 It’s a comprehension of the sport that naturally surpasses anything that can just be taught or practiced through repetition, yet society still has difficulty labeling men like these geniuses. 

People enjoy sports and respect the pursuit of a winning season, but most don’t respect athletics as much as mathematics, literature, or science. Pursuits in those fields are encouraged and adulated. 

The Last Dance documentary worked at further triggering this for me. Michael Jordan is probably one of the few athletes that I have heard referred to as a genius. He set an undeniable standard on and off the court. He flew through the air and, to many, his skill seemed to break the laws of physics. It was magic. He used his obvious athletic prowess and his business acumen to create a marketing empire, breaking the stereotype of the dumb jock. The Last Dance documentary definitely took us there. It was made to take us there! But we can just as easily apply this template to other athletes as well. Or athlete power as a whole. 

 Science, literature, and mathematics aren’t entertainment and are standard by which we gauge education. It is great that Gardner set the standard revolutionizing what teachers do in their classroom.  Today, many teachers build in exercises that touch on each intelligence module. It’s important that we acknowledge not everyone learns from sitting and reading. While the standard subjects are the foundation of every developed industrial and civilized nation it important to remember kinesthetic intelligence built America through the 400 years of free labor and 200 pounds of cotton picked daily in the blazing sun. I make mention of this in my book, in my Lightworker essay. Hands, muscles, bodies, and movement. The reason why many black people are stronger in all the kinesthetic arenas is probably attributed to the fact that we had to use our bodies more. Makes sense to me. 

It’s forced us to take advantage of the many years we were forced into slavery here or being and building in Africa. Succeeding in spite of it all while laughing all the way to the bank. 

I think it’s important to make note of the value of this modality as well while we are out here praising thought leaders. I think it’s important that we open our minds and call it what it is and stand by it. 

Changing the game altogether and seeing how in these times athletes power can be magnified into social change! Way past the sport. Colin Kaepernick strategically created an entire play in itself OUTSIDE of the field. One of the greatest plays ever! An open play that can be duplicated in many ways for countless wins in the future. 

WWW.STUPIDBLACKGIRL.COM

August X Oedipus

August X Oedipus. Jada X Jacosta. Oedipus Rex was a tragic mythological king figure that was fated to marry his mother and kill his father. Oedipus eventually gauged his eyes out in the end. 

In psychology, the Oedipus complex, introduced by Sigmund Freud is a condition in which a male child develops sexual desire for the parent of the opposite sex. This is all sort of what came to mind yesterday (for most of us) as I watched August Alsina talk to Angela Yee about his affair with Jada Pinkett. I figured as much. Its an open secret how The Smiths get down. 

August is a radiant and wounded artist— in my mind it made sense that Jada would feel an attraction to that. She’s obviously very fueled by the act of fixing people and spewing out constant gems and wisdom. 

She has a whole talk show. Also..... there are people like that. It’s a thing. I’m a sucker for it, personally. Feed me. Fix me. 

It’s the maternal thing that I find so very intriguing when it’s all tied together. Fetishistic. Hard to compromise and maybe a little...... weird? But I’m game to deep dive into it. 

In an older clip, Jada described her family taking August in because he was in dire need of “healing”. 

 In retrospect, it feels like she wanted to heal him as much or maybe even more than she let on. There’s obviously a self serving layer to this altruism based on the “life partnership” level that she and Will have elevated to. 

This was a 4 year situation after all, not a fling. There are deep levels of fulfillment that had to have been served on both ends in order for it to have continued as long. 

Will Smith is a grown ass self realized man. A father and iconic superstar. The dynamics of his relationship with Jada is a partnership. There’s no real pedestal there for her to sit on. Perhaps, she needs that. Listen.... I don’t know these people. 

I think the world is shook and a very perplexed at the fact that August was referred to as their “son” to the public and now left exposed is the underbellyof their messy open marriage. 

We’re also so used to women and girls having daddy issues the age old narrative of being rescued by older men. Men that show up to seemingly absolve the pain, that we truly don’t know how to process that this same shit has a real mold in matriarchy. It makes us uncomfortable. Secondly, It’s also just as hard for us to fathom and accept the reality of what it means to truly sustain marriage and long term “relationship goals” that we constantly speak of. The pacts, trust levels, offbeat mechanics and compromises tailored to keeping the union what it is. Religion and tradition doesn’t teach any of this. Mom and dad certainly didn’t. It’s not wholesome. But it’s real. There might be far more lasting marriages that function this way than we know or ever care to accept. 

I think it would be easier for the world if marriages like this just ended, instead of working out. 

It would mean that we would have to work harder at understanding our partners and accepting ourselves. That’s a lot. 

Will and Jada have spoken several times about their understanding and how relationships level up and die through phases—if you’re in it for the long haul then you must adapt. That’s their marriage creed. It always made sense and seemed like one of the most sound and real pieces of advice you could probably ever get about long lasting love. 

Obviously The Smiths were indirect about it because it’s progressive as fuck and quite possibly a very threat to their perfect image and bankability. 

I don’t think shame had much to do with the secrecy. They are old skool Hollywood with very new skool ways— at its clashing now through this revelation. What does this mean? 

Jada completely denied the affair. But after seeing that imprint of August in boxer briefs and my many doubts on their Scientology affiliation, I’m inclined to believe that she the one lying. 

But I’m always more inspired by the truth and things for what they are. As unconventional as it is, the Smiths’s seem a lot more human to me. A lot less mythological. I think this is more of what we need as we navigate the forward path in this strange new world we are in. 

I think August is very much a causality in their union and eternal bond ascent. A testament to the trials and tribulations they had to overcome. I think he figured that out. After giving so much of himself the only fair thing is that he at least take back the truth. 

But from the looks of it that will be a fight in itself. Let’s see who’s left with their eyes gauged out in plain sight. 

August X Oedipus

WWW.STUPIDBLACKGIRL.COM

Q & A with Aisha Redux

Where did the title of your book Stupid Black Girl come from? And why did you choose to use it as your title?

Stupid Black Girl is based off of an encounter that I detailed in Origin Story in which I was called a “Stupid Black Girl”. I was having a deep conversation with an acquaintance of mine and in the middle of it he stopped and responded by saying “when I met you I thought you were just a stupid black girl”. Hearing this statement made to me, led me to an exploration of my life as well as a deeper look at culture and society around me. It’s an extension of a blog I had of the same name. The blog essays were triggered by thoughts, experiences and feelings that came about as a result of that encounter.

It must be weird having your debut as author be during a global pandemic, especially as a New Yorker, being in the epicenter of the outbreak in the US. How are you feeling about this your book coming into the world at this time?

My publication date has been moved to June 30th. Now is a precarious time to find yourself in as a first-time author making an introduction into the world. Bookstores are non-essential businesses and I can’t do readings and events to connect with people and promote. It will all come from online directly.

Part of the promotional aspect is reaching out to people in hopes of them spreading the word. This is something I find somewhat challenging and awkward.
Unlike a novel or work of fiction—this isn’t just a story I was inspired to write, with characters and imagination. This is my life. Me making do with a difficult path that the universe has given me to walk and making use of the talents I’ve been given to connect with people. How exactly do you promote that to people who don’t know you? How would you promote some of your deepest experiences? How would you package this up to sell? Shit that you’re still not really over. Because after everything is said and done and whether this book is out of print or on shelves, this will still be my story that I have to stand by.

I’ve had literary agents and authors send me their books to read and promote on my IG over the years. I couldn’t read all, but the books I did read were the ones that I found intriguing and authentic and by authors who have real messages. Everyone has their own criteria as well as their own busy schedules, so I know how it goes.
No matter how many times I saw the Alchemist being promoted or being recommended to me or I heard Oprah Winfrey raving about it, I still didn’t pick it up to read until I was 28. That’s because books are beings. Just like human beings, you will come across them when it’s time or not at all.

I can give birth to the book, but I can’t turn it into a doctor lol. It has its own fate and journey that lies with how the world responds to it Support, reviews, posts and presales are appreciated. Thanks to everyone who already bought a copy! I hope this book finds you though and moves you to selflessly share your story, think a little deeper and heal if you need to.

You have written for various publications  and you have written online under the Stupid Black Girl identity for several years. When did you first aspire to become a writer? And inspired you to write this book of essays?

Writing is an important and vital form of expression for me. I knew I was a writer in Elementary school. I am a creative person in general I would say. I always have lots of things swirling around in my mind at any given time. But I don’t think I ever decided so to speak to become a writer. I decided to start writing the book because I didn’t think the blog did my narratives justice. I wanted them printed on pages and not just casual reading on a screen. And I wanted to be able to reach more people. I wanted to go into more detail as well. I wanted to honor my roots, my city, my ancestors and my family. A blog couldn’t do all that they way a book could.  

Your book is written from the American African experience. Can you describe how this experience is different from the African American understanding?

The American African experience is a term I created specifically for the book. There is no agenda behind it. American African just describes being first generation American born from African parents. I was born and raised in Manhattan on the upper west side. We spoke French at home and Susu, my mother’s tribal language. The book focuses on my experience of being a first-generation New Yorker, most specifically. Later living in pregentrified Harlem and then the South Bronx. My unique perspective and nuanced point of view create these narratives I share. It’s a story I’ve never heard and one that I think people need to hear.

In your book, you call upon other black women to embrace their strength and beauty despite Eurocentric standards of beauty. How is this important now?

Brown is an essay I wrote about empowerment and coming of age with a sense of pride and love for where you are from, while trying to understand a world that sees you differently and undervalues you. I think it is important because when I was growing up all the stories I read about brown skinned girls (the blue eye, the color purple etc) had to do with feeling ugly, being rejected and struggling to belong. My experience was different from that. I’ve always loved my brown skin and where I came from. My struggle was never an internal one. The struggle was with the external (society, my environment) It was my journey of coming to terms with how the world saw me, and a sense of disillusionment with a world that didn’t honor black beauty the way I did. Colorism is a facet of the black experience, but Brown is an essay about my coming of age through the specific lens of being a brown-skinned-loving black woman in a world that thinks otherwise. Brown is meant to express the challenge of that empowerment.

Les Cousins is another essay in the book. It translates as “the cousins” and in it I talk about being a first generation American and the tension and conflicts that exist between the Africans and African American community which I have witnessed and experienced. This was always something that lingered in the background, but which I didn’t see properly addressed by the Africans around me. The way we were conditioned to see African Americans, and the way I felt being a child of African parents in that situation. I always wanted an honest conversation to dispel the negativity. I hope that talking about my own experience can be a start to a real and compassionate conversation. 

It’s unusual for a book of essays to include art. Why and how did you decide to include art in the book? And how do you feel specifically about the art of Brianna McCarthy? What kind of connection do you feel to her? And how is her experience as a Trinidadian woman relevant to yours?

Brianna grew up as a black woman in a majority black country. I grew up as a black woman in a majority white country. She might not have had these same sorts of encounters, struggles and experiences of misogynoir and racism. She might not have seen beauty, talent and intelligence being questioned so blatantly. So, she brings her own perspective of the black female experience to the book through her art. I hope this is why the book is interesting and important. There are many facets and experiences of black womanhood and coming of age through the black diaspora. My perspective is a largely ignored one. Where Brianna and I meet is in being empowered and being black loving black women who share our message through art and self-expression. 

Art was a major part of my life growing up, my father was an art dealer. Having this component to my book of essays brought everything full circle. 

You are both globe trekker and avid culture seeker with an immense interest in global lifestyles. What are some of the favorite places you’ve traveled to?

 Africa. Abidjan is one of my favorite cities. I enjoy taking strolls through Paris and Brussels. New Orleans is a city I love and really connected with because I felt an acceptance of my spirituality and roots. I love to get the most ascendent sense of a city through the people. Forming connections, hearing life anecdotes and blending into their vibes. That’s why I travel. To grow as well as escape. Any place that offers this, is where I need to be. But nothing tops New York City! 

Who are a few of your favorite writers?

I’m mostly a nonfiction reader so most of my favorite writing comes from memoirs and autobiographies. I love social science and psychology, self-help. I love reading Malcolm Gladwell. Robert Greene. I enjoy Augusten Burroughs’ brave life narratives. Sylvia Plath. Maya Angelou. A lot depends on what I am searching to uncover or which part of me I am looking to access at that moment. 

But some of the books that have had a big effect on me are:

•  Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

• No Disrespect by Sister Soulja

• For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow was Enuf by Ntozake Shange 

• Dry by Augusten Burroughs

• Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell

• Chicken Soup for the Soul

• Drammous by Camara Laye 

One of the things I loved most about Americanah was how authentic everything was! As a child of West African parents, growing up in America— I would say that the book kept it really real and I was very impressed by how familiar it all came across.

What is your favorite way to spend your free time?

Conversing. Meeting people and swapping life stories, connecting with others is always my favorite way to spend free time. It’s always so interesting to witness how much people are willing to share the deepest parts of themselves with you, when you come across as genuine and real to them. Sometimes it’s through those brief exchanges and conversations that you can have an effect or make even a slight difference in someone’s life. 

What kind of impact and message do you hope this book might have on your readers’ lives?

Be human. Share your stories, your tragedies, your pain, and your insight with others to connect and heal yourself as well as others. This was a book of healing for me. It was challenging and sometimes painful because I had to be real and vulnerable.

I’m also hoping to inspire people to feel pride. No matter what, you know who you are! Stand by that. Whether you are challenging society or challenging your family and traditions. This book is meant to honor the black girl, the black woman, and to shine a light on her power, beauty, intelligence, and issues which are often ignored and downplayed in our society. To shine this light through empowerment and truth as raw as it may be. 

Blackness is not a campaign, trend or gimmick. I had to live all of this before I could write it. Blackness is a multilayered experience being expressed through different voices throughout the entire world.