#see what happens when you disrespect Megan thee stallion

[di-girls-dem-sugar]

Someone really put all Drake's medications and prescriptions down on his bed, took pictures of everything and sent them to kendrick LMFAOOOO that man does not have a single person looking out for him. His friends are ops, his employees are ops, his parents are ops, down to the cashier that scans his groceries is against him at this point 😭

[acknowledge-reigns]

No Yeet (Roman Reigns x Fem!OC SMUT) 18+

Description: Roman hates the word yeet. His bratty sub loves to push his buttons.

Warnings: Dom/sub dynamic, bratty sub, pet names (babygirl, princess, baby. Lil, short for Lilith...), light degradation (use of the word slut), orgasm control and denial, oral (f receiving), fingering, teasing, begging, edging, spanking, aftercare, fluff at the end, tiny bits of angst if you squint.

Kayfabe compliant. This is a story about Roman, not Joe.

18+!!!! MDNI!!!!

Face claim is Megan Thee Stallion.

See my other stories here.

It had been a couple of months now since the press conference where Jey and Cody had affectionately been dubbed 'team yeet' by the fans, due to Jey's obsessive ussage of the word and getting even Cody, although in a drunken state at the time, on the 'yeet' train as well. It was like overnight the word was re popularized, amongst the WWE Universe and the wrestlers in the locker room at least.

Two Months. Eight weeks of hearing that damn word non stop. Roman had lost count of the amount of times he's yelled at Jimmy not to say yeet, simply explaining "I don't like that".

That explanation was a hell of a lot easier than the deeper reasoning.

He missed Jey. His little cousin, his right hand man. While Roman refused to admit that he was in anyway jealous of Cody, he refused to utter that word. That word was a symbol of betrayal. Of his cousin leaving him and aligning with the enemy.

A lot has happened as of late. More recruits to the bloodline. Specifically a newly signed Lilith "The Vixen" Obsidian.

Fresh out of the independent circuit but with plenty of experience, Lilith knew what she was doing. Not just that but she practically grew up with Roman and The Usos. They had been close childhood friends. She and Roman had shared their first kiss, went to prom together and so much more.

There was never a question of where her loyalties lie. The two had gone their seperate ways after high school with no hard feelings at all. They just wanted different things in life at the time. Roman was pursuing football, and Lilith was ready to begin a wrestling career.

Fast forward and years later, Lilith couldn't have gotten signed to WWE at a more perfect time. With the bloodline's rivals growing more powerful by the day something had to he done.

The minute Rhea Ripley sat in Roman's locker room and said for Paul, Roman's Wiseman, to acknowledge her.. That was when Roman knew it was time to make the call. Lilith of course eagerly agreed to join the bloodline and handle any potential drama and disrespect from Rhea. And things grew from there.

Feelings were quickly rekindled. It started as a one night thing. Roman needed to blow off some steam, Lilith was ready and willing. So they had sex. From there it moved on to friends with benefits. Any time either of them were in need of pleasure, the other was one call away.

It continued to grow though until eventually Roman asked Lilith to be his girlfriend. And she said yes.

Roman sat in the chair in his locker room, Lilith perched in his lap playing with his long gorgeous mane.

"Yeet" Jimmy says

"I already told you, I don't like that." Roman snapped. To be fair he was already frustrated as hell with LA Knight of all people having the audacity to challenge him. And he'd hurt his finger in the process of the scuffle with that nobody, to say he was in a pissy mood was an understatement.

Lilith though, ever the brat didn't miss a beat seeing the look on his face. She looks directly in his eyes with a challenging smirk.

"Yeet" Lilith says as if daring him. You could hear a pin drop in that locker room.

"Everybody but Lilith, out. NOW." Roman's voice boomed. Lilith giggled, clearly amused with herself as Solo, Jimmy and Paul quickly headed out of the room at the tribal chief's command.

As the door closes, Roman faces Lilith. With a determined look on his face, he takes a step towards her, his dominant aura emanating from every pore. Lilith's eyes widen slightly.

Roman firmly grabs Lilith's wrist, his grip both gentle and commanding. Lilith's heart races, her bratty facade crumbling under the weight of Roman's dominance.

Standing in front of her, Roman leans in, his voice low and authoritative. "Now babygirl, I know you know better than breaking your tribal chief's rules." he spoke.

Roman maintains his dominant stance, his eyes locked with Lilith's as he contemplates the appropriate punishment for her bratty behavior. He smirks, sensing her nervous anticipation.

With deliberate slowness, Roman reaches out and gently brushes a strand of Lilith's hair behind her ear, his touch sending a shiver down her spine. He leans in closer, his warm breath grazing against her earlobe as he whispers, "You know, I think you need a reminder of who's in control here."

Roman's hand trails down Lilith's neck, his fingertips grazing her collarbone, before slowly sliding underneath her shirt. His touch is both firm and tender, igniting a mixture of pleasure and anticipation within her.

Roman's eyes gleam with a mix of mischief and dominance. He leans in, his lips grazing against her earlobe, his warm breath tickling her skin yet again. "You've been a very naughty girl, Lilith," he murmurs, his voice dripping with a potent mixture of authority and desire.

"You remember your Safeword, Princess?" Roman asks.

"Oreo" Lilith stated.

"Good girl." Roman responds as his hands move lower, skimming over the curve of Lilith's waist before slipping underneath the waistband of her pants. His touch is tantalizingly light as he traces circles along her hip bones, teasing but never fully satisfying her growing need. Each touch leaves her craving more, her body yearning for release. Once he pulls his hand away, he relievers delivers two quick slaps to her ass.

He leans back slightly, his eyes locked with hers, relishing in the sight of her desperation. "You see, Lilith, I am the one who decides when and how you receive pleasure, I'm the one who makes all the decisions around here." he says, his voice a low growl.

Roman's lips curl into a smug smile "You want my touch, don't you, Lilith?" he whispers, "You're craving it, yearning for it. But you gotta learn, babygirl." he muttered.

Roman's fingers trail along the edge of Lilith's pants again, teasingly close to where she desires him the most. He watches as her breath quickens, her eyes pleading for his touch. However, he remains steadfast, denying her the relief she so desperately seeks.

"Tell me, Lilith," Roman continues, his voice dripping with authority. "Tell me how much you need me. Beg for my touch."

Lilith's cheeks flush with a mix of embarrassment and desire as she hesitates for a moment before complying with Roman's command. With a trembling voice, she whispers, "Please, my tribal chief... I need you. I need your touch. Please."

Roman's grip tightens ever so slightly on her waist, his dominance palpable. "Good girl," he murmurs, his voice laced with satisfaction. "But I'm not finished with you. Strip." he added.

Roman watches with lustful eyes as Lilith begins to strip for him immediately. He couldn't help but grin, she probably thought he was going to let her cum. She would be wrong.

For the next couple of hours He pushes her to the brink of climax repeatedly, only to deny her release.

With a calculated touch, Roman continues to tease Lilith's body, his fingers tracing a maddening path along her sensitive skin. He brings her to the edge of climax, skillfully manipulating her pleasure until she's on the verge of losing control.

Just as Lilith's body trembles with anticipation, Roman withdraws his touch, denying her the satisfaction she craves. A whimper escapes her lips, a mixture of pleasure and frustration. Her eyes plead with him, silently begging for release. She was laid back on the couch, her legs spread wide displaying her glistening pussy and allowing his fingers and mouth to work their magic.

He continues to repeat the tantalizing cycle, each time bringing her closer to the edge before abruptly stopping. The waves of arousal crash over Lilith again and again, intensifying her desire and driving her to the brink of madness

"You're mine, Lilith," he whispers as his fingers pump in and out of her pussy with a steady rhythm. "Your pleasure, your release, everything belongs to ME."

Lilith's breath quickens, her body yearning for release. "Please" she whimpered and begged.

"You think you can defy me and still expect pleasure? Nah, princess. Not today." He chuckled.

"Look at you," Roman continues. "Pleading for release like a desperate little slut." he says as he denies Lilith release time and time again, "MY desperate little slut."

Roman slowly and sensually explores Lilith's body, his touch becoming more intimate and passionate. He pays meticulous attention to her responses, ensuring her pleasure reaches its peak.

"You can cum for me now, babygirl." Roman says as Lilith's arousal builds under Roman's skilled ministrations, he carefully listens to her body, attuned to her every moan and whimper. He knows exactly when she reaches the point of no return, when her pleasure is on the cusp of overwhelming her.

With a final flick of his tongue against overly sensitive clit, Roman pushes Lilith over the edge, allowing her to climax with a wave of intense pleasure that echoes through her entire being.

Roman grins, his beard still glistening with her juices as he lifted her gently into his arms and sat again with her in his lap.

With a tender touch, Roman runs his fingers through Lilith's hair. He leans in, pressing a soft kiss against her forehead, his lips lingering against her skin. "You did beautifully, my love," he whispers, his voice filled with admiration and affection. "I'm so proud of you."

Roman wraps his arms around Lilith, pulling her close to his muscular chest, offering her warmth and security. He gently rocks her back and forth, creating a soothing rhythm that helps her unwind from the heightened sensations.

As they bask in the afterglow, Roman peppers Lilith's skin with light kisses, his lips tracing a path of tenderness along her neck and shoulder. He murmurs words of reassurance and comfort, reminding her that she is cherished and loved.

"So, what's your problem with.. that word?" Lilith asked curiously, refraining from repeating the word that had led to her punishment in the first place.

"I don't want to be reminded of how I messed things up with Jey." Roman stated honestly. Lilith was the one person he could share his true emotion with.

"Ro, you know you could try talking to him. Apologizing. He'll forgive you." Lilith encouraged.

"I can't be seen as weak. That makes the bloodline vulnerable." Roman said.

"Baby, you are anything but weak. And whatever decision you make, I'm gonna be right here along for the ride." Lilith assured him.

"I love you, Lil." Roman says.

"I love you too." Lilith smiled as she kissed him.

[onestormeynight]

Lily Oversteps

Between Winterfest and New Years, Penny received a call from her old frenemy; Lily Waite. Ricky's girlfriend.

Mmmmkay? Penny thought. Maybe Ricky is using her phone or something.

"Hello?"

"Hi, Penny, how are you?" Lily's voice oozed into Penny's ears sticky and saccharine sweet. She was less than impressed.

"Fine, Lily, did you need something?"

"Actually I wanted to talk to you in person about something. Are you free today?"

"Uh....yeah?"

"Great I'll be right over."

Penny grimaced and went to her fridge for one of her brownies. The brownies Rosie wasn't allowed until she was 21.

Lily was even sweeter in person, making Penny's skin crawl. After getting through the unpleasant pleasantries, Lily finally said what she came to say.

"So, with our life in San My going just so well..." here she gave a high pitched snicker. "Ricky just can't make it here as much as you may like."

"I'd honestly like him to not come, but this is about Rosie, not me," Penny said, raising an eyebrow. "If I'd wanted him, I'd still have him. Remember? But he is Rosie's father and he should have a relationship with her."

"Well, Ricky said that your daughter looked really put out when he explained it to her on Winterfest, and I just think that you should explain to her how things are and that she's really selfish to make her father feels so guilty."

Penny was worried her eyebrows would crawl into her hairline with how high they were getting. "Okay, first of all, Ricky should be discussing this with me, not you. Second, talk about my kid like that again in my house and see what happens. Third, he is a grown man. She just learned her multiplication tables. Have some perspective here."

"Well, she is selfish. You Harpers always have been."

Penny started laughing. It was hard to tell if it was from her brownie or the sheer audacity that Lily had to walk into her house and speak to her like this. It was absurd. Deranged. Entitled. Penny giggled harder.

"What is so funny?"

"You," Penny snickered. "You....you really think this is how this conversation is playing out? You're gonna walk in here and tell me how things are and make rude comments about my family?"

Penny pulled out her phone and started to message Ricky.

<<You need to put a leash on your dog before I drag her.>>

Lily scoffed and crossed her arms. "I am not his dog. I'm not a dog at all."

"I mean, you sure are acting like a bi--"

"You are going to stop talking to my fiancé unless it's about your brat," Lily snapped.

<<Pen, don't, I'll handle it.>> <<Nah, I got this.>> <<Pen, please.>>

Penny put her phone away.

"Get out of my house," she snapped. "Get off my property, get out of Harper Valley. So help me God, Lily, if you say anything less than apologetic, you are going to eat the words. And don't come back. Don't call me. Don't call my daughter. If I even hear a whisper about you speaking about Rosie again, I will remove that disrespect from your mouth myself."

Lily silently picked up her things. Penny thought she was actually going to leave without saying anything. Fists clenched, she had been prepared to follow through with her promise. She hadn't been in an altercation since before she was pregnant but she had faith in her muscle memory.

Then she was shocked as Lily looked further into Penny's house, her lip curled in disgust.

"We all know that kid isn't Ricky's. She's paler than both of you. We all know how you really paid for this house."

Penny promptly removed the disrespect from Lily's mouth, as promised, and sent her home, tail between her legs.

<<Send me the vet bill.>> <<What did you do?>> <<I solved a problem.>>

Ending Credits: "HISS" - Megan Thee Stallion

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((The Soundtrack))

[cyarskj52]

A Reminder for Drake and Others: Tory Lanez Is Not a Martyr

It’s disappointing, but not surprising, to see Drake advocate for Tory Lanez after being convicted of shooting Megan Thee Stallion

By Andre GeeFebruary 27, 2024

It’s disappointing, but not surprising, to see Drake advocate for Tory Lanez after being convicted of shooting Megan Thee Stallion

Drake compels the masses like a seasoned advertising director. He knows sharing something as simple as a new hairdo will strangle social media for days on end. So when he called for Tory Lanez’s freedom on his Instagram story, he knew it would garner similar visibility as activists screaming “Free Meek Mill” from the streets of Philadelphia. On Monday, Drake posted a picture of Tory and “3 You,” a version of “Free You” where the three were set to represent open handcuffs. 

“Free [Insert Person”] is standard cultural parlance in communities of color. “Free Meek” was a stand against the Philly rapper’s prolonged probation. “Free Mumia [Abu-Jamal]” is about amplifying a freedom fighter who people believe was unjustly convicted. Other times, like with “Free Bobby Shmurda,” it can be a complicated admission that even if we know someone did wrong, we understand that systemic inequality can encourage bad choices from good people, essentially creating a long-looping form of entrapment. 

You may scream “free” someone as an advocate, loved one, or an empathizer. But screaming “Free Tory Lanez,” is an asshole move. 

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Last August, Tory was sentenced to 10 years in California State Prison for shooting Megan Thee Stallion in 2020. In December 2022, he was convicted of assault with a semi-automatic firearm, carrying a loaded, unregistered firearm in a vehicle, and discharging a firearm with gross negligence. 

He’s on a recorded call apologizing to Megan’s former friend Kelsey for an unknown grievance that many deduce to be Megan’s shooting. During testimony, Kelsey called the notion that she shot Megan “ridiculous.” A witness in the trial testified that he saw a “shorter man,” alleged to be Tory, firing “four to five” shots and then beating Megan as she lay bleeding in a fetal position. But despite the mountain of evidence suggesting his guilt, Drake, Chris Brown, Meek Mill, and others have since expressed solidarity with Tory. Are they saying they don’t believe Megan, or that they don’t care what happened to her?

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Since that night, people treated the shooting like a soap opera or binary of fandom instead of a traumatic incident that someone should atone for. On “Cobra,” Megan rapped about dealing with depression, alcohol dependency, and suicidal ideation since being shot. Her account of that night was scrutinized by armchair sleuths, and she was relentlessly lampooned by entertainers and consumers. Tory even took part in the circus, chopping a horse leg in his “CAP” video. As I noted before about Tina and Ike Turner, hip-hop has a penchant for playing too much, perhaps because many of its progenitors are so predisposed to toxic behavior and violence that we don’t know how to take domestic violence seriously. But that dynamic almost always turns into disrespecting women survivors, and it’s no excuse for how Megan is being treated.

Drake’s had several weird dustups with women in recent years. During a recent stop on his Big As The What tour, he made a point to play “Work” with Rihanna, then tell the crowd that he doesn���t perform the song anymore. That comes after dissing her and A$AP Rocky on For All The Dogs’ “Fear of Heights.” And, more alarmingly, he’s shouted out rapper and friend Baka Not Nice, who in 2015 pled guilty to assaulting a 22-year-old woman who he was charged with forcing into sex trafficking. The woman didn’t testify in the case, so he wasn’t tried on the latter charge. While Baka was incarcerated, Drake rhymed, “I might declare it a holiday as soon as Baka get back on the road,” on 2015’s “Know Yourself.” Would women be invited to that celebration? Perhaps Drake should head to his room full of bras and reflect on whether he genuinely cares about the humanity of any of the former owners. 

It’s unclear when he and Megan, who were pictured together in 2019, first fell out. In 2022, he rapped “this bitch lie ’bout getting shots, but she still a stallion” on Her Loss’ “Circo Loco.” Last summer, he made it a point to snidely clarify “not that Meg,” while shouting out photographer MegYup during his It’s All A Blurtour. And now, after Megan may have dissed him on “Hiss” (she intentionally refrained from naming names so hit dogs could holler) he’s advocated for her attacker. 

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Drake isn’t the first person to speak up for Tory post-sentencing, either. Chris Brown, who assaulted Rihanna and has been accused of over 20 instances of violence (many against women), called to “Free Tory” on streamer Adin Ross’ live stream, calling Tory “a solid dude.” His morally questionable comments are unsurprising. 

Last July, Meek Mill screamed “Free Tory” while performing at Rolling Loud Portugal. He later doubled down, tweeting, “I say free young thug … free lucci … free melly I don’t even know why y’all start dealing with us if yall gone try to smear us.’ Of course, there is a layer of nuance. Anti-prison abolitionists believe that the justice system is inherently racist and should be uprooted. But even those progressives didn’t feel much sorrow when Tory was convicted because of his conduct and arrogance throughout the leadup to the trial. Restorative justice advocates believe there can be a world where people who commit violence can take accountability, and apologize to the person they hurt, and everyone can heal without the need for incarceration. 

There is a belief that the modern justice system, which essentially requires a suspect to deny their guilt, doesn’t help a survivor heal, and the dehumanizing conditions of prison certainly aren’t a rehabilitative environment for violators. Some abolitionists may believe that Tory shouldn’t be incarcerated because prisons shouldn’t exist in the first place. That is a complicated discussion. But it’s also not likely that Drake, Brown, or Meek were saying “Free Tory” from an abolitionist lens — they were just trying to support the boys club. 

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Despite Tory’s conviction, the bowels of the gossip blogosphere, run by misogynistic podcasters and streamers, still cling to rumors of suppressed videos and secret witnesses and anything else that may appear out of fairy dust to legally absolve the Toronto artist and affirm their twisted belief that women are never to be trusted. It’s sad to think that so many of music’s biggest names enabling that cohort. 

Despite their increasingly blatant misogynoir, artists like Drake still boast devoted fanbases who will propel him to record-breaking streaming numbers and refer to him as their figurative “husband.” It’s more proof that advocacy for a convicted violator of a Black woman isn’t a cardinal sin. If anything, it’s the norm. How long will we let that be the case?

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Translation: if you love your man so much, schedule for sex in prison Aubrey Graham.

or better yet just go to hell and take your bald head biiich with you.

[geekynichelle]

In this “not really an essay” essay I wanted to address the myth of Ares, Aphrodite, and Hephaestus, the modern day incident involving Megan Thee Stallion, along with my personal anecdotes to talk about reinforcing the patriarchy.

Disclaimers: I’m an American who learned about Greek Mythology for the first time in 3rd grade and while I’m not particularly religious I’m a lover of stories, and I’m not going to treat these beings like fictional characters per say, so much as I’m going to focus on a story that they’re involved in to make my point. Treating them like still breathing beings, not long dead and gone. I’m totally on Megan’s side and am not at all trying to trivialize her experiences, if anything I hope the point I make will have you empathizing with her more. My personal anecdotes won’t mention names or anything. I acknowledge my memory isn’t always the best, but these are things that I know/remember happened and aren’t made up just to prove my point. I may update this (in a new post) if I think it will help. It’s long so it’s going to be under the cut.

When something bothers you a lot, and it sticks with you for a long time, I think that’s worth examining. It would be easy to bog down my feelings about the whole Aphrodite/Ares/Hephaestus affair to “shipping”, but I feel like that would be disrespectful to the source material, and not really accurate.  We currently live in a patriarchal society, and despite the fact that thousands of years and an ocean separate America from Ancient Greece, the similarities between societal attitudes towards women are too similar. This is in part due to America being influenced by the ancient world (for better or worse) when the government we know today was created (by white men), and in part due to the fact that the patriarchy (in my opinion) doesn’t really go outside the box. It’s a very straightforward rule book, with ebbs and flows regarding how we view marginalized genders and sexualities and how much they’re tolerated.

So what does a story about two ancient Gods cheating on another ancient God have to do with the patriarchy? And how does Megan Thee Stallion fit in? To start, I want to answer that by talking about the woman (Megan) and the feminine being (Aphrodite) in the story.  Megan Thee Stallion is a tall and beautiful person, and Aphrodite is the literal Goddess of Beauty (among other things). Megan was the victim of a crime involving another celebrity, a fact that I think is pretty much indisputable by any reputable source. It seems like it would be pretty open and shut to believe her and sympathize/empathize with her situation. The internet however remains undefeated and there are those who not only don’t want to believe Megan, but also try to find reasons to make her being shot okay/justified.

It’s hard not see the reasons for this being related to anything but her being a young, Black, and  queer woman. Aphrodite being a literal Goddess admittedly stands a bit higher above the celebrity for lasting power alone, but for all intents and purposes, she is again attractive, seen as representing the feminine, and could very well be seen as queer. In other words under the patriarchy not a perfect or likable victim.  If Aphrodite is reduced to being a pretty bimbo and Megan a promiscuous shit talker, then what happens to them doesn’t matter. If one is married off against her will those vows should still be taken seriously. If one is shot we must know what she did to deserve it.    

At this point I’m sure the exceptions to this rule are on some people’s minds, and that’s fair. There are no perfect absolutes, but in both real life and fiction even the examples of the exception reveal something. Most people are fine with emotional cheating in a sitcom when the boyfriend/husband is a jerk and the woman involved is a relatively innocent and good girl. Pam from The Office is nice and just a little lost in life. We can see why she has a hard time leaving her fiancé Roy and standing up for herself. I myself have experienced being presumed nice/innocent because I’ve always been quiet and come across somewhat passive. That and colorism (I’m a very light Black lady).

When I’ve stood up for myself or been less than accommodating I’ve also seen how that changes things. This bleeds a little bit into my next point, which is that male privilege is pretty powerful and doesn’t go away simply because you are marginalized in one way. Amongst the Gods, Hephaestus is often described as ugly and an ableist slur, so we’re just going to say disabled. There aren’t a lot of sources in my experience that get very specific about what that means. A being or man that’s considered average when everyone in their family looks like supermodels could still be a relatively good looking man. I will of course not discount the loss of privilege that comes from being different (Hera literally threw him away), but a God is a God and that still comes with some power that can wielded over others.

Back to my personal examples for a moment, I recall a time in college when I was a freshman and I was at a Halloween event with my roommate and some people she knew. Some dude in a zombie mask got a little too close for comfort so I kind of shoved him away from me. I’m not very loud and I’m 5’3 and it was crowded so at the moment I can only assume that that was the course of action that made the most sense to me. A few minutes later one of my roommates’ friends implied to me that the dude in the mask was mentally disabled. The friend was a bit vague so that’s the best I can say. What I know for sure is that at the time, all that guy was to me was a stranger in a mask invading my personal space. I myself am neurodivergent (though I didn’t know it then), and it felt a bit icky to me that I got the impression that I was meant to feel bad for the person who creeped me out/I was in the wrong for acting on instinct. I do of course have empathy for the socially awkward. I am socially awkward. How I reacted was awkward, but that doesn’t mean it’s okay to cross someone’s boundaries.  

That friend probably meant well, but he was essentially infantilizing that other guy and making it seem like he didn’t know any better, and thus I should’ve reacted “nicer” to him. Megan Thee Stallion is taller than the man who hurt her by a couple of inches. Being a short guy in society is probably not easy. I can understand where the whole Napoleon complex thing comes from. A guy shorter than me in high school absolutely had a massive chip on his shoulder and was very rude to me when he felt like I slighted him (I sat in his seat to be closer to my friends). However, once you take out your frustrations on people with less power or social capital than you I stop caring as much. Megan doesn’t stop being a queer Black women because she’s tall, anymore than I stop being a queer Black women (who again is also neurodivergent) just because I acted “rudely”.  

I’m not trying to demonize those kids from my past or say that you should hate the deity Hephaestus (though I don’t care about how you feel about Tory Lanz, hate him with my blessing), but I am trying to point out that harm being perpetuated by a man under the patriarchy is in general more protected and given more grace when the victim isn’t perfect, even if they are marginalized as well. In the case of Aphrodite, despite being a Goddess, she kind of is reduced to a piece of property in her marriage to Hephaestus. In some versions of myth she’s married off to him by Zeus because he fears fighting over her will cause another war. In other versions she’s married off to appease Hephaestus after he (admittedly rightfully so) expresses his anger at being mistreated/not taken seriously by the other Olympians. To cheat on her husband in those circumstances is akin to committing a heinous crime in a patriarchal society.

If Aphrodite was virginal and perhaps associated with something more innocent than blatant sexuality maybe she could’ve gotten the Persephone treatment. Be made into a figure that is granted choices by modern audiences because it’s easy to root for her like it’s easy to root for Pam. Instead many people think that making Aphrodite’s marriage to Hephaestus a happy one is the best solution. One that empowers both of them. I disagree. In the original myth Aphrodite already makes a choice. She chooses to be with Ares. One of the very few couples in ancient myth where there’s no evidence (that I’m aware of) of assault or a lack of consent. Her choice results in consequences, but those consequences don’t mean that changing her story into one of a happy marriage makes for a stronger narrative.

It does the opposite. It infantilizes Hephaestus and implies that he’s deserving of a beautiful wife because he’s a good guy, despite there being very little evidence to suggest he had that personality in canon. People portray him as the good guy/nerd, because at the end of the day ableism makes it easier to digest the story of a weak male victim being screwed over, than the nuance of a marginalized guy still not being very nice. He was publicly humiliated so he’s allowed to get revenge. He’s allowed to set his wife and brother up to be seen (non-consensually) by all their family mid hook up, because it doesn’t matter what you look like when you’re a man under the patriarchy who got embarrassed.  

This in turn is also why Ares is the “bad guy” here. In myth Ares is the patron saint of the amazons, he’s associated with women often (not for feminist reasons, but as a sign of cowardice), and despite being the “most handsome” he makes “reasonable” and “rational” patriarchy figures look bad. He’s the chaotic side of war and he’s largely hated by the other Gods. When men in a “civilized” patriarchal society go “too far” or make other men look bad he becomes a lone wolf, or just the exception and not the rule as far as men being violent go. To be so closely associated with women and to steal your brother’s property (consensually sleep with his wife) you lose hot guy privileges. I’m not going to call Ares a feminist (that doesn’t really apply here), but as any ally will tell you siding with the marginalized or making the status quo look bad will take away your protections. Thus he gets humiliated too, to make sure other men know what happens when you don’t fall in line. We see this with incel/Alpha male culture today.

This is the part of that story/myth that I think people don’t consider a lot. It’s not only supposed to be a cute fairy tale or a forbidden romance or the story of two assholes. Its purpose is also to enforce the patriarchy. If Aphrodite represents the ultimate woman and is one of the most powerful beings in the pantheon, a being that Zeus felt like he needed to be worried about, what does it tell women of the time that even she can be/should be taken down a peg when she actually expresses that autonomy. What does it matter if Hephaestus is nice, or makes her nice things, when she didn’t have a choice? If she was being shallow does that change anything really? If Ares was an asshole, does that matter since we have no evidence that he was an asshole to Aphrodite? In order, no Hephaestus personality or ability to provide does not matter, no it does not matter if Aphrodite cheated because she was shallow, and no it does not matter if Ares was mean. The bottom line is that there’s a reason we’re meant to leave that story feeling bad for one party and hating one or both of the other parties.

There’s a reason why we downplay the violence or discomfort of women when a man is upset. The saddest part is honestly when this is co-signed by other women. I’ve seen people joke about how they’d take Hephaestus and appreciate him, and how some women try to find an excuse to see Megan taken down a peg. Even in my own examples I don’t recall my roommate asking if I was okay or bothered by a stranger coming up to me/rattling me, she just found the whole thing amusing. This I realized is exactly why the way people react to and adapt that Greek Myth bothers me so much. I’ve experienced people’s ableism disguised as empathy and compassion if it meant giving a guy a pass for bad or weird behavior. Especially if that man does something positive for society (because Hephaestus gives the other Gods stuff). I’ve experienced and seen how sexism, ableism, and queerness can make a person seen as not worthy of care or seen as not needing it.  All this does is reinforce the system. That’s why it’s not about shipping or fan culture. It’s about our culture as a whole. That’s what I want people to think about.

Other Sources:

-Pop Culture Detective made two great videos on the misogyny from the Big Bang Theory that also gets into the phenomenon I was getting at with how we view Hephaestus.

The Adorkable Misogyny of the Big Bang Theory

The Complicity of Geek Masculinity on the Big Bang Theory

-A tumblr thread/post also did a good job explaining why Aphrodite and Ares are a good couple by Greek Myth standards.

In Defense of AreDite

-I’m currently reading Venus and Aphrodite: History of a Goddess by Bettany Hughes, which also gave me things to think about.

Venus and Aphrodite: History of a Goddess

[destinyc1020]

I'm the anon. who brought up putting Halle on a pedestal. I wasn't defending DDG I said in my post that I don't like him and am not making any excuses for his online behavior. All I was saying was that people sometimes, not you, project on to Halle and I brought up Chloe cause I notice they also do it to her sister as well. When I say project I mean you have people wanting them to behave a certain way as black woman in the entertainment industry and not make any mistakes. But that is a whole different topic and I realize it doesn't make sense when talking about DDG. I think I'm not making a big deal out of Halle and DDG cause the relationship will end when it is meant to. Just like I didn't like Pardi for Megan thee Stallion but I didn't complain about him online cause that's who she was with and I was just patiently waiting for her to move on from him and guess what she did. I truly think the same thing will happen with Halle.

An Anon asked me why I (and other fans) don't care for Halle's bf, and I simply answered her ask with a condensed list of reasons why🤷🏾‍♀️

You were the one saying we were "putting her on a pedestal", and that her relationship with this clown "makes sense". I never said any of that.

If I haven't said that these black women need to be "perfect" on my blog, Idk why that was even brought up?? You were bringing up topics and things that weren't even being discussed on my blog, and weren't even things that I said personally...that's what was confusing to me. 🥴

If you have issues with what fans/others are saying on Twitter, or other online outlets, it's good to state that out the outset in order to differentiate who you're referring to. Jmho.

Thankfully, a lot of these Hollywood romances don't last THAT long, and yes, we can all agree that some of these relationships need to "see the light" and breakup lol 😅

But in the meantime, fans are allowed to have an opinion on the relationship. 🤷🏾‍♀️That's all I'm saying.... Nobody is "mad" at Halle.... We can all just see that she could do much better than this dude.

If you think they're a match made in heaven, then okay...lol... But I personally don't agree. No man should be disrespecting you like this. I don't care if you like "the ghetto" or "bad boys" or whatever.

Btw, there are men from the "hood" who ARE respectable gentlemen. Just saying...

[cyarsk52-20]

21h ago

A Reminder for Drake and Others: Tory Lanez is Not a Martyr

It’s disappointing, but not surprising, to see Drake advocate for Tory Lanez after being convicted of shooting Megan Thee Stallion

ROLLING STONE

GIF by theozkids

A Reminder for Drake and Others: Tory Lanez Is Not a Martyr

It’s disappointing, but not surprising, to see Drake advocate for Tory Lanez after being convicted of shooting Megan Thee Stallion

ROLLING STONE

A Reminder for Drake and Others: Tory Lanez Is Not a Martyr

It’s disappointing, but not surprising, to see Drake advocate for Tory Lanez after being convicted of shooting Megan Thee Stallion

By Andre GeeFebruary 27, 2024

It’s disappointing, but not surprising, to see Drake advocate for Tory Lanez after being convicted of shooting Megan Thee Stallion

Drake compels the masses like a seasoned advertising director. He knows sharing something as simple as a new hairdo will strangle social media for days on end. So when he called for Tory Lanez’s freedom on his Instagram story, he knew it would garner similar visibility as activists screaming “Free Meek Mill” from the streets of Philadelphia. On Monday, Drake posted a picture of Tory and “3 You,” a version of “Free You” where the three were set to represent open handcuffs. 

“Free [Insert Person”] is standard cultural parlance in communities of color. “Free Meek” was a stand against the Philly rapper’s prolonged probation. “Free Mumia [Abu-Jamal]” is about amplifying a freedom fighter who people believe was unjustly convicted. Other times, like with “Free Bobby Shmurda,” it can be a complicated admission that even if we know someone did wrong, we understand that systemic inequality can encourage bad choices from good people, essentially creating a long-looping form of entrapment. 

You may scream “free” someone as an advocate, loved one, or an empathizer. But screaming “Free Tory Lanez,” is an asshole move. 

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Last August, Tory was sentenced to 10 years in California State Prison for shooting Megan Thee Stallion in 2020. In December 2022, he was convicted of assault with a semi-automatic firearm, carrying a loaded, unregistered firearm in a vehicle, and discharging a firearm with gross negligence. 

He’s on a recorded call apologizing to Megan’s former friend Kelsey for an unknown grievance that many deduce to be Megan’s shooting. During testimony, Kelsey called the notion that she shot Megan “ridiculous.” A witness in the trial testified that he saw a “shorter man,” alleged to be Tory, firing “four to five” shots and then beating Megan as she lay bleeding in a fetal position. But despite the mountain of evidence suggesting his guilt, Drake, Chris Brown, Meek Mill, and others have since expressed solidarity with Tory. Are they saying they don’t believe Megan, or that they don’t care what happened to her?

Editor’s picks

Since that night, people treated the shooting like a soap opera or binary of fandom instead of a traumatic incident that someone should atone for. On “Cobra,” Megan rapped about dealing with depression, alcohol dependency, and suicidal ideation since being shot. Her account of that night was scrutinized by armchair sleuths, and she was relentlessly lampooned by entertainers and consumers. Tory even took part in the circus, chopping a horse leg in his “CAP” video. As I noted before about Tina and Ike Turner, hip-hop has a penchant for playing too much, perhaps because many of its progenitors are so predisposed to toxic behavior and violence that we don’t know how to take domestic violence seriously. But that dynamic almost always turns into disrespecting women survivors, and it’s no excuse for how Megan is being treated.

Drake’s had several weird dustups with women in recent years. During a recent stop on his Big As The What tour, he made a point to play “Work” with Rihanna, then tell the crowd that he doesn’t perform the song anymore. That comes after dissing her and A$AP Rocky on For All The Dogs’ “Fear of Heights.” And, more alarmingly, he’s shouted out rapper and friend Baka Not Nice, who in 2015 pled guilty to assaulting a 22-year-old woman who he was charged with forcing into sex trafficking. The woman didn’t testify in the case, so he wasn’t tried on the latter charge. While Baka was incarcerated, Drake rhymed, “I might declare it a holiday as soon as Baka get back on the road,” on 2015’s “Know Yourself.” Would women be invited to that celebration? Perhaps Drake should head to his room full of bras and reflect on whether he genuinely cares about the humanity of any of the former owners. 

It’s unclear when he and Megan, who were pictured together in 2019, first fell out. In 2022, he rapped “this bitch lie ’bout getting shots, but she still a stallion” on Her Loss’ “Circo Loco.” Last summer, he made it a point to snidely clarify “not that Meg,” while shouting out photographer MegYup during his It’s All A Blurtour. And now, after Megan may have dissed him on “Hiss” (she intentionally refrained from naming names so hit dogs could holler) he’s advocated for her attacker. 

Related

Drake isn’t the first person to speak up for Tory post-sentencing, either. Chris Brown, who assaulted Rihanna and has been accused of over 20 instances of violence (many against women), called to “Free Tory” on streamer Adin Ross’ live stream, calling Tory “a solid dude.” His morally questionable comments are unsurprising. 

Last July, Meek Mill screamed “Free Tory” while performing at Rolling Loud Portugal. He later doubled down, tweeting, “I say free young thug … free lucci … free melly I don’t even know why y’all start dealing with us if yall gone try to smear us.’ Of course, there is a layer of nuance. Anti-prison abolitionists believe that the justice system is inherently racist and should be uprooted. But even those progressives didn’t feel much sorrow when Tory was convicted because of his conduct and arrogance throughout the leadup to the trial. Restorative justice advocates believe there can be a world where people who commit violence can take accountability, and apologize to the person they hurt, and everyone can heal without the need for incarceration. 

There is a belief that the modern justice system, which essentially requires a suspect to deny their guilt, doesn’t help a survivor heal, and the dehumanizing conditions of prison certainly aren’t a rehabilitative environment for violators. Some abolitionists may believe that Tory shouldn’t be incarcerated because prisons shouldn’t exist in the first place. That is a complicated discussion. But it’s also not likely that Drake, Brown, or Meek were saying “Free Tory” from an abolitionist lens — they were just trying to support the boys club. 

Trending

Despite Tory’s conviction, the bowels of the gossip blogosphere, run by misogynistic podcasters and streamers, still cling to rumors of suppressed videos and secret witnesses and anything else that may appear out of fairy dust to legally absolve the Toronto artist and affirm their twisted belief that women are never to be trusted. It’s sad to think that so many of music’s biggest names enabling that cohort. 

Despite their increasingly blatant misogynoir, artists like Drake still boast devoted fanbases who will propel him to record-breaking streaming numbers and refer to him as their figurative “husband.” It’s more proof that advocacy for a convicted violator of a Black woman isn’t a cardinal sin. If anything, it’s the norm. How long will we let that be the case?

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Translation: if you love your man so much, schedule for sex in prison Aubrey Graham.

or better yet just go to hell and take your bald head biiich with you.

[cyarskj1899]

The worst person you know makes a good point

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Lordt, If Candace Owens Has a Better Take on Megan Than You, You Need to Check Yourself [Video]

December 22, 2022 6:06 PM PST

Megan Thee Stallion has found an unlikely ally in conservative political commentator Candace Owens amid her felony assault trial against Tory Lanez.

via: The Root

This should really be a come to a Jesus moment for all of the raggedy brothas with podcasts (and Drake). On Wednesday, Candace White Lives Matter Owens spoke out in support of Megan Thee Stallion, who is currently in court over allegations that Tory Lanez shot her.

“Megan Thee Stallion has credibly accused Tory Lanez of shooting her in the foot. She turned down hush money and has been stabbed in the back by her friends,” said Candace Owens on her podcast. “Instead of getting showered with support, Megan was mocked. I can’t imagine what it would be like to be in her position.”

We’re certainly not going to start stanning Candace Owens of all people for finally having a correct take on something. (Again, the woman parades herself around in White Lives Matter apparel.)

But it does make you think, if someone as trash as Candace Owens can see that the persecution of the Megan is wrong, what excuse does anyone else have?

Drake, a man who professes to love Black women, certainly has no excuse for his disaster of a song where he called Megan a liar.

All of the shady gossip sites that posted false information about the shooting, definitely have no excuse.

And Joe Budden (who, full disclosure I didn’t know existed until he came for Meg) had no excuse for going on a random tirade about her in the midst of her trial.

This is a Black woman who spoke out about her trauma and the violence she suffered despite knowing the backlash she’d face. And frankly she doesn’t just deserve our sympathy she deserves our respect.

To be clear: Candace Owens is not a hero in this situation just because she said something nice about Megan Thee Stallion.

I decided to actually listen to the clip instead of just reading the little snippet, Candace Owens tweeted (nice try) and whoof, it’s not great.

She goes into a bizarre rant about how Black culture is to blame for Megan’s persecution because we’re all obsessed with snitching. It’s weirdly a-historical and ignores Megan Thee Stallion’s point that she was worried about talking to the police because she’d seen how they treat Black folks.

Her little rant also ignores that Black folks (especially Black women and Black queer folks) did speak out in support of Megan Thee Stallion. It’s also just disrespectful for someone to try to use what happened to Megan to sell a “Black people are thugs” narrative to white folks, when Megan herself has only pushed love in the Black community.

So yeah, don’t start inviting Candace Owens to the cookout just yet (or ever); she lost that invite long ago. But if you’ve been one of the people dissing Megan, it’s way past time to check yourself.

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[1ddiscourseoftheday]

🗣Tues 15 Dec ‘20🙊

Anyone order their daily with EXTRA DISCOURSE today? Lucky you, I guess, I'd send it back to the kitchen if I had the option but this is more a 'you'll take what you get and like it' kind of establishment so here we are! EAT UP we got Liam and Lou Teasdale making everyone mad, Louis and Harry's teams forgetting they're supposed to be mortal enemies, and Zayn?? Getting papped?? Omg is Z3 really coming this time? I've been burned so many times before (flown too close to the sun) but what if....... So first Gigi and zaby stroller were papped, then Zayn was papped in his usual way-- 'if you can get a good picture of me in the seconds it takes me to walk from my front door to the car have at it, that's exactly all you get'-- and then a fan reported seeing Zigi and zaby at a pizza restaurant. Zayn's hair is bleached white blond and that's about all I can tell you except that Z NEVER gets papped (or spotted really) for nothing so I am excite!!

Liam's back! He did the postponed-from-last-Tues hour long live for Stand Up To Cancer (and raised $16k!) and he's got a show in two days so I'd say his extremely brief breather is probably done with, whether he got the time he needed to be happy about coming back or not. He seems in good shape for the live though, even if he does say “its been a really long day, you don't even know, REALLY long” and that what he wants most for Christmas is “to have a little bit of time to reflect.” But he says he is going to take some time out and go away and write music “for the first time in a very long time,” in the new year, nice! He mentions how he went up to Sweden for recording recently and says it ”went really well I'm really really excited” about the new music and, uhhh, “got something sent through from Mick Fleetwood while I was over in Sweden writing, some guitar stuff, which was amazing, and he was dressed like santa at the time!” I...what??? I'll just... leave that there?? About other bands, he says that he's become a big fan of the Wanted over time, that “someone Zayn-ed out,” of Little Mix but “Zayn left for pretty much the same reasons and I do feel for them,” and “are 5SOS still together? Did they pull an us I thought they pulled an us?” He said yes, it's so great about Louis' show, and “it was great, and do you know what, like listening through those lyrics, it’s really nice to hear the truth in his music because obviously I mean I know all of the full story about him, and [pause].. and uh... his relationship with his girlfriend and whatever else,” SKLDYSSKKJ.

This long live also had him responding to screen comments he would usually ignore (though thank GOD he only reads but doesn't answer 'what happened with Niall in Japan' please tell me the questioner wasn't trying to get him to comment on the 'violently masturbating' story), anyway so we got Liam on touching his hair if larry is real-- “of course that's not going to happen don't be silly,” and on whether he thinks 'larry is disrespectful' “sometimes I do... actually that's not true, all the time I do.” Well he's not wrong though I'd expand that to 'all the fans' but if I had to wade through a million “touch your nose if larry is real” comments every time I was promoting my own material, for ten years, I'd probably get tetchy too! He didn't say it was or wasn't real, as he himself pointed out he never WILL do that for REASONS; tbh I'm with Liam can people PLEASE stop being so embarrassing on main and let him live? ANYWAY, moving on, his Advent Alarm clock today is the sleep story edited down to be just Liam laughing for like 30 seconds, aka the exact edit that I suggested they should make a couple weeks ago, which I find frankly extremely alarming (ALARMing HA) are they... listening to me?? Well if Liam's management are looking for ideas BOY HAVE I GOT SOME FOR THEM hit me up fellas PLEASE.

Harry and Louis both announced further postponements of their UK and Europe tour shows, like really the same announcement and just fully back to back, I can only assume that after weeks of intensive hashing out to match up dates their teams have arrived at some kind of plan and were like cool let's announce! Louis has added some new shows, while Harry's new schedule is undisclosed as yet. Harry says “I really hope to play these shows and will have news for you in the new year on when they will take place.” Louis' new dates include previously omitted countries (Iceland! Austria!), and those tickets go on sale Friday. Harry did not respond to Rob Sheffield's awkward attempt to link Watermelon Sugar and WAP as being similar but he did like Megan Thee Stallion's post celebrating her successful year, and Vulture ranked Adore You in its top 5 videos of the year with a much better take on what Harry is all about, saying that it “highlights one of the singer’s best traits: his willingness to be delightfully weird.” Kid Harpoon said that he and Harry “wrote a song in Japan that may yet see the light of the day,” and Harry continues to roast him, disputing his songwriter of the year award-- “they found 8,000,000 opposing ballots in a bin behind his house! FRAUD!”

And last but most discourse-y-est of all, The Sun made waves today, pulling the most salacious parts of a Lou Teasdale interview with the Sex, Lies and DM Slides podcast from last week and bringing it to wider attention. In the interview she talked at length about systemic discrimination against women working in the music industry and her own work experiences, which naturally include (very briefly) touching on her highest profile job- the years she spent traveling with 1D. In this context she says “you kind of can’t sleep with them [the band]- it’s quite important to keeping your job... some people would come in and like you know assistants and stuff and I think they would really think... that it was love and obviously it’s not,” and “it’s just the quickest way to lose your job- because then they’ve got a new girlfriend and she’s there and they don’t want you in the room.” She did not sell her story to The Sun she mentioned this in passing as part of an interview about her work experiences; she herself says, “I didn’t do an interview [with] the sun. I’ve never done that. I did a podcast with friends about loads of things.”

There is nothing remotely unlikely in this story, either in the concept that members of the band slept with girls casually (we know that certain of them did and there isn't even anything wrong with that in a situation of consent, the denial of it is as bizarre as scribbling out the beer bottle in a 28 year old man's hand), or that low level members (“assistants and stuff”) of the 150 person+ crew appeared and disappeared on a regular basis. The band were, to my guess, probably simply not paying very much attention to the serious ramifications of this carelessness and the consequences rather than demanding that people be fired, but I do very much hope they've learned over the years to be responsible for the kind of power that they have over other peoples' lives (something I really doubt they understood the extent of yet as very young people being dragged from one place to another who felt powerless themselves).

[deadcactuswalking]

REVIEWING THE CHARTS: 30/01/2021 (Wellerman, Fredo, Sabrina Carpenter, Billie Eilish & ROSALÍA)

I’ve never been more thankful for a song being this big – “drivers license” by Olivia Rodrigo spends a third week at #1, blocking “WITHOUT YOU” by The Kid LAROI at #2. Thank God. Anyway, we’ve got 10 new arrivals so let’s cut the chit-chat and start REVIEWING THE CHARTS.

Rundown

Of course, after this brief rundown we always do. Thankfully, the site actually updated last week, so I can go through this as routinely as possible. For drop-outs, it’s a lot of recent new arrivals falling out either off the debut or a few weeks after – most of them being pretty crap – but we do have some notable drop-outs, like “Forever Young” by Becky Hill, “Plugged In Freestyle” by A92 and Fumez the Engineer, “pov” by Ariana Grande, “Love is a Compass” by Griff, “Tick Tock” by Clean Bandit and Mabel featuring 24kGoldn, “Lasting Lover” by Sigala and James Arthur, and finally, “Perfect” by Ed Sheeran. Now to move onto the chart proper, we do have some movement to discuss. Firstly, we have some fallers, those being “Dynamite” by BTS at #32, “positions” by Ariana Grande at #39, “Lemonade” by Internet Money and Gunna featuring Don Toliver and NAV at #41, “All I Want” by Olivia Rodrigo at #43 off of the return, “SO DONE” by The Kid LAROI at #46, “Best Friend” by Saweetie featuring Doja Cat at #47, “Midnight Sky” by Miley Cyrus at #48, “What You Know Bout Love” by the late Pop Smoke at #51, “Wellerman” by the Longest Johns practically being replaced at #52 (We’ll discuss this more later), “See Nobody” by Wes Nelson and Hardy Caprio at #53, “Notorious” by Bugzy Malone and Chip at #55, “Looking for Me” by Paul Woodford, Diplo and Kareen Lomax at #60, “Bad Boy” by the late Juice WRLD and Young Thug unfortunately purging to #62, “WAP” by Cardi B featuring Megan Thee Stallion at #67, “Pinging (6 Figures)” by Central Cee crashing off of the debut to #72 and “Diamonds” by Sam Smith at #74, joining our two returning entries – which are just older songs getting another brief pick-up at the bottom of the charts. Those are “Baby Shark” by Pinkfong and “Shallow” by Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper at #75 and #73 respectively, by the way. Oh, and we also have “Martin & Gina” by Polo G at #65, but I honestly can’t see that song going anywhere – and I really like it. This doesn’t mean that we don’t have any gains, however, as finally, we can see some rising hits trying to fill in the cracks, like both of Rudimental’s debuts from last week: “Be the One” with MORGAN, TIKE and Digga D is up to #58, whilst the incredibly worse single “Regardless” with RAYE is cracking into the top 40 at #40. Sigh, well, we do have some more promising gains, like... “Heat Waves” by Glass Animals at #38? “Friday” by Riton, Nightcrawlers and Musafa & Hypeman at #37 off of the debut? Okay, 2021 might end up being pretty rough, huh? Thankfully, we have a plentiful amount of new arrivals to waive any of my fears, so let’s just start with those.

NEW ARRIVALS

#70 – “Overpriced” – M Huncho

Produced by Quincy Tellem

Oh, come on! Okay, so this is M Huncho, UK trao’s answer to the late MF DOOM, except without any of the lyrical complexity, storytelling abilities, genuine wit, charming sampling and production techniques, brilliant discography... he’s pretty much just a guy whose main gimmick is the mask, and it’s on this single cover too, seemingly in a museum. This song in particular is just one of these melodic trap cuts with wavy acoustic guitars blended with synths beyond recognition, topped off with odd bass mastering and a checked-out performance from M Huncho, who spends way too much time on his verses going “doo-doo-doo-doo-doo”, before the beat switches for a verse that fades out after like 20 seconds. What’s the point of any of this, honestly? It’s not awful – the bass does kind of knock – but I really don’t understand why this is here, or why M Huncho is a big name. It’s not even as good as AJ Tracey’s trap bangers and it’s not even as funny as D-Block Europe, which I’m surprised by, considering that he had his own stupid hit with “Pee Pee” around this time last year, and that song was actually good. Also, M Huncho, what do you think your fans get from you dissing them? If you’re going to brag about your “house by the lake” and then rap about how some unnamed individual “still lives at their mum’s in a council estate”, consider that a lot of your audience will still live with their parents in council housing or be surrounded by people who do. Someone who really came from poverty should know that this is classist and disrespectful to your own demographic. Yeah, this is worthless. Why’s this guy still charting? At least Young Adz knows how to write a hook.

#65 – “New Love” – Silk City and Ellie Goulding

Produced by Silk City and Picard Brothers

Okay, so we do have some energy on the chart – or at least half of the credited acts have. Silk City is a duo of producers, those being Diplo, a true weirdo in mainstream EDM who’s honestly kind of fascinating and oftentimes a fluke genius (especially in its work in Major Lazer and Jack U with Skrillex), and Mark Ronson, one of the greatest producers of the 21st century so far, probably most known for “Uptown Funk!”. These guys did have a hit together with Dua Lipa in 2018 in the form of “Electricity”, but it’s been a while and I’m interested to see how they work with the complete non-presence that is Ellie Goulding. It’s with some level of disappointment that I say that she’s not a non-presence here, as this is otherwise a pretty neat house tune with some excellent 90s keys and a deep-house groove I think is pretty fun. The strings in the pre-chorus are great and build-up to a fantastic chorus... or at least the instrumental is fantastic, because Goulding is a waste here, mixed way too high and honestly just faltering her vocals here. She sounds awkward through multi-tracking and even worse without it, as she clearly goes for a rough swagger that cannot work with her light, almost fairy-like voice she’s relied on much of her career. The intricacies of this production are really admirable, but Goulding was clearly an afterthought. With a real diva on vocals, or honestly just a sample of a soul or diva house track, this could be excellent. As it is, I’m bored. Next.

#63 – “Typhoons” – Royal Blood

Produced by Royal Blood

Oh, okay. Well, this is a pleasant surprise. Royal Blood are an English garage rock duo that rock pretty hard, and don’t go for anything else beyond that, which to me is a breath of fresh air, and, yeah, this is good. Is it as good as their debut? Of course not, their biggest hit “Figure it Out” is still incredible, and this one goes for a more synthesized 70s feel, even accentuated by disco keys in the pre-chorus. The riffs are still here though, as that main guitar line is pretty awesome. I see this as a mix of garage rock revival bands from the 2000s like the White Stripes, as well as some stoner-adjacent bands like Queens of the Stone Age, with a more classic hard-rock groove and Mike Kerr’s signature yelp, and it works for what it is, so I’m excited for that upcoming single. Nothing’s particularly impressive here, but I’ll definitely go for this over the rest of what we have charting, so I’m not complaining. This is good, you should check these guys out, even if they tend to be a bit derivative. That tense bridge with the looming background vocals and intensifying riff is genuinely epic, by the way, even if there isn’t much more of a pay-off behind just... the chorus again, which ends up rendering as flat as a result. Regardless, it’s a good break from the norm – which for a chart week like this, I’m especially glad is here.

#61 – “Your Love (9PM)” – ATB, Topic and A75

Produced by ATB, Topic and Rudi Dittmann

German DJ ATB was showing his girlfriend his new recording studio when he got carried away with a single guitar sound and made a song out of it, “9PM (Till I Come)”, named after the time the track was finished. Later on, he took the track and added some whispered vocals from Spanish model Yolanda Riviera. This happened in 1999, by the way, when this song was released to great success in Europe, leading to a hilariously dated album cover but still a UK #1. The song is honestly kind of bad, relying on a pretty typical house groove, ugly MIDI guitars and that seductive vocal loop. Regardless, since 90s nostalgia has come way too fast, Topic has remixed the track with A75, a collaboration we’ve seen before on “Breaking Me” from last year, which sucked. To be fair, the original song is pretty empty, so I’m interested to hear A75 add some vocals... and he just sounds pained over a deep-house rip of the original. The ugly MIDI melody stays, just now it’s drowned out and even more synthesized – this is the guitar sound you liked so much? I hope she left you. Let’s move on.

#59 – “My Head & My Heart” – Ava Max

Produced by Jonas Blue, Earwulf and Cirkut

Speaking of being bored, here’s pop singer Ava Max, with a new lead single from the deluxe edition of her debut studio album, Heaven & Hell. This one’s produced by Jonas Blue, which, alongside a redundant “Jonas Blue remix”, is probably why it’s charting. What’s sad is it’s not really very good, as the vocals are over-processed over fake hand-claps and clipping mixes that make those plastic synths sound even worse. Admittedly, I like the rubbery future bass-esque bass line here, but that’s really as far as my appreciation for this goes, as the writing is non-existent, and Ava Max is barely here. It’s honestly really similar to “New Love”, except this one’s not even as interesting as that track, going for an exhaustingly tired house-pop style that while she is a natural fit for, it does make the 2000s synth-pop she started with sound inspired in comparison. Oh, and the “Jonas Blue remix” is practically a glorified bass-boost that makes this sound even uglier, so, yeah, skip this.

#42 – “Apricots” – Bicep

Produced by Bicep

Bicep is a Northern Irish electronic duo from Belfast, and this is an instrumental from their most recent album, Isles, which clearly must have stood out enough for it to debut at #42. I can understand why too, as that sample from Hugh Tracey’s African music recordings, particularly the vocal sample used, is really infectious and interesting. I don’t think everything surrounding it is enough to really make it less annoying, as it running through nearly the entirety of a four-minute track makes this sample lose its lustre too quickly. It runs its course far before the song has the chance to build up into a house track, with that sample crushing everything that isn’t the percussion in the mix anyway. The keys are really cool, and I can’t fault the strings and ambiance that keeps the song building up for as long as it does. It also takes a sample from a Bulgarian folk choir, which they paralleled to the Celtic folk they grew up hearing, and honestly, this is just a cool blending of global music rather than an actually good song, ending with me respecting this more than actually enjoying it. The synths by the end sound fantastic as does the Bulgarian chanting, but it doesn’t really have a great climax or drop to make the build-up worth it, defaulting to a generic house groove by the end that fades out before it can have any real impact. So, yeah, this isn’t bad, but feels like a waste of some really great ideas. I guess I can say that “Northern Irish remix of an English ethnomusicologist’s recordings of African music that also samples a Bulgarian folk tune” isn’t quite as much of a developed idea as “Kazakh remix of an American rapper of Guyanese descent’s trap song in a Brazilian house style released on a Russian record label”.

#35 – “Lo Vas A Olvidar” – Billie Eilish and ROSALÍA

Produced by FINNEAS

It’s not often that songs in non-English languages chart in the UK. Whilst in the US, Latin music is such a force that it’ll launch hits for many Spanish-speaking artists, this isn’t the case in decidedly smaller Britain, where a still multicultural society tends to produce art that is always in English. To be fair, we don’t have a place like Puerto Rico, and the few songs I’ve talked about this year that have been in a different language... well, basically the one song I can remember off the top of my head, was in a Nigerian Creole language. So, why’s a Spanish song by Spanish artist ROSALÍA charting so high? Well, it’s also a Billie Eilish song, and it’s also from the HBO teen drama Euphoria. Yeah, a teen drama makes a lot of sense for Eilish to soundtrack. This has been teased since 2019, and is actually ROSALÍA’s first song to chart here in the UK, so is it any good? Well, yeah, actually, it is. Both Eilish and ROSALÍA have excellent whispery tones that complement FINNEAS’ muted, ambient production perfectly, and their harmonisation sounds great, with both singing in Spanish here for the most part. That chorus is pretty janky, though, and I don’t really see the point in the Auto-Tuned interludes, even if they both sound great playing off of each other with a lot of tuning in the outro. This is pretty minimal and dare I say awkward, kind of eerie, so I don’t see it sticking around, but as a longing break-up track, they both sell it well. Next.

#28 – “Skin” – Sabrina Carpenter

Produced by Ryan McMahon

Joshua Bassett’s response flopped immensely, meaning that now it’s Sabrina Carpenter’s time to shine, because if it’s anything she gets out of this Disney love triangle, it’s a hit song, and people clearly want to hear more from the women than they do from Josh. Telling. Now I’m not one to follow Disney teen drama because this is all a marketing gimmick. I mean, the songs dropped every Friday so anyone who can’t see through this is either blind or... a child, and considering the audience, that second one is more likely, which is fine. Popular music is, ultimately, in the hands of teenagers and record executives, and all of these break-up response diss track... things, tend to feed into both hands, whilst also giving these talented young actors a bigger break. This is Carpenter’s first charting hit in the UK, after all. The song is decidedly worse than “drivers license” though, and by a lot, as the mixing here isn’t even competent, as Carpenter’s voice clips through these ugly pianos, worsened by how her voice does not sound great here at all, as she struggles through that terrible chorus. She may say that this isn’t a response to Rodrigo, but given the lyrics and how quickly this rushed release was put out, are we really supposed to believe that? The percussion here is gross as well, drowned in bad reverb that makes this just sound grey and dull. The strings building up to a climax are barely there, and when they are, they sound like they’re elevating a really garbage performance from Carpenter, who can barely keep up. This is supposed to be a ballad yet it sounds so stiff and controlled, meaning that Carpenter trying to let loose on the vocals makes this awkward and painful. I’m sorry, but this is really bad, and I hope it doesn’t stick around. Thankfully, I don’t see that happening.

#20 – “Back to Basics” – Fredo

Produced by Dave

Lil Chocolate Frog’s got a new record out this week that I’ve yet to hear, and this is the lead single, produced by his long-time friend and collaborator, Dave – who’s awesome. I’ve typically been less kind to his mate Fredo but honestly, his ever so slightly off-kilter style has grown on me too, and this song is a pretty good introduction to that. It’s one verse over rattling trap hi-hats and a really eerie vocal sample, and Fredo flows casually and smoothly over the beat, in his typical careless, just barely there style, which works well over a pretty subtle beat like this. Fredo’s lyrics are pretty interesting here too, as amidst flexing and gun-play, he has some pretty funny lines, although far from Dave’s wordplay, rather relying on fun one-liners where he says he’s “kind of Christian”, doing revision on drug trafficking, will run for mayor, and because of how much of the gang violence is sadly amongst ethnic minorities, he himself is racially profiling his “opps”. One line near the end of the track actually made me laugh, when he says he counts up twenties while eating porridge. It’s not funny on paper, sure, but the delivery is gold. He shows more character here than he has since “Funky Friday”, also with Dave, so I’m pretty excited to hear this record, which Dave actually executively produced. It’s also got the late Pop Smoke on a track with Young Adz, so at least I’ll let out more of those laughs. This lead single is pretty good though, and I can see it going top 10 next week with the album boost.

#3 – “Wellerman – Sea Shanty” (220 KID x Billen Ted Remix) – Nathan Evans

Produced by Saltwaves, Billen Ted and 220 KID

Last week, the sea shanty “Wellerman” charted as a cover by the Longest Johns. It’s a fine acapella cover, and this version, by Nathan Evans, was originally similarly acapella, except for the tap of a table as percussion to keep time. This version got even more viral on British TikTok, and if I recall correctly, he quit his job to be signed by Polydor, which is pretty scummy on Polydor’s part. I mean, you know this guy won’t have any more hits. Regardless, this version debuted at #3 thanks to a remix by DJs 220 KID and Billen Ted, three English producers. According to their Spotify duo, Billen Ted used to be a death metal band of all things but then transitioned into writing for dance-pop tunes, and have worked with 220 KID, even if this is technically only their second single. This remix is actually pretty cool to be honest, as it takes the original track and adds some needed energy, mostly through this generic 90s house beat and some admittedly really nice pianos. It’s nothing special, and I would usually criticise something this generic, but the song’s not even two minutes and it’s a pretty inoffensive remix that genuinely adds to the original song through that brilliant flip of the original hook melody in the drop, so I can’t complain. This won’t last, but I’m not mad that it’s here.

Conclusion

I’m actually somewhat pleased with this chart week, which I wasn’t expecting initially, as you can probably tell from my above cynicism. Regardless, we’ve got some variety here (though I don’t see much of it sticking) and I’ll give Best of the Week to Royal Blood for “Typhoons”, with a tied Honourable Mention for “Back to Basics” by Fredo, and, God damn it, “Wellerman” by Nathan Evans and remixed by 220 KID and Billen Ted. Shut up, it’s fun! Worst of the Week will probably go to Sabrina Carpenter’s “Skin”, with a Dishonourable Mention for the complete lack of effort that is M Huncho’s “Overpriced”, just being mildly offensive if anything. Here’s our top 10:

For next week, I mean, a girl can hope for some Weezer, but it’s more likely that we’ll be met with a Fredo album bomb and some scattered efforts from that middling Lil Durk deluxe edition. For now though, you can follow me @cactusinthebank for more ramblings and thanks for reading. I’ll see you next week.

[chochote-sijali]

Are there actual people who believe Tory Lanez shot Megan Thee Stallion after reading up on the story? I mean, I used to believe he did it until I found out there is LITTLE evidence that HE did anything. All I see is Megan Thee Stallion saying he did it. Witnesses were around and yet they’re all extremely quiet (that stupid thing where you’re not allowed to snitch among our black community). Megan claims the reason she didn’t say anything at first was because she was tryna protect Tory. But then said it was to protect them all. And what’s everybody else’s reason for not saying anything? Why are the WITNESSES not backing Megan Thee Stallion? Why do they remain silent AND Tory Lanez says they ain’t got his back either? So why remain silent? They ain’t defending either of them so the witnesses have to be protecting someone else.

The most I see from the (uncooperative) witnesses is either that the whole incident was an accident (from my recollection, without specifically pointing out it was Tory who caused it) or that the gun was held by someone else. Most notably Tory and Megan’s friend Kelsey Nicole whom Megan was reportedly in a heated argument supposedly over the fact Tory slept with both of them. Megan claims she was never with Tory but given the passion in some of his songs, I highly doubt he’s lying about being with her. A lot of people suspected they were something of an item and I’m one of those people. 🤷🏽‍♀️

Anyhoo, can anyone address the fact that she said she was walking away from the vehicle, got shot at, crawled away, and ended up back in the car by the time the cops got there? And IF you got shot while walking out the car BUT you felt scared enough to get back into the car of your shooter, then those bullets should’ve hit you a LOT harder than they did because those injuries don’t look anything like an up-close wound from a valid freaking gun. The MOST it looks like are bullet fragments, if even that. Your foot should practically be exploded right open or at least a deeper freaking wound if you were close enough to the car to get back inside.

I believe she may have suffered a traumatic event. Here’s one scenario I believe could’ve happened: fighting with someone she thought was a friend (Kelsey Nicole). One of them, either Kelsey Nicole or Megan, grabbed Tory’s supposed gun and a struggle ensued inside or just outside the car nearby. Gunshots went off, everybody inside probably scared of freaking dying, not just Megan. That’s how glass ended up in the car. I mean, Megan told cops at first she stepped on glass so the glass was clearly there. How you shoot someone through a closed freaking window by the way so glass ends up in your freaking car? Who does that? If Tory shooting is what caused the glass in the car, how? If it wasn’t, still how is there glass in the car? Some violent mess went down for it to be believable to cops that she stepped on glass from the car.

Before I listened to any song from Daystar, I already believed that both Megan and Tory were covering for someone there. I at first thought it was another man, but now I do believe it to be Kelsey Nicole. Unfortunately, as a black man, this puts Tory Lanez in a bad spot where he gets considered a snitch for putting the very woman he was sleeping with in jail for shooting the woman he was also sleeping with. People don’t understand how freaking stupid (and complicated) this social norm gets in the black community. Black people, given their history with police, are incredibly nasty about snitches and even when that involves assault and ESPECIALLY murder and gun violence. It makes sense that while Tory keeps the shooter’s name out his mouth publicly (with it only being admitted within court), it ALSO makes sense that Megan wouldn’t put her friend in jail for a violent spat and more likely would put the man in jail since he was just a guy she slept with.

I as a black woman have been around PLENTY of black women who disrespect black men. Many of them are indeed wimps around women they genuinely care about, and people keep perpetuating the NASTY stereotype that black men are somehow always violent. Through this Information Age, you can freaking tell a lot of the time when someone has violent tendencies toward women. You don’t hear a freaking thing about this almost 30-year-old man about any previous violence in a relationship. Black men CAN and DO get lied on; how else do they freaking appear with high rates of innocence while spending their time in jail. This country has treated light skin as better because of European influence, right? And the black community has a nasty colorism issue, no? So how do you believe that black women (and the men themselves as well) wouldn’t lie to put other black men in jail in communities that freaking hate snitches?? They are part of the whole snitch on the innocent that the white perspective started as much as colorism in America is affected by the white perspective. Black men are just as freaking dispensable as black women in America. White people are NOT the only ones who perpetuate this; it’s perpetuated by the black community just as much.

Get rid of this idiotic snitch concept and you’ll easily be able to find out who freaking did what they did. If it was Tory, then so be it. If it was Kelsey Nicole, let that truth ring out. If it was Megan (by accident through struggling with the gun), then let that mess out. But I highly doubt Megan accidentally shot herself. None of their reactions come off that way. The fact that Kelsey Nicole is incredibly quiet in all of this while Tory and Megan are the only ones talking is weird. Look at her. She was a MAIN witness to Tory supposedly shooting Megan. Why is she not freaking saying anything?? I can bet she knows full well Tory would freaking flame her if she went after him.

All of this being said and I’m not a huge fan of Tory Lanez. I simply got interested in listening to a couple of his earlier songs, some of which I didn’t know were his, and decided to look up the incident a few days ago (me going into it believing he did actually shoot her, and me only listening to her side which tipped me off that something was totally off).

[womenofcolor15]

Meg Thee Stallion Calls Tory Lanez ‘Genuinely Crazy’ During His New IG Live ‘Confessional’ – Not Once Did He DENY Shooting Her

Tory Lanez hopped on Instagram Live last night to “tell his side” of the shooting scandal but didn’t really say much. During the session, Megan Thee Stallion hopped on Twitter to respond. Get it all inside…

Almost two weeks after Tory Lanez was hit with felony charges in connection with the Megan Thee Stallion shooting, the singer/rapper decided to open up and clear his name via Instagram Live last night.

GOING ON IG LIVE TONIGHT .... 8 PM .... ILL SEE U THERE .

— Tory Lanez (@torylanez) October 20, 2020

However, some people were not convinced.

The Canadian rapper talked and talked and talked, claiming the allegations made against him were “not true” and then tried to discredit everything Meg has spoken publicly about. During the IG Live, we noticed he referenced a lot of initial reports of the incident – that went down July 12th - and not the updates.

He said after the shooting, he was prepared to make a public statement, but Roc Nation (Meg’s management) hit him up and advised against it.

"Two days after that, I get a call from Roc Nation that says, 'Yo, we heard you were gonna to make a statement about what happened, and it'd be in your best interest if you don't make that statement,'" he said. "And I'm like, OK? I don't understand the issue of me telling my fans, like, 'Yo, it's not that serious of a deal ...'"

He tried to point out that reports said she was treated for shattered glass, but failed to mention more recent reports. Hospital records support Meg’s claim where doctors found shrapnel in her heel. Tory didn’t mention that though. He also didn't mention those alleged text messages he sent to Meg apologizing for his actions, blaming it on being "too drunk."

The “Say It” rapper questioned how could she know who shot her when she was walking away from the vehicle and questioned why she would get back in a vehicle with the person she said shot her. He also questioned why Meg didn’t tell the police she was a shooting victim, but Meg explained during an IG Live that she didn’t tell the police what happened because she was afraid how the police would react – especially during the climate we’re in, dealing with police brutality.

Tory was saying a lot, he but didn’t really say much. He never said “I did not shoot Megan,” nor did he reveal WHO shot her. On his DAYSTAR album he dropped last month, he said he didn’t shoot her

Ending the Live, he said has always supported black women and still considers Meg one of his homies.

”It’s not accurate information. I don’t ever wanna come off like I'm here to bash this girl or I'm here to talk down about this girl or ever be at a place where, like, I'm disrespecting her, because to me, as a person, she's still my friend," he said. "No matter what - even if she doesn't look at me like that - I look at her like she’s still my friend."

Check it:

        View this post on Instagram

                  #ToryLanez decided to have an IG Live session to get “his side” off his chest. #MegTheeStallion responds.

A post shared by TheYBF (@theybf_daily) on Oct 20, 2020 at 7:39pm PDT

Some fans believe him and said he makes a lot of sense. Others feel like he’s only regurgitating scenarios he's read on blogs and in comments online. Hmph.

During the Live, the Houston Hottie took to Twitter to react, calling him “genuinely crazy”:

This Nigga genuinely crazy

— HOT GIRL MEG (@theestallion) October 21, 2020

Two weeks ago, Tory Lanez (real name Daystar Peterson) was charged with one felony count each of assault with a semiautomatic firearm – personal use of a firearm – and carrying a loaded, unregistered firearm in a vehicle. The defendant also faces a gun allegation and that he personally inflicted great bodily injury. If he’s convicted, he faces a possible maximum sentence of 22 years and 8 months in prison.

He was originally scheduled for a court hearing on October 13th, but it was postponed to November 18th. As you know, the courts ordered Tory Lanez to stay at least 100 yards away from the “Savage” rapper.

  Photos: Scott Roth/Invision/AP/Meg’s IG

[Read More ...] source http://theybf.com/2020/10/21/meg-thee-stallion-calls-tory-lanez-%E2%80%98genuinely-crazy%E2%80%99-during-his-ig-live-%E2%80%98confessional%E2%80%99-%E2%80%93-

[hoochy-coo]

As a black woman I'm so sick of people not acknowledging colorism. Especially one it comes from a rapper they like, like ill Wayne is honestly a fucking scum ( he made good music yeah ) but when you talk about the colorism shit and his treatment of his dark skin daughter people get up in arms, as if you can't like someones music without acknowledging their shitbags. 50 cents is also a pos but people still allow him to stay relevant, if they talked that way to a white woman they would be

- Cancelled. People don't give a fuck about black woman and it fucking shows, part of the experience of growing as a black woman is realizing no one has your back, I mean quite literally, black men especially don't. Like you just grow up having to depend on yourself for shit and just having to be " strong ". Being strong is not a praise, the fact that people don't take our plight seriously, that we are not even women in the eyes of people. Like look at Megan thee stallion the woman got shot And people made it a meme, and I swear if that was some white chick she wouldn't have to say a peep and Tory lanez would be fucking jailed. There was literally no sympathy for her, especially from the community, especially from black men. They were all caping for Tory, but look at kanye, a rich man with resources to deal with his mental health, after everything he said, everyone is making excuses for him, sympathizing with him. Yet the can't do the same for a woman literally got shot.

First of all, I just want to say that I won’t ever be able to fully empathise with you and your experiences. I just want you to know that I’m listening and I’m fully hearing you. I enjoy Wayne’s music but I agree that he is a POS, disrespectful to women and the way he treats his daughter based on her skin colour is completely unacceptable. The same thing goes for 50 cent who’s been ignorant for decades now. It’s 2020 and he’s still out here making remarks about “exotic” women as well as “angry” black women a week ago, and see nothing wrong with it. Just because they’ve made bops and they’ve stayed relevant/hailed as an OG in the culture, that doesn’t excuse their behaviour but I hear you when you said they get away with it because the culture ALLOWS them. It is disgusting that people constantly give them a pass and don’t want to hold them accountable because they make hits. I also 100% agree that if they spoke like that about white women, people would be so quick to cancel them.

I also had a conversation with my friends about Meg earlier this week. We all agreed that it’s not funny and it’s hurtful to not just her but black women in general, that the media have taken this as an opportunity to make a joke out of the situation. Violence, period, is a serious matter and violence against women is unfortunately still a pertinent issue to this very day, especially in the black community. She could have gotten fatally hurt and if that happened people would switch their tunes about the situation. I can’t speak for your community but from what I’ve seen, the general public are more concerned about making memes out of it than checking for her safety. This is actually so concerning because Meg isn’t even small time anymore - she’s a big star, arguable one of the biggest atm and seeing how unbothered people are over what Tory allegedly did (I dont feel confident saying for sure, I haven’t kept up - sorry!) just goes to show that there’s a different standard for black women - doesn’t matter if you’re a superstar or a regular person.