Approx 2 minute read
Published by Atinuke Ayorinde
Friday 11th November 2022 10AM
Drake and 21 Savage via Youtube
On Friday 4th November Drake released his highly anticipated joint album with rapper 21 savage.
The album consists of 16 tracks that carry heavy hip-hop and trap sounds. It was obvious that people online preferred this project to his previous (honestly never mind) one. Which was heavily influenced by the techno and dance genre.
According to chart data, Her loss is projected to reach number 1 on the Billboard 200 charts with a sell of 335-350k album-equivalent units, with huge numbers to come from 425-450m streams. Despite its chart success, the album was met with controversy as a lyric from a song called Circo Loco'(track 9) is said to be referring to the infamous Megan the stallion and Tory Lanez case. Drake raps: ‘This bitch lie ’bout gettin’ shots, but she a stallion’. Many people online quickly speculated that drake was referring to the horrifying shooting incident with Megan thee stallion in July 2020. Megan thee stallion suffered gunshot wounds from Tory Lanez (Daystar Peterson) and had to undergo surgery to remove the bullets.
Since the incident, many people have accused Megan of lying and now this lyric just adds more fuel to the fire.
Megan thee stallion responded with a couple of tweets:
Megan thee stallion via Twitter
Looking at Megan’s response, you can see that she is fed up with this rhetoric. Ever since Megan came forward, she has faced a great deal of abuse online.
As a sign of proof, Megan had to release her medical records and pictures of the bruises she gained on her feet. All to demonstrate that her story is nothing but the truth.
Lil yachty who was one of the writers and producers of the album stated on his Instagram live that drake was not referring to Megan but rather women who lie about getting Brazillian Butt Lift (as if that’s any better). Drake has not made any comments about the lyrics, leaving consumers to draw up theories about what was really said. Making up theories has led to people discrediting Megan thee stallions story. This is not the first time this has happened. When Megan came forward, Megan had to release her medical records and pictures of the bruises she gained on her feet. All to demonstrate that her story is nothing but the truth.
All this can be known as misogynoir which is the discrimination towards black women. Misogynoir in hip-hop is a whole topic in itself. so I won’t go into it. if you want to have a better understanding check out Ellen chamberlain’s ted talk on misogyny in hip-hop which can be found on youtube.
On Thursday 10th November, the southern black girls & Women’s Consortium shared an open letter of support to Megan thee stallion for denouncing violence against black women. The letter has over two dozen signees including the MeToo founder, the planned parenthood CEO, and two Congresswomen. Honestly, it was refreshing to find out that Megan was getting support from government officials and the CEO of social rights companies. Drake should have known that line was to cause commotion either way. Let us not forget, Drake is a smart man and he is deemed a ‘lyrical genius’ by many. So when you hear the line, it’s obvious that he knows what he is doing. Drake is actually good friends(despite them having beef with each other in 2016) with Torey Lanez. Just last year, the two were playing basketball at Drake’s Toronto mansion.
Although some might say that this is no surprise, drake has been known to have misogynist views, I guess we all just turn a blind eye to it. Thinking of his previous songs like Hotline bling, Drake raps’ starting wearing less and going out more. Here it seems drake is saddened by the thought of a woman partying and going out more. It is as if you are supposed to sympathise with drake. After a bad breakup or disagreement, the woman is meant to be miserable, not willing to go out or move forward from a previous relationship. We could pull apart every drake lyric but we would be here forever. However, I do advise you to have a look at his others lyrics because everything starts to make sense. I have been listening to drake since i was in high school, he is even one of my celebrity crushes.(cringe, I know).
So when i heard this lyric and saw the commotion on Twitter I was in some ways disappointed but not fully shocked. Nothing will happen to Drake, even though people have complained about his misogynistic lyrics in the past. The reality is that he is still going to generate sales and still be one of the most famous rappers. On the contrary, I believe it’s important to call out an artist when they have gone too far or has said something harmful to another individual. Indirecting that someone is lying about something serious happening to them is a dangerous came to play.
So whatever the real meaning of the lyric is, it seems that its drake’s loss as the indirect towards Megan overshadowed a project that was genuinely good. When people think of this project they won’t necessarily remember the catchy beats or the funny/awkward lyrics. All that is left is the reminder that misogynoir is rife in hip-hop.
Written by Atinuke Ayorinde
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