“WAP” and Policing Black Women in Rap
On August 7th, 2020, rappers Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion released their massively popular and iconic single, “WAP”. An acronym for “Wet Ass Pussy,” the song is an endlessly quotable anthem for Black women’s sexuality, empowering them in their desires by putting their own pleasures to the forefront, completely unfiltered. “WAP” wastes no time getting its point across; the beat incorporates a repeating sample from Frank Ski’s single “Whores in This House” while Cardi B opens with the hook: “I said certified freak, seven days a week / Wet-ass pussy, make that pull out game weak”. It quickly received mass acclaim from fans and critics alike, with publications such as Rolling Stone and NPR naming it the best song of the year.
Unsurprisingly, not even a day later, conservative backlash against the song had already spread like wildfire on social media, with many conservative political figures and internet personalities taking to Twitter or their podcasts to express their disdain for the song. “Cardi B & Megan Thee Stallion just set the entire female gender back by 100 years with their disgusting & vile ‘WAP’ song,” tweeted DeAnna Lorraine, a former republican congressional candidate who lost to Nancy Pelosi, said on Twitter. Reactions of similar nature from people of a similar nature permeated throughout the internet in the days following the song’s release, most infamously clips of conservative political commentator Ben Shaprio’s reading aloud of the lyrics on his podcast. In short, the general reaction from conservatives to the song was that it was some sort of threat to their idea of what a “proper” woman should be.
But why was “WAP” the catalyst for a new wave of conservative outcry when people talk about sex in rap all the time? In the year when other sexually explicit rap songs such as Roddy Ricch’s “The Box” and Pop Smoke & Lil Tjay’s “Mood Swings” topped the charts right alongside Cardi and Megan, why did they receive all the backlash? Unfortunately, conservatives being upset at two massively successful Black women talking about sex in a song is by no means a flash in the pan. For the politicians and podcasters, harping on whatever the next viral thing to oppose helps retain their image and keep their followers conditioned, but for the millions of other right-wingers tweeting and posting about their distaste for the song, it speaks to the racially motivated policing of Black women’s sexuality, a long-standing pillar of conservative rhetoric. In other words, this was nothing new, and yet, neither was the content of the song itself.
Black women have been talking about sex in hip-hop since the inception of the genre, with its roots tracing back to blues and R&B. Salt-N-Pepa’s “Let’s Talk About Sex”, released in 1990, 30 years prior to Cardi and Megan’s track, calls attention to safe sex practices, harm reduction and awareness of promiscuity among the youth. TLC’s single “Ain’t 2 Proud 2 Beg”, released a year later in 1991, tackles similar subjects. Both songs feature Black women candidly talking about sex in a fun and playful yet informative way. “So we just talking about something in a fun way,” said T-Boz of TLC in an interview (YouTube) If you’re gonna have sex, we’re singing use protection, but then again, since you’re doing it, let’s talk about it”. Clearly, women in hip-hop being open about sex has been around for a long time, and while there are more lighthearted songs such as these, sexually explicit anthems created by Black women a la “WAP” have also been around for just as long. Female rap duo BWP (Bytches With Problems) released their most popular song “Two Minute Brother” also in 1991, in which members Lyndah McCaskill and Tanisha Michele Morgan drop boastful bars about their sexual pleasures, and making fun of partners who are unable to please them properly; “The beautiful was cold three inches long / Now I'm pissed and I'm ready to bitch / But my cunt's so horny, I don't give a shit / 'Cause I'm one nasty ass bitch / And I need something up in my clit / I only got half of his, I'm still ticked / Aw, what the hell, just go for it” asserting herself as a “nasty ass bitch”, Lyndah unabashedly asserts her horniness on the track, putting her desires first and the man’s second. It speaks to the notion that songs that empower women’s sexuality have been a mainstay in hip-hop for decades, and that trend will most certainly continue. Tracks such as “Two Minute Brother” and “WAP” demonstrate the power of art–more specifically music–as a means of expressing oneself; McCaskill said in an interview: "When I wrote the lyrics to the song it was kind of empowering for me because it was all the things that I wanted to say but was never able to say". (Okayplayer)
However, as long-standing as tracks such as these are, backlash to sexually explicit content in songs created by Black women has also been around the whole time. Lyor Cohen, head of Rush Associated Labels, who released BWP’s debut album The Bytches, chose to remove a line from the album, stating "For 7½ years in this business, I've stretched all bounds of what people put on record...but this line goes above and beyond''. (Orlando Sentinel) Mark Sexx, producer and co-writer of the album, responded by saying "If it was the Geto Boys or 2 Live Crew saying that line, I'm sure it would be OK with him... but as soon as a woman starts saying it, it's a problem. That's sexism,” to which McCaskill wholeheartedly agreed. This is just one example of men trying to censor the artistic expression and free thinking of women because they were simply uncomfortable with the lyrics. When men rap about their sexual desires and acts in ways that degrade women or objectify them, no one bats an eye. But when women do it, especially Black women, people take action to physically alter the art or get rid of it entirely. Despite this, songs of a similar nature would continue to be created and reach new levels of popularity throughout the years, thanks to the bold and ever creative women emcees of the 90s and 2000s such as Lil Kim’s “Big Momma Thang”, Foxy Brown’s “Ill Na Na” and Nicki Minaj’s “Anaconda”, bringing us to the 2020s with Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion’s “WAP”, and where we are today with Sexyy Red’s “Poundtown” and Ice Spice’s “Munch (Feelin’ U)”.
With the ever-increasing popularity and success of women’s sexual anthems such as “WAP”, attitudes surrounding the topic have fortunately become much more welcoming and celebratory, with fans of all genders being able to appreciate these songs. Sexually explicit music has since been incredibly normalized in the years since the early days of hip-hop. Cardi B herself has even defended the song as not being as explicit as people say it is: “The people that the song bothers are usually conservatives or really religious people, but my thing is I grew up listening to this type of music," she said in an interview. (People) "Other people might think it's strange and vulgar, but to me, it's almost like really normal, you know what I'm saying?" Megan put it much more bluntly: “Them people crazy — why you worried about my WAP?" (People)
In sum, the conservative backlash against "WAP" underscores a long-standing pattern of policing Black women's sexuality in hip-hop. Despite the song's widespread critical and fan acclaim and celebration of women’s sexual empowerment, it ignited controversy reminiscent of past instances where sexually explicit content in songs created by Black women was met with criticism, and at times, censorship. However, this reaction only serves to highlight the enduring power of Black women in hip-hop to boldly express themselves and challenge societal norms. From pioneers like Salt-N-Pepa and TLC to contemporary icons like Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion, female emcees have consistently used their art to assert their autonomy and reshape perceptions of their sexuality. As the hip-hop world continues to evolve, so too does the impact and influence of women in the genre. In the face of criticism, women in rap remain unapologetic, affirming the validity of their expression and reminding detractors that their voices deserve to be heard.
Works Cited
https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/wet-ass-pussy-ben-shapiro-conservative-backlash-1042491/?sub_action=logged_in
https://www.okayplayer.com/originals/sex-rap-songs-90s-female-rappers-cardi-b-wap.html
TLC interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G3zPrBQ-ees&t=270s
https://www.orlandosentinel.com/1990/12/09/lyrics-censored-sexism-says-rap-producer/
https://people.com/music/cardi-b-surprised-by-conservatives-reaction-to-wap/
