Polow Da Don has been the talk of the
urban community and every major Hip-Hop site and blog on the web,
due to some audacious comments made in a recent interview with AllHipHop.com- comments that raised more than a few eyebrows. With controversial topics
such as race, gender, and religion, there is always opposition and speculation.
Nevertheless, Polow Da Don is relentlessly consistent and refuses to falter
under the criticism of his peers. Polow Da Don spoke freely with AllHipHop.com
about the aforementioned comments and why he isn’t backing down. Oh,
and for the record, he is now the self-proclaimed “Prince of the
White Girls.”
AllHipHop.com: Of course there has
been all type of controversy surrounding the interview you did with
us.
Polow Da Don: Oh I love it. It just
makes people kind of think. I got a lot of positive feedback on
the MySpace page, and emails, and on the IM (Instant Messenger). I got
mostly positive feedback, actually.
AllHipHop.com: So do you stand by
your statements?
Polow Da Don: Oh definitely. It has
nothing to do with me, these effects. I didn’t make this stuff up. Only
thing where people got misled is that I said I prefer a White woman,
and that’s not the case at all. Really, I date all types of women.
It was a stage in my life when I started dating a lot of White women-
that was just a stage in my life. Right now, I date girls I like.
I don’t base it off of any shade or color when I meet a girl now.
They linked my comments about the Black family and Black women with
the “King of the White Girls” and [the fact that] I dated White girls. That’s where it all went wrong. So when I was comparing
Black women to White women, that has zero to do with me dating White
women. What I was saying was factual though. Ladies and gentlemen
agreed, n****s and b******s got mad.
AllHipHop.com: I think people
viewed the Black women not being submissive comment as a negative thing.
Do you view the idea of a woman being submissive as negative?
Polow Da Don: Well of course
[they viewed it as negative], because they’ve been taught to think that.
And that’s exactly my point. A lot of those women who probably feel
that way probably came up without both parents, or they are probably
in a situation where they are not married now. All you got to
do is refer to the “Willie Lynch Letter.” First of all, we
don’t read enough as a people, we don’t educate ourselves enough as
a people. When I make strong opinions and comments like this,
you’re gonna have people that go crazy, and you’re gonna have other
people that say, “He’s right.” So my point is, anybody with
a strong opinion, or strong words, or when you say something racial,
it’s an emotional thing. Black women are very emotional, Black people
are very emotional. So when you’re talking about a race, it’s
going to be emotional, it’s going to be mixed views.
I’m just bringing the problem out
to the forefront. That’s the only way you can solve a problem.
If you’re in denial and say, “We don’t have a problem,”
you will see the divorce rate increase, or you will see [the] marriage
rate decrease because it’s already been proven. My parents got married
almost 40 years ago, and they are still together and more in love than
my homeboys and my homegirls.
AllHipHop.com: Do you think that
your mom would agree or disagree with your statements?
Polow Da Don: She would definitely
say I was right. I love my mother because she is a strong woman.
My mother came from Japan. My mother was born in Japan so she has very
strong morals. At the end of the day, she definitely believes
in letting the man be the man of the house. She definitely believes
in family because of what she went through in life. My mother
was adopted, so her family is like her only real family. Me, my
brother, my sister and my father, we are her life. So she just looks
at family a little different, she values it. Of course they have
arguments, but they are a healthy couple. But at the end of the
day, my mother remains to be a woman, so it makes it so much easier
for my father just to be a man. So we were always clear about
who was who and what was what. My mother is very strong, she’s actually
stronger.
It’s not that I’m attacking Black
women; Black women have done this to themselves. Well I’m not
going to say that. They didn’t do it to themselves, but they are a part
of the cycle, which means they’re not helping the situation by not looking
at the problem. So let’s take White people out of it, and take
any other race out of it. I used White women as a comparison because
so many Black people get mad because I say that I’m the “King of the
White Girls.” First of all, saying that I’m the “King of the White
Girls,” how can you find that disrespectful as a Black woman?
You are an idiot. If anything, I should have Klansmen feeling disrespected;
I should have White women feeling disrespected as far as a Black man
saying he’s the king of the White women. It’s not disrespectful
to Black woman at all. If a white man says, “I’m the King
of Black women,” would [Black women] be mad at the White man? Of
course you would be, and so would Black men. You think a White woman
would be mad at a White man saying, “I’m the king of Black women?”
No, they won’t be mad. So I don’t understand how a Black woman
can feel offended by me saying I’m the “King of the White Girls.”
I didn’t come up with that. Like I said, a White man came up with that
title for me. But, Black women do need to get their s### together, period,
point blank. And if you’re in denial of that, you are part of the problem.
AllHiphop.com: Do you think
that White women don’t have any issues?
Polow Da Don: American women
have issues. Black women are the backbone of our families.
If every Black woman got together and said, “We’re not gonna date
guys unless they have PhDs. We’re not gonna date guys unless they have
a Master’s [degree].” Guess what? In due time, n****s will
stop selling dope and they’ll start going to college. It’s that
simple. Again, all you have to do is refer to the “Willie Lynch Letter.”
All this was planned. All the negative responses; you’re supposed
to respond like that. That wasn’t even your idea to act like that.
That was the white man’s idea that had slaves hundreds of years ago.
See that’s what they don’t understand. What I’m doing is shining
the light on the problem. So we’re shining the light on the roaches,
now we got to get these roaches out of here. See me talking like
I talk is really a red flag. It’s really on some “wake up” s**t.
AllHipHop.com: So why do you
go at women more than men?
Polow Da Don: First of all,
Americans get divorced almost double any other country. That’s a problem
within itself. Now Black women, or Black families I should say,
almost all end in divorce. Now, a woman, to me, can either hold
that together or she can let it go. Most men don’t know how to be
men anymore, because most of them come from the brunt of their mothers,
with no father there. That woman can’t teach them how to be a
man. So him not being a man now is just him coming from a background
that he’s unfortunate. So now, nine times out of ten, he’s gonna have
a certain way; and if you come from that same kind of background, nine
times out of ten, ya’ll are gonna fail as a couple. But it’s gonna
take the Black women to turn it around. So that’s why I come at the
Black women first. Just like if I want to have all the hoes on the block
and be a pimp, I got to get all the women’s backing first. Then I can
get all the dudes to come to any party I want them to come to.
Look at strip clubs. You take all the women out of strip clubs and see
how popular the strip club becomes. You tell women to stop dating
dope dealers and you’ll see how cool dealing dope becomes.
AllHipHop.com: So we discussed how
some Black have not really learned to be men yet. Do you think
that may be a reason why some Black women have a problem being submissive
to that kind of man?
Polow Da Don: No. Women have
been taught to not trust us. Women have run the household for
so long, they’ve been taught to be independent. So when a man comes
in and tries to run the household, they are kind of fighting for that
spot, so to speak. There’s gonna be a little resistance before a woman
just let’s it all go because they’ve seen their mothers be strong, and
grandmothers be so strong, and they taught them to be the same way.
So when you meet a guy you’re gonna challenge him. Take somebody
like Oprah (Winfrey.) To me Oprah is a bad example. To me Oprah being
titled as the most powerful Black woman in America, and she doesn’t
have a man… To me that’s sending a bad signal to all young Black women.
That’s saying the most powerful Black woman in America didn’t need a
man. You telling me that’s a role model? AllHipHop.com: Do you feel like people
who are celebrities hold their tongue on issues like this? Do you think
they should?
Polow Da Don: I feel like status
and money allows you to be who you really are. I think that’s
why some people are in the closet, until they get rich, then go, “Oh!
I’m gay.” This is who I really am. I really am someone who
looks at the big picture. I feel like I just see through so much
of the bulls**t. I look past the things that are right in front of me.
So, all you got to do is read the Bible. Read, just read. It is a fact
that it should be God, man, woman, child. I feel like if a woman
plays her role, then a man has no choice but to play his role.
And they both, as a whole, need to get back into God. Then our
children will fall in line. Our children will not disrespect [their]
parents. But I think we do have to start with the Black woman
because [they] have the most power.
AllHipHop.com: Another statement
that offended people was when you said either Black people are idiots
or white people are geniuses. I think they interpreted the statement
as your personal feelings. Do you remember that statement?
Polow Da Don: I think everybody
keeps forgetting that I’m Black myself. And what people like to do is,
once somebody gets a little money, all of a sudden you’re not one of
“them” anymore. The problem is, most of your readers, especially
on AllHipHop.com, don’t know who they are and don’t read, and are not
educated. N****s don’t read books. Now when you print that, a
lot of people are gonna get mad. But I’m gonna tell you something, White people already know this. It’s not a secret so don’t get
mad at me for stating the facts. I’m not making Black people look
bad, you’re making Black people look bad. Black people already
look bad. You go anywhere across the world and see how they respect
Black people. Africans don’t even respect Black Americans.
I’m just saying, this is real s**t. Everybody looks at the Black
American like we’re fools, like we’re lazy, like we’re idiots, and like
we’re dumb. This is factual, and if you don’t believe that I’m
telling the truth, what you need to do is just do your history and do
your homework. Discuss this matter with people around the world. Come
on man, n****s is dying and killing over rims and jewelry. It
is time to be slapped and wake up.
AllHipHop.com: So do you think
that your opinions set you apart from others in the industry?
Polow Da Don: When I came into
the game with my production, didn’t you hear something different in
my music? Like a sense of dignity? When I blew up, snap music
was the biggest thing poppin’. When I came with “London Bridge”
a hater will look at it like “Aww man, he doing pop music. He giving
all that good stuff to white people.” I look at it like; I’m bringing
them to my culture because that’s the most Hip-Hop you’ve ever heard.
“London Bridge” was probably one of the most Hip-Hop beats
that came out in the last three to five years. So, everything
I do, I do with pride and I do with dignity. And that’s why the real
leaders in this game respect me. And that’s why I’m different.
That’s why I get invited to dinner dates that others don’t get invited
to. They know that my mind set, it’s just something about me. This is
a secret. Black people have secrets. White people don’t. And what
I meant when I said “either black people are idiots or white people
are geniuses” is that we have fallen for the trick over and over again.
We are more enslaved than we’ve ever been. We used to get our
a** beat to do stuff, now we do it on our own. Now we hold each other
down on our own. Now we don’t wanna be s**t on our own. Now we don’t
read on our own. I’m a bad motherf****r, any other questions?
AllHipHop.com: [Laughs]. Wow. Somebody
left a comment and called you a “House N***a.” Does that offend
you? Polow Da Don: Most of the time the
house n***a would come and whip a field n***a’s a**. Nah I’m just joking.
A lot of people take my humor too seriously. That’s just an ignorant
statement. They are supposed to feel that way, so no matter how much
sense I make, them, and people who feel like them, will discredit me.
Why are there no Black leaders? The s**t is by design. It’s hard to
have a Black leader because the old people don’t respect the young people,
and the young people don’t respect the old. The men don’t respect the
women, and the women don’t respect the men. So how can a person lead
all these people who are confused?
AllHipHop.com: I feel you. So do you
have anything else to add?
Polow Da Don: Yes. I am no longer calling
myself the “King of White Girls,” I am the Prince. Quincy
Jones had the baddest white girls ever, and the most. I did my history
and I ain’t got s**t on Quincy Jones. [Laughs]
