Black rap enthusiasts on social media have taken a page out of Lord Jamar’s book and are reminding white fans that they are guests in the house of Hip-Hop and must constantly watch their manners.
That includes saying the “n-word.”
While some British fans might not have gotten the memo, one that has been typed up in big, bold capital letters by Eminem, Justin Bieber, Machine Gun Kelly, Iron Solomon, Big K, Nunn Nunn, A-ward, and so many other Caucasians in the space, there are plenty people of color ready to remind you that some things are off-limits (even if you love the music and culture).
Such was the case last Friday, July 8th, at a Roddy Ricch show in Finsbury Park in London, England. The artist was a featured performer at the Wireless Festival, rapping for a diverse crowd of music lovers.
When he performed the 2019 hit song, “The Box,” the crowd of white people sang along, screamed the lyrics word for word, and yelled the “n-word” at the top of their lungs.
Once the footage got out, Black Twitter was not having it.
Black people “White people can’t say N####”
— Smoove (@o_Smoove_o) July 12, 2022
Roddy Ricch https://t.co/mgvgB0a7X3 pic.twitter.com/IlQSIsfoL1
One person asked the star, “@RoddyRicch, how it feel to have a sea of white people scream n#### at you ???”
“Roddy Ricch had white folks reciting the n-word countless times and we just gon let it slide? definitely not me,” another tweeted.
Roddy Ricch had white folks reciting the n-word countless times and we just gon let it slide ? definitely not me
— Two Eyes (@nashyniice) July 12, 2022
“Majority of that wireless fest was white. Why did “N####” sounded so loud when Roddy Ricch performed?”
Majority of that wireless fest was white. Why did “N####” sounded so loud when Roddy Ricch performed ?
— Secret (@PURELUEUR) July 11, 2022
“Live rap shows unlock a different level of audacity in [white] people, I swear,” a fan tweeted.
There are two ways to fix white people who desperately want to use the “n-word” as they are visiting the extremely popular and translatable facet of Black culture. Both Ta-nehesi Coates and Kendrick Lamar figured out how to do it in different styles.
The Compton native checked a white woman, whom he brought up on stage as a part of his show, for saying the word as a part of the chorus in his hit song, “m.A.A.d city.”
He said, “wait, wait, wait,” after she had already said the racial epithet several times. In disbelief that he stopped her, and she says, “Am I not cool enough for you? What’s up, bro?”
“Rules just really cool, you have to work with me,” she whined.
He said she could stay but she could not say the n-word. She claimed she did not even realize she uttered the slur that Black people have coded as a term of endearment.
Ta-nehesi Coates is a little different.
He charged a group of white people to consider why they wanted to say something that was not theirs.
“For white people, I think the experience of being a Hip-Hop fan and not being able to use the word ‘n#####’ is actually very insightful. It will give you just a little peek into the world of what it means to be Black.”
Coates continued, “Because to be Black is to walk through the world and watch people doing things that you cannot do … that you can’t join in and do. I think there’s actually a lot to be learned from refraining.”
Hopefully, white fans will get it.