I was listening to my Spotify Top Pop Hits playlist the other day and the popular rap song "iSpy" by Kyle featuring Lil Yachty played. It has a cute melody and is extremely catchy. But then I listened to the words and was appalled.
This song's chorus talks about finding a "girlie I can get because she doesn't get too many likes." I had a serious issue with this when I first heard this line. Kyle's point is that the girls that get 1200+ likes on a picture are going to be unattainable for him, so he goes for the ones that get 200-400 likes on a picture. His solution is to go for someone who he thinks will have less self-confidence and thus will be easier for him to land.
I think this is extremely degrading to women on any social platform media. Maybe the 200-400 "like girl" is newer to social media, it doesn't mean that she has any less self-esteem than the 1200+ "like girl." This is an issue in our society today as people judge you on the amount of followers, likes, or retweets you get. But life is so much more than that and social media is more than that. Social media is a form of self-expression and I hate how people use it as an object of social status.
I was interested in what Kyle had to say about his lyrics so I watched the video of him explaining it to the people at Genius Lyrics. He explained that he goes for the girls that have fewer likes because he has an easier time getting them to notice him. He said "That’s where the concept for the hook came from. It’s like, “Oh my god, I think I spy an opportunity here.” Don’t blow this." I understand where he is coming from so I was able to get over my original hesitations with the song. But then I had a hard time digesting the next lines in the chorus.
Kyle sings "A curly-headed cutie that I can turn into a wife. Oh, wait that means forever, ever, hold up, nevermind." This is a whole other issue that I have with today's dating culture. It's not so much dating anymore as it is hook-up culture. Obviously hooking up and one-night stands are going to be a part of our society, but in my opinion, if you're going to date someone without the idea of marriage as an end goal, then what's the point?
There are plenty of other issues that I have with the song and it's lyrics, but that's also rap for you. So, to Kyle and Lil Yachty, I think you have a catchy song and I understand your points that you make in the song, but I think there was a better way to get those points across.
