Female rappers are on the come up. And with bars being closed we're forced to throw it back in our living rooms to the new hits instead of at the clubs. Nonetheless, we are currently in a booming time for women in the hip hop industry.
For example, "Cash Sh*t" by Megan Thee Stallion was monumental. She rapped about looking hot when getting that bag, meanwhile the population of Tik Tok choreographed a dance to it. And Meg brought the heat again when she featured on Cardi B's hit new song, "WAP."
However, "WAP" is more than just a song to blast in the car or shake our butts to— it has had implications on its listeners that say a lot about society.
Before I go any further, let me clarify, this is what I've seen and these are generalizations.
When this song first came out, the reaction videos and feedback I observed expressed feelings of shock and came from mostly boys. Which sparked the question: Why has this song been so earth shattering for them?
Personally, I think it is quite funny seeing how rattled boys have been getting about this song, but the question that leads us to is: Why is it acceptable for men to speak censorship-worthy lyrics and not women? How come men can sing about their genitals and what they do with them, but when female artists do the same it's unacceptable? When confronted about the male-written songs, we get "they're just lyrics" or "you're being too sensitive." Well, shouldn't that same idea be applied here? (Even though there should be no issues communicating sexual desires for either side.) When boys respond negatively or express feelings of discomfort, which we have seen plenty of, it makes it seem like they cannot handle a woman taking control of her own sexuality or are intimidated by sexually aggressive women. I do not wish discomfort on anyone, but hopefully this song at least sheds some light on how girls feel when listening to male rappers. Not to mention, when female artists rap, they are, like in the song "WAP," mostly rapping about their own bodies. Meanwhile male rappers rap about female bodies and what they can do to them. I wonder if people realize how much of a double standard that is.
"WAP" highlights showing off your body, demanding what you want, and owning your sexuality, which seems to make males feel uncomfortable or threatened. Seeing the backlash and reactions this song received from boys has confirmed that strong, sexually assertive women are intimidating to many of them. But "WAP" offers more than just exposing the truth about the unfairness surrounding what's acceptable for male and female rappers. The song also provides strong, empowering messages for women.
"WAP" made Cardi and Megan the first female rap collab to debut at the number one spot on the Billboard Hot 100 and scored the most-streamed song of 2020 with 93 million steams (Cardi B). I'm sure the fact that the song blew up on Tik Tok helped the artists' success. On Tik Tok, "WAP" has produced a very popular dance which in itself is sexually powerful. The dance has been swarming "for you pages" across the country and consists of some sexual moves. I love seeing videos of people of all genders participating in this stellar dance and the positive feedback in the comments. (If you don't know what I'm talking about… go look it up— it's worth the watch. Maybe even try to learn the dance yourself if you're bold.)
Not only is it empowering and uplifting to see more female rappers on top of the charts, but it's great to see the women not competing. Yes, for most, the goal is to be the best, but there have been more female collaborations on tracks recently which is really cool to see. The song's music video earned the biggest debut week for an all female collaboration on YouTube with more than 103 million views, and the video featured other female artists such as Normani, Mulatto, Rubi Rose, and Sukihana. In an interview with Apple Music, Cardi B herself said the music industry pits female artists against each other. She says she included different female artists in her music video because she thinks they're the next big thing and she wanted to support their careers. Now this is what we love to see.
For me, sex education in school was not afraid to delve deep into the education of male anatomies and pleasure; however, when female education came up, the boys were asked to go to a different room. I didn't even get to learn about female pleasure myself—just that we bleed once a month. So yeah, a song about female pleasure is good.
There are very few examples in pop culture where women communicate their sexual desires, and oftentimes in real life, women feel uncomfortable doing so. "WAP" promotes women taking control of their sexuality and not being afraid to ask for what they want.
