It’s been a rough couple of weeks for The Bawse.
In light of the ignominious line he rapped on Rocko’s “U.O.E.N.O.” (featuring Future), Rick Ross has become public enemy #1 in the eyes of many.
His lyric, “Put molly all in her champagne, she ain’t even know it/I took her home and I enjoyed that, she ain’t even know it” — which didn’t even rhyme, by the way — has landed him in a brand new type of hot water. Gone are the days of lawsuits from ex-gangstas and threats from those still thuggin it; present are the organized protests outside of his shows, constant torment from women’s rights groups and lost endorsement deals.
Sidebar: See the 2:08 mark below.
Rozay had to cancel a show at the University of Ottawa last week after students boycotted the event, a tactic that appears to be picking up steam in the weeks since. Then Rebook, the sneaker company that signed him to a deal to endorse their Reebok Classic line a little over a year ago, dropped the Dade County MC in light of the pressure they received to do so from a very vocal group of the appalled and offended.
The layers of irony in this story are about as thick as the wads of cash Ross is know for carrying around.
For starters, it was Rick Ross that said “I’ll die over these Reeboks, you ain’t even know it” just moments before the spitting the now infamous lyric that would prove to be his undoing. Furthermore, Ross has a history (as has been documented on this website, and many others) of cultivating a completely fictitious lifestyle in his rhymes, and it’s unlikely he actually condones or has ever participated in date rape. The entire song is a contradiction in essence, as Ross has gone out of his way tell the world that he lives more lavishly than any other rapper.
Those details, though, are irrelevant. What is important is the egregiousness of Ross’ mistake, the mass scapegoating that has taken place at his expense and the hypocrisy of a shoe company and the general public at large that seems to be going unnoticed (I wonder if he would’ve got dropped if Classics had been flying off the shelves?).
Society has generally accepted the content of hip-hop, and all other genres of music in fact, as artistic and creative expression. While rape is utterly reprehensible and it should not be condoned in any context, the fact is this particular crime has been a frequent topic in rap for years, with MCs ranging from Biggie, to Kool G Rap, to Gucci Mane having all broached the subject.
Sidebar: Not to mention Eminem on several occasions.
For better or worse, the often violent and grotesque nature of the subject matter within hip-hop has been called into question for ages. Ross himself has built an entire career and record label off of rhyming about flooding the streets with dope, while killing off his enemies in the process. Historically, his lyrics have also been extremely misogynistic, like many of his contemporaries.
Yet somehow, none of this triggered the ire of the college students or women’s organizations looking to prevent the spread of immoral messages regarding women— or people, for that matter (Ricky’s less than tactful apologies have not done him any favors in the court of public opinion either, nor has his camp’s insistence that the lyric was somehow misconstrued). Are we now supposed to conclude that rape is somehow “worse” than (other forms of) misogyny, drug trafficking and murder? It seems more than reasonable to classify all four acts are deplorable.
Reebok found themselves under immense scrutiny, with the expectation being to remove Ross from their payroll, and they eventually caved. While this action was completely understandable, the sneaker giant knew exactly what they were getting themselves into when they signed him in March of 2012, for this isn’t the first time they’ve dabbled in the world of rap looking for a big name endorsement.
In November of 2003, Reebok signed 50 Cent to a five-year endorsement year, which led to the launch of G-Unit sneakers. This was the same year that 50 rose to fame after the release of Get Rich Or Die Tryin’, an album that included several extremely violent songs, such as “Heat“. Prior to giving 50 his own line, Reebok made history by giving Jay-Z his own line of kicks, making him the first non-athlete with his own sneaker. It was just two years earlier that Jay pleaded guilty to charges of stabbing a man at a Q-Tip album listening party.
So here we have a shoe company that dropped one rapper, stating, “Reebok holds our partners to a high standard and we expect them to live up to the values of our brand. Unfortunately, Rick Ross has failed to do so”, yet in the past, they embarked on a historic partnership with a man who admitted to stabbing another man, while he was already a famous musician. And (for those unaware) while we’re recounting history, it should be noted that Ross actually has dabbled in, of all things, law enforcement as a profession.
The moral outrage of these protesters is justified. But what about other issues facing hip-hop?
Sidebar: Not only did Jay continually rap about inflicting bodily harm on others throughout his partnership with Reebok, he actually cited the stabbing incident involving Lance “Un” Rivera in the song “Dear Summer“. He was never dropped by Reebok.
According to leaders from women’s rights groups such as UltraViolet, Ross and his lyrics have become synonymous with “rape culture”. Time and again, however, hip-hop has taught us that its messages aren’t to be taken too seriously — especially with an artist like Ross — for the makeup of those messages are largely rooted in fiction. The reality is, Ross should be as synonymous with rape culture as Leonardo DiCaprio is with old-timey racism, after his portrayal of a plantation owner in Django Unchained. We saw this just last week when Jay-Z’s song, “Open Letter” practically launched a federal investigation.
Now would be a great time to point out that in no way am I defending Rick Ross’ actions.
Rick Ross is not “the victim”. Still, in this instance Ross is probably a victim of his own success. That much seems clear because he has obviously been singled out for one massively inappropriate lyric on a song that wasn’t even his. Anti-Rape supporters needed a new symbol to rally against and William Roberts fit the bill.
The debate about the impact of lyrical content within hip-hop on our communities are as old as the boom-bap itself. Just recently, Talib Kweli and Lupe Fiasco engaged in a spirited and intellectually stimulating debate on Twitter about the effect rap lyrics have on our culture.
While the pontification of each side of this matter rages on, the inconsistencies that may lie within the hearts and minds of those offended by Ross’ words cannot be ignored. To take a stand against Ross for this reason is commendable, but to chalk this up as a victory (since he was let go by Reebok and has to cancel shows) would be short-cited and irresponsible.
To call out Ross for date rape, but to ignore his rhymes about dope dealing and murder is hypocritical and disingenuous. The same goes for calling out Ross, while giving a pass to lesser known MCs.
Sidebar: Another rapper, who will remain nameless, that has had multiple songs on the Billboard charts in 2013 had a verse on another rapper’s mixtape that came out at about the same time as “U.O.E.N.O.”, and said basically the exact same thing Rick Ross did. Nobody noticed. Nobody cared.
The same people that are using this mistake to define Rick Ross must also show equal concern for the other negative messages within his music and or the music of other rappers. Ross obviously was wrong, but given all the other atrocities he’s rapped about with impunity over the years, it’s no wonder why he thought he could get away with this line. Since the backlash, even Rocko has distanced himself from Rozay by removing him from the official record and recently dropping a remix featuring Wiz Khalifa. And maybe the reaction to Ross’ date rape lyric will lead to a newer, more responsible brand of hip-hop…
I sincerely doubt it though. And I sincerely doubt the same people that have taken up this cause will take up the causes of those who have fallen victim to gun violence and drugs. Only time will tell.
The purpose of this article was neither to defend, nor condemn Ross, Jay-Z, the protesters or anyone else involved. Rather, it is to highlight the dangerous practice of sacrificing one man without taking full inventory, and conducting a complete examination of the circumstances surrounding that man’s negligence.
Ultimately, the decision of whether or not a rapper has “crossed the line” with his or her lyrics lies within the conscience of each listener. But if we’re going play the accountability game with Rick Ross, we need to be prepared to see it through to the very end.
In the words of the immortal Big Daddy Kane, “Ain’t no half steppin”.