Amber Rose Is What Happens When We Don’t Gatekeep Black Culture
It’s not about malice; it’s about preservation.
On July 15, 2024, Amber Rose made a speech at the Republican National Convention where she said, “These are my people. This is where I belong.” Understandably, there was outrage after Rose made her speech. Many wondered how a woman who got her start within Hip Hop Culture could betray the genre in such a public way.
However, Rose’s Blackness is not the only politic that people have called into question following her speech. Rose’s Slut Walk was lauded as a stance for women’s rights, and she is publicly supporting a party that says the opposite. For example, Republican Vice Presidential candidate JD Vance said that women should stay in “violent” marriages for the sake of the children.
Sadly, this has been the strategy of many white artists since the beginning of hip-hop: use Black culture for profit and visibility and then discard it when you’re done. Yet, some might say that Amber Rose is different; she’s (allegedly) Black. According to Wikipedia, though, “Her father is of Irish and Italian descent and her mother is of Cape Verdean and maternal Scottish descent from Ayrshire.” This would mean her mother was biracial and her father was white.
She is genotypically and phenotypically white, and she has said that she “does not consider [herself] a Black woman,” so why did she hold a place in Hip Hop culture? It is because of the one-drop rule. People with a little bit of Blackness can place themselves within Black culture and gain a platform as being Black. Then again, it is not always a question of Blackness; sometimes, it’s a question of how well you can fit into Hip Hop’s aesthetic and how well you can grift (like DJ Vlad and Adam22).
But these culture vultures don’t exist in a vacuum.
To fully critique the influx of white grifters into Hip Hop’s space, we must take a look at people whose Blackness is not questionable and have pulled the same moves as Rose. For example, rapper Sexxy Red has gained popularity for her raunchy, guttural rap and her political views. Last year, she was interviewed and she said that Black people love Trump. She cited the stimulus checks as the reason the hood loves Trump. More recently, Kodak Black told Plies “We ain’t going for no Trump slander” on an Instagram LIVE video. Also, Azalea Banks was spotted at a Trump rally in Florida.
While some might chalk up these rappers’ behaviors to being young and ill-informed, older, more seasoned rappers have shifted their political views as well. After President Trump’s recent shooting, 50 Cent performed his hit song “Many Men” with Trump’s picture on display and he even posted a now-deleted Instagram reel with the picture of the shooting and his song attached to it.
However, one of the biggest political shifts we’ve seen is from former NWA member Ice Cube, who was driving around with Tucker Carlson earlier this year. All in all, these rappers have opened the door for culture vultures like Amber Rose to breeze into hip-hop, take what they need, and publicly disrespect the culture. Hip-hop is inherently radical, so Rose’s support for a staunch conservative is a slap in the face to the same genre that made her.
She got her start as a video vixen and Kanye West’s muse, but maybe the culture was doomed to begin with (considering that Kanye has gone full alt-right now). Now that he is supporting Trump and praising Hitler, “Ye” has shifted from the days when he proclaimed “George Bush don’t like Black people.” Ye is the George Bush in question now, because his politics are anti-Black.
He allegedly mistreated his Black workers, so why are we surprised that the woman he made famous is anti-Black too? It was like a MAGA match made in heaven; we just didn’t know it yet. Yet, now that we know better, we can do better. We can de-platform minstrel acts like Woah Vicky, just as a start, but long term, we have to start gatekeeping.
It’s not about malice; it’s about preservation.
About This Rwebel
Javanna is a multifaceted professional with a rich background in writing, education, and media. She holds a Master of Science in Journalism and a Bachelor of Arts in English, which has fueled her passion for storytelling and communication. Javanna is the CEO and founder of Rwebel, where she produces books, articles, and multimedia videos about culture and difference.
