She’s already been crowned the biggest thing in hip-hop, but many people actually think she’s hip-hop’s biggest fraud because of her appropriation of the culture. Iggy Azalea, who has several Grammy nominations under her belt this year, has been under fire not only for being a horrible rapper but also for the fake “blaccent” that she chooses to use.
In a recent interview on Sway Calloway’s radio show on Shade 45, Eve and Jill Scott share their opinions about the Australian import.
“I get that people may be upset about certain things. Yeah, she’s white. But they grew up with our s—t. Hip-hop is everywhere. … Yes, it’s from us and it’s our thing … [but] she’s representing a group of girls right now as well. … Let her do her thing. You know, it’s not my cup of tea, but she’s representing for somebody. She’s doing her thing,” Eve stated.
She then added, “I think she’s fly, I think she’s good to look at, I think she’s a pretty girl, she has a dope body. All of that is fine. I just wish there was a little bit more of where she came from. … It would be dope to hear her with her swag. What are you, who are you and what is that?”
As you see, Eve attempted to be diplomatic about Azalea, but Scott, on the other hand, was a little more cutthroat.
“It’s a little challenging for me because I come from the era that she pulls from. To me, it’s like a mixture of Da Brat and Eve the way that it sounds. So that’s a little challenging to me. But I’m a mixture of Sarah Vaughan and five other things. So somebody else that comes from that era, they looking at me like she all right,” Scott stated.
Scott and Eve agreed that Azalea’s blaccent is definitely something that’s problematic and her rapping isn’t original.
Azalea, who always makes it a point to subliminally respond on Twitter to her “haters,” attempted to set the record straight about her rapping style and blaccent.
https://twitter.com/IGGYAZALEA/status/560566985919315969https://twitter.com/IGGYAZALEA/status/560567136125734912https://twitter.com/IGGYAZALEA/status/560567457090646016https://twitter.com/IGGYAZALEA/status/560567457090646016https://twitter.com/IGGYAZALEA/status/560567747268997121https://twitter.com/IGGYAZALEA/status/560568442743701504
Here’s the thing. Everyone knows Azalea isn’t from College Park, Ga., so of course people will question why her rapping accent isn’t an Australian one. Using the accent from your country isn’t a stereotype; it’s a part of your culture. And when you attempt to steal an accent from a culture that’s not your own, you’re pretty much a fake and a cultural appropriator.
The end.