“Where you at, Wayne? Where you at, Ye?”
May 3, 2012 11:33 AM   Subscribe

Hello, my name is Adair and I'm here to recruit you. Texas rapper Adair Lion's song bluntly calls out homophobia in hip hop. He explains the inspiration for the song: "But I thought NO... This needs to be dialoged... this has to be said... this should be accepted.... and they deserve for someone to let them know that they aren't wrong... I NEED TO SAY IT BLUNTLY. "
posted by desjardins (18 comments total) 10 users marked this as a favorite
 
I really like the spirit of this, and I really really like and respect what he's doing, but this song is pretty awful.

I wonder what the reception will be if this song gets much real attention? There has been a ton of rap made by openly gay artists, but I don't know of much that ever caught on outside of the circles it was generated in. I think this song, potentially, could be different because it so directly addresses the larger community.
posted by broadway bill at 11:42 AM on May 3, 2012


Clever play on the "gay money" trope. I dig it.
posted by clvrmnky at 11:59 AM on May 3, 2012


This song is awesome, made me get very emotional and tear up multiple times! Posted it a couple days ago on Facebook and got lots of shares and positive comments. Thanks for posting, desjardins, and hope it goes viral! It's awesome!
posted by PigAlien at 11:59 AM on May 3, 2012 [1 favorite]


If anything, this song is a testimonial about the power of being an out queer and how simply being onesself and honest in one's daily life can change attitudes of those around you.

Adair says it pretty directly in the lyrics -- he was bigoted until he made a friend he didn't expect to make.
posted by hippybear at 12:30 PM on May 3, 2012 [1 favorite]


(OT: "Dialoged" is a horrible spelling. "Dialogued" works much better.)
posted by IAmBroom at 12:30 PM on May 3, 2012 [1 favorite]


Message - A+++
Video - A
Delivery: C-

Artists really need to cognitively rework their writing processes for writing songs that they intentionally want to be wholly positive. Some people pull it off, but the vast majority of rappers really go south when they "try" to be positive. The beats are often crappy (I'm looking at you Nas - I Can) and the rapid fire delivery is gone and half the time the rhythm is all but nonexistent.

First make it incredible, then work in your message. Make good music first. Have tight rhymes first. Finesse the flow first. It's a great message, even though the song is trash.
posted by cashman at 12:38 PM on May 3, 2012 [1 favorite]


There has been a ton of rap made by openly gay artists

I might be missing something, but I don't think this guy is gay at all.
posted by desjardins at 12:50 PM on May 3, 2012


I saw this earlier and while it's totally not my genre, I was very pleased to see that someone was out there making it! The last part - "So why would I ever judge someone who's trying to be two of what I never had?" I'll admit - it kinda got me. Sniffle. I know. I'm a sap. What? MY BIOLOGICAL CLOCK IS TICKING.
posted by jph at 2:00 PM on May 3, 2012 [1 favorite]


What jph said. I was writing pretty much that exact same comment, down to the "sniffle."

Maybe I'm not an original thinker, but I CAN PREVIEW LIKE A MOTHERFUCKER.
posted by palmcorder_yajna at 2:04 PM on May 3, 2012 [4 favorites]


Like the song. Like the message. Thanks for this.
posted by jnnla at 2:30 PM on May 3, 2012


As others have said, great message, lame song/video.

I love this other video about homosexuality and hip hop: IMMA HOMO.
posted by synthedelic at 4:04 PM on May 3, 2012


Man, the video itself was pretty awesome, actually. Some of the lyrics were meh, but to me, test lines: To all the little dudes learnin’ to mack/the hottest chicks got a gay in their clique, remember that

and

"coincidentally ben is the name is someone I never met: my dad/ so why would I ever jugde someone tryin' to be two of what I never had?"
posted by ShawnStruck at 4:54 PM on May 3, 2012


Man, I really, REALLY want to like this, but... there's a line where he talks about how he's "making history", and forgive me if I sound like a cynical asshole, but I kinda suspect this is at least in part a way for a pretty sub-par rapper to be noticed where he wouldn't be otherwise. Plus, being such a lame song, it's gonna make the message easy to dismiss.
posted by DecemberBoy at 5:28 PM on May 3, 2012


I dunno DecemberBoy - I'm not a rap/hiphop aficionado - but isn't that sort of what they all do? Spend every song talking about how incredibly groundbreaking they are by being THIS NEW VERSION OF TOTALLY GANGSTA. "I'm making history" seems to be a kind of trope in rap/hiphop, not to mention the Long and Venerable History of The Callout (which he employs here as well, in asking how edgy mainstream rappers are when they remain silent on this issue). I mean... oh god I'm meta-analyzing rap lyrics... pardon me while I go self-immolate.
posted by jph at 7:04 PM on May 3, 2012


I tweeted at him and asked him to post the lyrics, and he did.

I also complimented his hair
posted by desjardins at 6:41 AM on May 4, 2012 [1 favorite]


isn't that sort of what they all do?

Every rapper says they are one of the greatest to ever do it. They all have the craziest lyrics, nobody wants it with them, et cetera, yes. That's one of the fun things about hip hop actually. When you're having a bad day you can throw on a song and get some instant self-confidence.
posted by cashman at 6:57 AM on May 4, 2012


He didn't brag except for the making history bit... and yeah, he's a pretty small fish in a big hip hop sea right now, but I can't think of another straight rapper who has directly said (in a song) that being gay is cool with him.
posted by desjardins at 6:59 AM on May 4, 2012


A shame it's Ben on the $3 bill though. Ben was a serious lady chaser. I get the fit with the original MJ song, I'm just a fan of Ben Franklin. Although, come to think of it, he may have been having more fun than made the history books. ;-)

I liked his hair too. It matched his stomach nicely.
posted by Goofyy at 9:07 AM on May 4, 2012


« Older Why women deserve flaky free spirits, too.   |   Death of a Salesman Newer »


This thread has been archived and is closed to new comments