Pharrell Williams has always been on his own wavelength. The 41-year old hitmaker has never been afraid to do what makes him comfortable, and it has worked for him since he came onto the scene. In his latest GQ interview, his otherworldly way of thinking is on full display as he weaves in and out of subjects to answer questions. Although you can usually understand his main point, you have to extract it from the haze of his ‘stream of consciousness’-like thoughts. And all of that’s just fine. However, the following passage has a lot of people, particularly black women, up in arms:
There were people who criticized you for not including more black women on the cover of G I R L. How did you feel about that?
Do you want me to be honest with you?Yeah.
It’s insecurity. If you love who you are—and I’m not saying that there’s not a plight out there for people who have different skin colors, because Mexicans go through just as much discrimination, if not more discrimination, than black people do in this country. Right? That’s why I wrote “Marilyn Monroe,” man: That which makes you different is what makes you special. You don’t gotta be waif, white, and thin to be beautiful. You can be anything that you want to be, and what I chose to do is put my friends on the cover. The girl that was closest next to me is black, but they didn’t know that, so they jumped the gun. And it wasn’t all black women. There were a lot of black women that were really angry at some of those girls, but some of those girls are the ones that instantly get mad when they don’t see somebody that’s dark. And it’s like: “Yo, you don’t need nobody to represent you. You represent you. You represent the best version of who you could be. You go out there and change the world.” Because I’m black, and I wouldn’t trade my skin color for nothing. But I don’t need to keep wearing a badge that tells you that I’m black every time I do something! I’m black! In fact, the media will tell you I’m the first black person that’s had a number-one record in America in a year since Rihanna’s “Diamonds” in 2012—the first black person! The media tells you that. So why do I need to roll around with a scarlet letter on my forehead that says “Black”? My mother’s black, who’s a big part of my business; a black woman runs my business; and I’m married to a black woman. What more do you want? And why are we talking about this? And if we’re going to talk about degrees of black—what is it in this country? I still believe that if you are at least 1/32nd of black blood in your body, even if you look like you, you are deemed black. Right?
Ok, there was a lot going on in that passage, so we’re gonna break it down.
First, I will agree with the notion that “You represent you.” This speaks to what I was saying in a previous post about the actions of one individual not defining who we are as a race. I’m not placing the onus on Pharrell to create an album cover that will speak for all black women everywhere. He’s no more responsible for being the black women’s representative than Rihanna is for being a role model to little girls. And for all the hoopla, there was in fact a black girl on the cover, regardless of how it may have appeared. However, his flippant dismissal of black women’s “insecurity” is negligent.
You have to understand that the insecurity is rooted in the very damaging truth that despite black women’s best efforts to represent and celebrate ourselves, we are put down, hidden and made into caricatures. There’s an infinite number of examples to this point, but one of the most recent and relevant ones I can think of is the #WhiteGirlsRock movement that cropped up in response to #BlackGirlsRock. Like, seriously? Any time we celebrate ourselves, it has to be met with some sort of opposition.
What really set me off about this passage wasn’t even the accusation of insecurity so much as this little gem: “…Mexicans go through just as much discrimination, if not more discrimination, than black people in this country. Right?”
Wrong. So mindbogglingly wrong! Wrong to the point that I actually had to re-read that part a few times to make sure that’s actually what he said.
Dude, in what alternate universe is that true? Cause I want to pay a visit. Do Mexicans have to deal with discrimination? Undoubtedly. Are they often wrongly believed to be illegal immigrants and treated unfairly as a result? Absolutely. Does that compare to the fact that even our children are deemed criminal threats, there are some places where it’s unsafe to be a black person after sundown, we are shot at when we knock on doors for help and even our president is disrespected as though he’s not the leader of the free world simply because he’s black? Hell no. And that’s not even touching the racism we face (because racism and discrimination are separate things) that’s built into the very fabric of our nation.
Pharrell doesn’t have to put another black girl in one of his videos or on his album cover ever again for all I care. That’s not the point here. He is free as an individual and further, as an artist, to do whatsoever he pleases. What he won’t do is sit here and tell me that my plight as a black woman is invalidated because in his warped mind Mexicans have it worse. No sir. You can get all the way the f*ck outta here with that.
He says later in the interview, “Black ain’t a color: Black is a spirit, and it is ubiquitous. In fact, there’s more black out in space than there is stars. We have nothing to be insecure about.” Again, I can get behind this idea. Our culture has long transcended our skin color. I’m all for creating a pride in ourselves and understanding the power that we wield as the masters of mainstream culture globally. But what Pharrell is missing is that although his money and his newfound soccer mom appeal with “Happy” may have precluded him from dealing with having to fight tooth and nail to be seen for who he is as a person, that day of freedom hasn’t come for black women. Not even Michelle Obama has that luxury. So Pharrell, I ain’t mad atcha for not showcasing the African American diaspora, but please be more mindful of your defense.