The Ghost Of Big Freedia

Great piece over on Noisey about The Ghost of Big Freedia. No, she hasn't passed away but the piece covers the fact that huge artists like Drake and Beyonce sample her work and then eschew showcasing her in any additional materials. It doesn't stop with those two either, Freedia makes Bounce music and the genre is influencing the likes of N.E.R.D., as broken down in this Earworm episode.

My knee jerk reaction to this was to say "sampling a musician does not equal a responsibility to literally show them in any subsequent materials." I mean, there are a million songs out there sample a million other songs and you don't expect to see the original artist in the video. Paying for the sample is really the only requirement.

But that's a shortsighted view. This except from the piece explains it well:

This is not an uncommon circumstance for queer black artists to find themselves. It is more metaphorical. Queer black artists have often been siphoned for their creativity and erased visually as to not offend the heteronormative, often white public. Viewing the white blonde female taking up the screen as Big Freedia's voice boomed reminded me of how it must have felt to see Madonna perform her hit song "Vogue" at the 1990 MTV Music Awards. She took this dance and culture that was birthed by queer black and latinx people and made her blonde, white body the vehicle of delivering it to the mainstream. It is not uncommon for divas like Nicki Minaj, Beyonce, and Lady Gaga to mostly work with black queer artists for their makeup, wardrobe, choreography, and overall creative direction. It is rare to see black queer artists invited to be on the stage in a significant way.

If that Madonna reference falls on deaf ears, go watch Paris is Burning to comprehend the cultural appropriation taking place there.

I won't claim to be articulate enough to properly comment on this but it's an article worth reading and giving proper consideration. No one owes Freedia anything but there's a massive missed opportunity by not doing more.