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Source: BET Awards 2020 / Getty
I struggled over my decision to address the colorism controversy surrounding DaniLeigh’s song “Yellow Bone” because the last thing I want to do was raise awareness that could lead to streams of such an awful and problematic song. I am also thoroughly exhausted having to reexplain the concept of colorism to folk who think there’s nothing wrong with a song, in 2021 nonetheless, titled “Yellow Bone.” Yet, here we are…again.
To refresh, DaniLeigh is an artist, who apparently makes really bad music, her other claim to fame is as rapper Da Baby’s on-again-off-again piece who doubles as a side chick whenever he feels like swapping her out for the mother of his child MeMe. DaniLeigh, clearly inflated with praise from her rapping beau, was feeling herself when she released a snippet of her song “Yellow Bone.”
The lyrics are as follows, “Yellow Bone is what he wants.” The singer-songwriter received hundreds of comments calling her out for colorism within moments of posting the clip of the song on social media. She responded, “Why I can’t make a song for my light skin baddies? Why y’all think I’m hating on other colors when there are millions of songs speaking on all types… Why y”all so sensitive and take it personal… gahhh damn.”
Her response shifted the conversation. Fans and Breakfast Club host Charlamagne Da God questioned why songs like “Brown Skin Girl” by Beyonce are accepted as empowering but “Yellow Bone” is not.
Songs like “Brown Skin Girl” were designed to uplift brown and dark skin women after centuries of reinforced colorism that favors light skin hues. That’s why we take it personal — we don’t need a song that celebrates the sentiment that light is right when we’ve been taught that all our lives.
In her 1983 book, In Search of our Mothers’ Gardens, Alice Walker defined colorism as “prejudicial or preferential treatment of same-race people based solely on their color.” “Yellow” is a term used historically in the Black community as a compliment or way to describe a light skin Black person.
To add further insult, DaniLeigh’s “Yellow Bone” seems to be a direct shot at her rival — Da Baby’s baby mother, who is a brown skin. DaniLeigh was also emboldened by Da Baby, who left emojis of yellow circles under the post.
The Miami rapper has since apologized and made it worse by tossing out the typical “I’m not a colorist” lines like the obligatory, “I have beautiful dark skin friends” or “I date a chocolate man.” If that’s the case, you should have known better sis.
And the song was trash anyway. Just cancel them both.
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