Cancel Culture is Coming for DaBaby
Analyzing the Pros and Cons of the Internet Fueling Harsh Criticism
I’m sure what I am about to explain is not news to anyone with a cell phone or access to the Internet, unless you choose to protect your sanity by abstaining from social media, in which case —I applaud you!
But for the rest of us who cannot help but incessantly refresh our feeds, this was a pretty shocking scandal. DaBaby rose to the top of the charts time and time again this year, proving that he was a new force in rap to be reckoned with. It seemed he was at the top of his game, making collabs with every other popular artist out there and performing at major festivals all across the country. But, one festival in particular seemingly changed the entire trajectory of his career. At Rolling Loud, on a large stage in front of thousands of people (and thousands of cameras) DaBaby decided to spew out some hurtful comments. To be quite blunt, these comments were not only hurtful, but they were explicitly homophobic and misogynistic. He made many uneducated comments about HIV/AIDS, and fans and celebrity allies alike were quick to turn their backs on the rapper.
In the days after the festival fiasco in Miami, it was nearly impossible for one not to see DaBaby being torn apart on social media. Even some of his most loyal acquaintances within the industry, such as global pop sensation Dua Lipa, with whom DaBaby collaborated on the hit single, “Levitating,” called him out and decided to end their relationships. An endless slew of celebrities, including Elton John, Demi Lovato, Madonna, Questlove — and not to mention an army of Twitter stans — followed suit by condemning DaBaby’s words and actions. Not only did the rapper lose loyal fans and potential collaborators, but his brand deals and scheduled performances, such as a set at Chicago music festival Lollapalooza, started disappearing into thin air. This is the work of cancel culture, at its finest.
Upon accepting the reality of being cancelled, many celebrities have been quick to rescind their words. DaBaby, on the other hand, defended his words with a lackluster and seemingly-empty “apology”. He later edited that apology, stating that his words were rooted in misinformation and improper education regarding the LGBTQIA+ community. Many celebrities still weren’t buying what seemed like a weak cop-out, but one celebrity reaction took me completely by surprise.
Miley Cyrus, a large proponent of spreading kindness and an advocate for equality, as well as a member of the LGBTQIA+ community herself, met DaBaby’s actions with compassion. She did not excuse what he said, but she offered him personal assistance in educating himself regarding the topics he misconstrued. I was pretty shocked to see this type of reaction on my timeline, but the comments underneath Miley’s post were what shocked me even more. Many of Miley’s fans applauded her kindness, but stated that in DaBaby’s case, it was too late to change his thinking. This led me to truly think about the consequences of cancel culture, and the place of other celebrities within cancel culture.
I, personally, think that DaBaby deserved to suffer consequences for his unfiltered and hateful comments, but I also think that cancel culture can sometimes evolve into a beast that nobody knows how to tame. Additionally, there is an interesting pattern in the intersection of cancel culture and race relations that is worth noting. The ideology behind “cancelling” an individual for their actions actually originates from a song written by black musician and songwriter Niles Rodgers. The term “cancel culture” was quickly adopted by the Internet and is now appropriated by White mainstream culture — over and over again. The term has been utilized so frequently that it has begun to lose meaning, as many artists feel that being canceled is inevitable in today’s day and age. In many cases, such as DaBaby’s, the involved party should be held accountable for their wrongdoings (there is no debating that.) But, it should not go unnoticed that often Black artists experience more explicit consequences as a result of cancel culture, due to the functions of systemic racism within our society and the varying expectations placed upon certain artists and professionals due to their identities.
Things circulate so quickly online, and often the consequences occur before one even knows they have messed up — this high-speed reactivity does not even allow the perpetrator time for growth and personal accountability. This got me thinking about the nuances of cancel culture; in a case like this, should other celebrities and influencers publicly shame those who have done wrong too, or reach out for help like Miley?
What should the place of other celebrities be within the narrative of cancel culture? I believe that if DaBaby had not faced as much backlash as he did, that he probably would not have thought his actions were wrongful. But at the same time, juggling fame can be a harrowing job, and being attacked by your peers and allies can be a very tough mental struggle. How does attacking anger with anger help us cultivate a culture of learning and improvement? These are the questions that Miley’s message led me to ponder, and to be quite honest, I still am not sure of my answer.
What I am sure of is that there should be no tolerance for homophobia or misogyny in today’s climate, and it is important to raise awareness of these topics, as well as normalize speaking openly about these topics so that people can no longer use the excuse of being “uneducated” to defend cruel words or actions.
Although this situation changed DaBaby’s reputation as we currently know it, cancel culture always finds a new victim, so I believe this is not the last we will see of DaBaby and his music. In the meantime though, I hope he takes some time to reflect on his choices — and who knows, maybe he did reach out to Miley and learned a thing or two about politically-correct speech and being a more open and accepting individual.
What do you think? Was Miley wrong to give DaBaby a chance to come back from his words, or should these situations be mended with an outreach of communication and education? Let us know in the comments.