Who do you want to be like in your community, which celebrity do you want to emulate? You may say that you are your own individual but then I would ask you that question again, who do you want to be like? You may again say that you are your own person but if I pose the question to you in a different way you may eventually come up with the name of someone that inspires you. So then if I ask you why you want to be like that person I may have to ask a few times to get to the heart of the truth again.

To be anyone of a different race one should have numerous individuals to look up to. To be an African-American though perhaps there is only one individual that sticks out that everyone wants to be like. Take someone who wants to be a Barbie like Nicki Minaj claims that she is. You can dress yourself up in a blond wig or take on the physical characteristics of Nicki Minaj but does that mean that you will ever be her? You can even learn how to rap like she does or join as clique as she has but will that change anything at the end of the day?

Is there any difference in wanting to be someone like Nicki Minaj that appears to be a caricature of an individual or someone that is admired and respected because they are comfortable in who they are? People say that her followers are hoodrats, okay whatever that is supposed to mean I am a guy and I like her and do not consider myself to be a hoodrat and I don’t think my wife is either. At the end of the day though she doesn’t want to be a Barbie either. So somewhere along the line there is a fanaticism that takes place.

If hoodrats dig the whole Barbie thing because they think there is some level of sophistication in wearing the expensive shoes that Nicki Minaj brags about that is just silly. Lil’ Kim made the same arguments, but people differentiate Nicki Minaj from Lil’ Kim because Kim focused mainly on sexual promiscuity and had fashion as an afterthought. WIth Lil’ Kim it was clear that you needed to have the money so that she can go on these shopping binges to get with her but other than that she was worth because of what she was willing to do for the man who had the cash to provider with that type of lifestyle. With Nicki Minaj everything about Lil’ Kim is implied, and she focuses more on creative wordplay and the old tried and true route of actually talking about how good of a rapper she is. Yet everything is still there in place from what Lil’ Kim has done ten years ago.

All this means is that for your average female rapper, and the average listener, nothing has really changed. Women are still materialistic and shallow and have a sense of entitlement for being so. Men are not attracted to women who are materialistic and shallow for the long term; that can get a woman in the door and can definitely persuade a man to sleep with you but the girl he stands by and will actually defend is a woman that truly understands him. Women like these female rappers that girls around the way in the neighborhood follow are not talking about being there for a man or even getting to understand his point of view. They do not trust men at all and in the case of Nicki Minaj do not really like men because they swing both ways and prefer women. Yet women still follow continue to follow these types of celebrities as role models.