Ghetto Ballerina’s video for “Homegirl” opens up with her and her homegirls fiercely using a car as a prop while some are sitting in it, sitting on it, and standing outside of the car. Ghetto Ballerina embodies what many women envision their girl group to be, the most fiercest. She comes out swinging with braggadocio with the opening lyrics of “yea I know I’m hot, rub it in.” As I was listening for the first time I was like “okay girl let them know” because that is exactly what she is doing. From the jump she is letting us know that she is confident and to not be played with. Additionally, she continues with the use of braggadocio as she confidently raps “put the number in the bin” which suggests that she is telling men attracted to her to throw their number in the bin. The numbers basically mean nothing to her. This signifies that she is heavily sought after because she uses the word “bin” which is a large item to place numbers in. That also suggests that men giving her their numbers is a norm for her. Also, this demonstrates that she is not interested in the suitors by telling them to place their numbers in a plastic tube with no value, which adds to her confident and or boastful persona.
Braggadocio can also be a way for female rappers to send a warning to their competitors. Ghetto Ballerina does just that in “Homegirl” as she says “I get a 10/10, undefeated.” This bar shows us that in her eyes she has no competition. Noting that she is a smaller artist, it shows that she is extremely confident. It is important for new artists, especially female artists, to be confident because the hip-hop industry is cutthroat.
The chorus is “my homegirls got big booties that’ll make the Earth shake, we the life of the party.” Female agency is displayed here as she is openly promoting the shaking of her and her friends’ butts. Furthermore, she is taking ownership of her sexuality, along with her girlfriends, as they are twerking throughout the video and even on each other. When women have their own agency and take ownership of their sexuality, it usually causes debates throughout the community. Ghetto Ballerina and her homegirls are showing us that they are going to do what brings them joy even if that will cause an uproar within society.
In this track, Ghetto Ballerina also deviates from the ideal of Mother Africa that is usually bestowed upon African women. She successfully does this by saying she is “rolling a jay” or “if I had a gun I would smoke you.” Society has ruled these as mostly male activities, however, Ghetto Ballerina says no I am going to participate in these activities, too. She allows for the multidimensionality of black women to be seen. She can inspire other African women to be comfortable growing from the conventional ideas bestowed upon them. Additionally, the track inspires other women by saying “shout out to the queens who make nightmares look like a dream.” She is applauding other women as she may share the same struggles. “Homegirl” inspires women to step outside of societal norms while also sending them appreciation for their hard work.
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