Liberian rapper and songwriter Bucky Raw’s 2025 single “African Baddie” is a catchy listen and fun song to dance to, but prompts some deeper questions about the hip hop industry. Bucky Raw was born Karwoudou Cole in Monrovia, Liberia. At the age of nine, Raw moved to Philadelphia and grew up there. Raw rose to prominence in 2016 after taking part in a cypher in the Liberian Entertainment Awards. Raw has enjoyed a successful career and has two mixtapes Country Soda (2017) and CS2 (2018). During this time, Raw received many awards for his works, including Album and Artist of the Year at the 2018 Liberia Music Awards. Raw has also received Best Hipco Artist at the 2017 Liberian Entertainment Awards and Album/Mixtape Compilation for the 2018 Tunes Liberia Music Awards. Unfortunately, in 2018, Bucky Raw was deported from the United States after violating his parole.

OriginalHitz describes “African Baddie” as “more than a song” but “a movement.” African Baddie has received a lot of success as it has become very popular in Liberia. The song has become very trendy and received a lot of attention on TikTok. I completely understand how this happened. Upon my first listen, I found myself dancing in my chair. The song is a classic hip hop song you could hear playing in a club or some form of a party. With that being said, the song’s content might ruffle some feathers and could be used as an example for some of the more negative aspects of Hip Hop’s reputation. It can be argued that the song sexualizes African women as just “baddies” and sex symbols. However, this could also be seen as an important declaration of the beauty and desirability of African women. Oftentimes on the internet, people go viral for discussing the ugliness and unattractiveness of African women. To hear a song refer to African women as “baddies” can be interpreted as a needed counter to some common narratives about African women. I want to challenge the reader to listen to the song and think, does it hurt or help? Regardless, you can not say it is not a good listen!

Listen to African Baddie!