Cardi B
Flo NgalaCardi B recently addressed why she stopped being so vocal about politics on social media.
On Thursday, a Twitter user directly questioned Cardi about why the rapper, who has been a common target of many conservative Republication politicians and commentators and was never shy about taking shots back, stopped using her platform to talk politics. "@iamcardib Used to TALK ABOUT POLITICS & POLITICAL MATTERS! WHAT HAPPENED WITH THAT ?!??"
"I was tired of getting bullied by the republicans and also getting bashed by the same people I was standing up for," she responded.
The 29-year-old MC received a lot of flak when she released her sexually explicit Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 "WAP" collaboration with Megan Thee Stallion. And Cardi aptly described the song as "the one that had Republicans crying on Fox News about it." Ben Shapiro read the uncomfortably censored lyrics on his own show shortly after the single dropped in August 2020 and sarcastically analyzed what part the song plays in the feminist movement.
And when Cardi interviewed now-President Joe Biden as well as former Democratic candidate Bernie Sanders ahead of the 2020 presidential election, Shapiro brought his fellow conservative commentator Candace Owens onto his show, who claimed the tactics were "pandering" to Black American voters by appealing to their music tastes and later sparked her own political debate with Cardi. The Invasion of Privacy Grammy winner also fired back at former Republican congressional candidate DeAnna Lorraine after she made an unflattering comparison between Cardi and Melania Trump.
In her cover story last year when she was crowned Billboard's Woman of the Year, Cardi reacted to seeing her and Meg's fans sing "WAP" outside the White House the day that Biden's win was announced last fall. "So many Republicans -- not just any Republicans that got an Instagram following, but a lot of Republicans that got blue checks [on Twitter] and millions of followers, [like Ben] Shapiro, Candace Owens, Tomi Lahren -- were talking so much crap about 'WAP,'" she said at the time. "So it was just a victory for me seeing people celebrating Biden’s win with my and Megan’s song. Power of the p---y, ya heard?!"
Cardi also opened up about how she wasn't just "bullied by the republications" but also harassed by Trump supporters during an Instagram Live video, to the point where one teenage boy tried doxing her home. "They be degrading me. They be making fun of me. I ignore them. I don't give a f---," she said. "Sh-- gets so intense that a Trump supporter posted my address and encouraged people to dox my home, to put my house on fire. I literally hired a private investigator, and serve them with a warrant and arrest this boy."
The world leader, who has repeatedly faced criticism for featuring songs from artists who do not want their music connected to his political views, shared a viral clip of We Can’t Be Friends (Wait For Your Love) that focused on the lyric: “Me and my truth we sit in silence.”
The footage shows Trump at a rally while the statement “Men can’t have babies and should never compete in women’s sports” appears on screen.
The Team Trump TikTok account posted the video with the caption: “This shouldn’t be controversial! #trump #arianagrande #maga.”
Ariana responded in a comment that was later removed, saying: “Never use my music again. Also, your truth is false.”
Trump has a well known record of opposing transgender rights, and the US Supreme Court recently ruled that states can prohibit transgender women from taking part in women’s sports. In a 6 to 3 ruling, the justices determined that such laws do not breach Title IX or the Constitution’s Equal Protection Clause.
The decision in June came after several other actions by the Trump administration involving transgender policies. Earlier in May, the Supreme Court also permitted the administration to continue with its “Prioritizing Military Excellence and Readiness” order, which would prevent transgender individuals from serving in the US military.
Ariana’s statement arrived soon after Taylor Swift also took steps to stop Trump from using her music on TikTok. Trump had featured a number of her songs in his social media posts, including a video of him and his wife Lady Melania Trump watching fireworks accompanied by August.
The song was later taken off the post and replaced by a notice that read: “This sound isn’t available.”
Trump appeared to deliberately select Taylor’s track, adding the message: “I’m sure @Taylor Swift is going to be super excited we used her song!”
He also responded to the Team Trump video with: “Mood because it’s August and Donald Trump is your president.”
Other Taylor Swift songs that were removed from Trump’s TikTok content included The Fate of Ophelia and Father Figure.
Trump previously made headlines when he wrote “I HATE TAYLOR SWIFT!” on Truth Social after the singer publicly announced that she planned to support Kamala Harris in the previous presidential election.
