Rory & Mal Believe Ice Spice Wouldn't Be As Successful If She Was Dark-Skinned

BYGabriel Bras Nevares8.0K Views
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Rory And Mal Ice Spice Successful Dark Skinned
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They got into even spicier territory when their producer argued that she isn't talented.

Ice Spice slander these days warrants an eye-roll in the face of all her success, hits, and clear ability, whether you think she capitalizes on it or not. However, Rory and Mal recently opened up an important yet tough conversation on the circumstances surrounding her meteoric rise. Moreover, the podcast hosts debated whether or not she only got such success because she's of a lighter skin complexion compared to other similarly talented artists. In fact, their producer Demaris argued that she's not even talented enough to warrant all that attention.

"If we saying that colorism doesn’t exist, a dark-skinned girl could never soar the way that fucking Ice Spice did off having zero to no talent," she stated. "Ice Spice has no talent?" Rory replied. "You think Ice Spice is a talented rapper?" Demaris clapped back. "I think she’s a talented person," he said after a pause. "Rap wouldn’t be it, but there’s a talent there." Further on, Demaris said that she's not trying to hate on the "Princess Diana" hitmaker, just that she doesn't like her music. "If she was dark-skinned she would not be as big as she is,” she maintained. “That’s what I said. That’s not taking anything away from her."

Rory & Mal Discuss Colorism & Ice Spice's Success

Regardless of your take, it was quite the interesting debate that nonetheless had people advocating for her talent and skill. However, this wasn't something that just came out of the blue during their conversation in the podcast episode. They addressed comments made online speculating on Ice Spice's invite to the Met Gala as Anna Wintour's special guest. Also, they brought up her recently formed relationship with Kim Kardashian. While it's tough to toe these lines, there's certainly a way to talk earnestly of the social and cultural context of the Bronx star's success (especially when compared to other female rappers) while also not taking away from her positive and musically talented traits.

Meanwhile, we're sure that such comments won't faze the 23-year-old. In fact, even if she "doesn't have talent," she certainly has the will and ability to fix that. "He definitely inspired me to want to record,” she told Paper of his father, who was an underground rapper. “I remember being in the studio with him. I was a toddler, probably. And I remember little flashes. Of course, not every detail, but small things like that being shown to you at such a young age make an impression on you. Subconsciously, I ended up becoming an artist because I saw my father be one first. He’s a music lover himself. He’s a true hip-hop head, beyond me, honestly. He knows everything. He’s always educating me on hip-hop and s**t like that." For the latest on Ice Spice and Rory and Mal, come back to HNHH.

About The Author
Gabriel Bras Nevares is a music and pop culture news writer for HotNewHipHop. He started in 2022 as a weekend writer and, since joining the team full-time, has developed a strong knowledge in hip-hop news and releases. Whether it’s regular coverage or occasional interviews and album reviews, he continues to search for the most relevant news for his audience and find the best new releases in the genre. What excites him the most is finding pop culture stories of interest, as well as a deeper passion for the art form of hip-hop and its contemporary output. Specifically, Gabriel enjoys the fringes of rap music: the experimental, boundary-pushing, and raw alternatives to the mainstream sound. As a proud native of San Juan, Puerto Rico, he also stays up-to-date with the archipelago’s local scene and its biggest musical exponents in reggaetón, salsa, indie, and beyond. Before working at HotNewHipHop, Gabriel produced multiple short documentaries, artist interviews, venue spotlights, and audio podcasts on a variety of genres and musical figures. Hardcore punk and Go-go music defined much of his coverage during his time at the George Washington University in D.C. His favorite hip-hop artists working today are Tyler, The Creator, Boldy James, JPEGMAFIA, and Earl Sweatshirt.
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