Last week social media mega influencer turned reality star turned rap pop star, Cardi B, released her debut album Invasion of Privacy to a great reception from her rabid fans. What followed was a few days of internet critiques and a Saturday Night Live hosting that endeared the Bronx bred Dominican entertainer to millions that might have never heard of Cardi B.
Now they all have.
I’m a true eighties baby, literally born in the first quarter of 1980, and my first album purchase was Nas’ perennial NYC street soundtrack, Illmatic. That brilliant audio manuscript was a callaloo pot of the breakthroughs made by the pioneers that preceded the God’s Son.
Cardi B: Invasion of Privacy [Full Interview] | Beats 1 | Apple Music
Cardi B opens up to Ebro Darden in Miami on April 2 about her debut album, ‘Invasion of Privacy,’ fighting the rumors and staying true to herself. Listen to Cardi B’s new album: ‘Invasion of Privacy’ http://apple.co/CardiBAlbum Apple Music: Millions of songs. Zero ads. No commitment.
Kool G. Rap, Rakim, Main Source, MC Shan, Roxanne Shante and more inspired the creators of my life’s playlist. My reverence for the lyrical dexterity of Biggie Smalls and The Notorious B.I.G. (there is a difference), Jay-Z and Tupac are rooted in homage to the pioneers and that frames my understanding of today’s rap music.
Right around the time, you realized that Puffy didn’t write “No Way Out” and Lil’ Kim probably was a marionette for the swift pen of Christopher Wallace, you should have known the game had officially changed. The music business is just that, a business and the way the game is set up, personalities go way further than raw talent.
Cardi B’s Invasion of Privacy album is one of the big discussions on social media following its release on April 6, and the project has already hit a huge stride. According to the RIAA, the Bronx native’s debut studio LP is already certified gold due to a technicality involving her smash hit, “Bodak Yellow.”
Cardi’s previous No. 1 hit single went five times platinum last year. Since it takes 10 track units to equate to one album sale, “Bodak Yellow” has technically already sold 500,000 units for the project alone, which deems it gold. Chart Data confirmed the news on Twitter by breaking down the technicality. The site also reports that even though the track’s numbers boosted her stats with the RIAA, it won’t count towards her album’s first week sales.
Cardi B: Be Careful (Live) – SNL
Musical guest Cardi B performs “Be Careful” on Saturday Night Live. #SNL #SNL43 Get more SNL: http://www.nbc.com/saturday-night-live Full Episodes: http://www.nbc.com/saturday-night-liv… Like SNL: https://www.facebook.com/snl Follow SNL: https://twitter.com/nbcsnl SNL Tumblr: http://nbcsnl.tumblr.com/ SNL Instagram: http://instagram.com/nbcsnl SNL Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/nbcsnl/
Shortly after Cardi B released her new single Be Careful on Friday, a video allegedly filmed in 2017 surfaced of artist Pardison Fontaine rapping the lyrics to Be Careful over the same beat. This led many to believe Cardi either utilized a ghostwriter for the Invasion of Privacy single or stole the record for her own gain.
Fontaine is the alias of Jordan Thorpe, who is also credited on Cardis Grammy-nominated record Bodak Yellow. Trademark filings show Fontaine and Thorpe are the same individuals, annihilating the ghostwriter theory. Cardi is a product that was birthed from the hustle and flow style organic growth of social media. She should be applauded for not becoming a victim of the Love & Hip Hop franchise but instead finessing it like her smash song with Bruno Mars stated.
Cardi B is 25 years old and was born in 1992. This was the same year that Dr. Dre dropped The Chronic, Eric B. & Rakim released their fourth studio album Don’t Sweat The Technique, and Chi-Ali dropped his only studio album The Fabulous Chi-Ali.
But that’s my era.
The Cardi B generation was fed G-Unit, Kanye West’s initial three-part album opus on why dropping out of college is beneficial, and the dominant Southern strip club sound. A wise person once told me that if someone is ravenously hungry and the world is littered with fast food, then how many people are willing to drive past them all to enter a healthy grocery store or restaurant?
If you are looking for a lyrical ride into the subconscious of the foremost thinkers in the urban collective experience then seek out Killer Mike, Kendrick Lamar, and yes even still Jay-Z and Nas. But when you want to dumb out and catch a vibe, bump that Cardi and shake your old head off for a few.
Dedicated to my trapped in the nineties massive because I’m standing right here with you, guilty pleasures and all.
