f I have to hear one more person say "Macklemore raps about real things, not drugs, money and hoes"{...}When someone says "this is cultural appropriation," when it comes to hiphop, they're pointing out the fact that people are saying: "It's not your words, style, culture or all that other stuff that we don't like, we just don't like you and how you look."

I would argue that this is not cultural appropriation, it's just straight racism, and should be treated as such.

Also, I don't think Forbes, the former business magazine turned clickbait is the sort of place I would go to get my news on popular culture of any kind. Then again, I'm probably not most people (considering I saw this video and asked you about it - not realizing you'd already posted it. I like talking to people who actually know what they're talking about).

It's a genre entrenched in a culture that's had to deal with oppression and suppression for decades. That's where the roots of the genre come from. And it's not like this is the first time it's happened either (Read: Black people jailhouse rock is scary, Elvis jailhouse rock is fuuuun!).

And this is not the first time it has happened to another culture. Read up on the Sarabande. Stolen from the new world, brought to Europe, and considered so salacious as to be outlawed in some places. Everyone wanted to dance their dances, but they were perfectly okay with also using them as slaves and stealing their gold, too.

People hated the Gypsies, and murdered them without consequence, but were glad to steal their music.

Let me be clear: I'm not trying to say that the situation's not fucked up. There's no denying that it is and incredibly so. What I'm saying is that European culture has been doing this systemically for hundreds of years and Black culture is just the latest victim.

In some senses I kick myself about this. Like, what am I expecting you to do with this information? It's cold comfort. The perspective does nothing to improve your situation. I guess I do it because it's the only comfort I can offer. Sorry.