Iggy Azalea is no stranger to controversy but it seems like the white Australian-born rapper has failed to learn from her past. Azalea, 31, who has continually drawn criticism for appropriating black culture ever since she stepped into the Rap scene, is once again being slammed for being racist after her latest music video dropped on July 2.
Ahead of the release of her next album End of an Era, the rapper debuted her new single, "I Am the Stripclub." The track has already climbed the top of the charts but the video is drawing attention for a different reason.
'Blackfishing' Accusations
In the first portion of the video, Azalea is seen with jet-black hair and her skin noticeably several shades darker than her normally fair complexion. In the shot, she is surrounded by Black men dressed in leather as she raps about getting ratchet and twerking.
Azalea was immediately hit with accusations of "blackfishing" – a term that describes the phenomenon of non-Black people "using artificial tanning and makeup to manipulate facial features in order to appear to have some type of Black African ancestry," according to Urban Dictionary.
"White woman of color," wrote one user, while another commented, "she's imitating a black female aesthetic surrounded by a bunch of black people in the background,"
Here are some of the reactions on Twitter:
Azalea Responds to the Accusations
Azalea responded to the "blackfishing" accusations in a series of replies to tweets on the platform, saying that she was wearing the same shade of make-up she has worn for years and that people were "creating an issue" with the fact that she wore a black wig and performed in a dimly-lit room.
"I mean anyone online trying to reach and create an issue because I wore a black wig. Don't even start," she wrote in one tweet, while another read, "Imagine being so upset about a black wig, somehow the same foundation color and tan I've had for years now (with no issue) Is now such a problem you have to pull up an image of me from 7 years ago when I didn't like to tan. the desperation."
Here are some of the tweets:
