Ariana Grande & Blackfishing
A Big Blackfish In a Small Pond
Disclaimer: I am a white woman. Please correct me if anything I say is inaccurate, offensive, or misunderstood.
We all know Ariana Grande. The girl gets headlines after headlines written about her, but there should be some that stand out. I don’t mean the Ariana Makes Relationship Officials, I mean the ones that call her out for her blatant disrespect to other cultures and label her as a blackfish. Blackfishing is a recently-coined term which describes people who pretend to be black by using makeup, hair products, and surgery.
Most recently, the star appeared on a Black Lives Matter and Black History Month playlist and made no comment to Spotify on their inclusion of her to the playlist. To listeners, Ariana’s name stood out like a sore thumb because Ariana is not black. She’s not hispanic either. She is an Italian American.
Ariana appeared on these playlists surrounded by talented black artists and in doing so Ariana permitted for a white woman to steal the spotlight from people of color, while also gaining more clout. I’m not saying that Ariana controls Spotify, but I do think her silence is a vital, current example of Ariana profiting off the racial ambiguity that she has created.
You might be thinking “created” seems like a harsh word, but Ariana culturally appropriates in the majority of her aesthetic. Cultural appropriation or when members of a dominant culture take elements from a culture of people who have been systemically oppressed by that dominant group is just the beginning of untangling blackfishing. Ariana crosses the line into blackfishing because she’s not just taking elements from others culture, she is also fronting as a member of this culture.
Awareness of the blackfishing phenomenon began in November of 2018, when a Twitter thread was posted showing white girls cosplaying as black women. It went viral gaining more than 23,000 retweets. We are saying NO thank u, next to this behavior.
The truth of the matter is that most people think that Ariana is Latina, a belief, which I think Ariana promotes, or, at the very least, doesn’t deny. For example, upon accepting Billboard’s 2018 Woman of the Year award, Ariana made a “joke” about inviting everyone to her Quinceñera, instead of something relevant to her own background. Personally, with her relationship background, I think wedding would’ve gotten more laughs.
If you are sitting there yelling at me through your computer, then chances are you are complaining that Ariana’s never claimed her racial background is black, and you’re right. The problem is that she didn’t have to because blackfishing is gradual, often happening right under our noses. Ariana has slowly tanned darker, while also accentuating her features to appear racially ambiguous. Today, she maintains a tan that is several shades darker than Nicki Minaj, an actual black woman.
White individuals, are capitalizing on black or mixed aesthetics in order to gain more revenue, sponsorship deals, and follower count. This also means that these individuals are gaining even more opportunities based on their skin color or their newly adopted — stolen — skin color. People that can pass as different races other than white are securing jobs that people of color could get.
http://journal.arganee.world/2019/327/
Another thing that struck me was to see Ariana on the cover of Vogue with blindingly pale skin, blonde hair, and freckles is shocking. According to Condenast, 76% of Vogue readers have a high income and publishers are accused of providing information to advertisers of their desired audience, which often focuses on white individuals. This shows her choosing when she wants to profit from racial ambiguity since in music she wants to seem black, but when featured on the cover of Vogue, she’s white.
Blackfishes also don’t just change their appearance, they often adopt hairstyles, clothing, and use a “black voice.” As mentioned previously, Ariana has been accused of all of these, but the change in her voice and her use of African American Vernacular English is audibly shocking.
Perhaps one of her most controversial music videos she has released was for “7 Rings” in which Ariana appropriates multiple cultures. The trap house setting and imagery was an initial red flag. She goes on to have a kawaii aesthetic and exploit Japanese and Asian culture as well. Ariana picks aspects of various cultures depending on which will boost her image and profits the most.
Let’s not forget that Ariana’s career began with her white appearance. She didn’t start choosing to appear culturally ambiguous until she already secured stardom. Her claim to fame was done white, when she appears in Vogue she is white, and basically anytime she knows being a woman of color would be difficult. This is the epitome of white privilege. She picks and chooses what race she wants to appear and when.
To me, blackfishing takes cultural appropriation to the next level. When a person blackfishes, they are able to get away with appropriation because people literally don’t realize they’re not a person of color. I cannot imagine how it must feel to see an artist gain through blackfishing. Allowing Ariana to continue this behavior impacts the self-esteem and mental health of black individuals struggling with the already minimal and stereotypical representation of people of color in media.
From here, I hope that people can understand the fine line between cultural appreciation and appropriation. Being a woman of color means bearing all things that come with it. These racist actions often go unaccounted for and that is unacceptable. The change starts with awareness and I hope this will move more people to support actual members of communities such as Black, Latinx, and Arab.