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This Brad Paisley-LL Cool J duet is a horrible accident, and possibly racist This Brad Paisley-LL Cool J duet is a horrible accident, and possibly racist
(6 months later)
The United States is in need of a serious, prolonged discourse about its historical and still very prevalent racism. Our unwillingness to confront the legacy of slavery, Reconstruction, and Jim Crow leave us profoundly incapable of understanding mass incarceration, wealth/income inequality, health disparities, political disenfranchisement, and the education gap. It's an issue of the utmost importance that requires immediate attention.The United States is in need of a serious, prolonged discourse about its historical and still very prevalent racism. Our unwillingness to confront the legacy of slavery, Reconstruction, and Jim Crow leave us profoundly incapable of understanding mass incarceration, wealth/income inequality, health disparities, political disenfranchisement, and the education gap. It's an issue of the utmost importance that requires immediate attention.
"Accidental Racist" presents a model for exactly how not to start that conversation."Accidental Racist" presents a model for exactly how not to start that conversation.
In what is perhaps the worst musical attempt at racial reconciliation since Paul McCartney and Stevie Wonder teamed up for "Ebony and Ivory", country music star Brad Paisley and hip-hop legend LL Cool J have released a new duet aimed at healing the country's lingering racial divide.In what is perhaps the worst musical attempt at racial reconciliation since Paul McCartney and Stevie Wonder teamed up for "Ebony and Ivory", country music star Brad Paisley and hip-hop legend LL Cool J have released a new duet aimed at healing the country's lingering racial divide.
They meant well. One can't help but walk away from Paisley's crooning "I'm just a white man comin' to you from a south land" and LL's proclamations that "it's real, it's real, it's truth" without feeling they are earnest. Unfortunately, their earnestness is paired with a terribly shallow reading of American racism.They meant well. One can't help but walk away from Paisley's crooning "I'm just a white man comin' to you from a south land" and LL's proclamations that "it's real, it's real, it's truth" without feeling they are earnest. Unfortunately, their earnestness is paired with a terribly shallow reading of American racism.
Paisley sets the scene by recounting a tale of walking into a Starbucks while sporting a T-shirt adorned with the Confederate flag and making one of the employees uncomfortable. He's slightly embarrassed and apologetic, saying:Paisley sets the scene by recounting a tale of walking into a Starbucks while sporting a T-shirt adorned with the Confederate flag and making one of the employees uncomfortable. He's slightly embarrassed and apologetic, saying:
"When I put on that T-shirt, the only thing I meant to say is I'm a [Lynyrd] Skynyrd fan.""When I put on that T-shirt, the only thing I meant to say is I'm a [Lynyrd] Skynyrd fan."
Why he didn't just put on a Skynyrd T-shirt the world may never know, but it's at this moment where Paisley's southern pride runs up against America's racist history and the lesson of this song begins. Because, you see, Paisley is just:Why he didn't just put on a Skynyrd T-shirt the world may never know, but it's at this moment where Paisley's southern pride runs up against America's racist history and the lesson of this song begins. Because, you see, Paisley is just:
"A white man comin' to you from the southland
Tryin' to understand what it's like not to be
I'm proud of where I'm from but not everything we've done
And it ain't like you and me can rewrite history
Our generation didn't start this nation
We're still pickin' up the pieces, walkin' on eggshells, fightin' over yesterday
And caught between southern pride and southern blame."		"A white man comin' to you from the southland
Tryin' to understand what it's like not to be
I'm proud of where I'm from but not everything we've done
And it ain't like you and me can rewrite history
Our generation didn't start this nation
We're still pickin' up the pieces, walkin' on eggshells, fightin' over yesterday
And caught between southern pride and southern blame."
For a moment, let's put aside the fact that Paisley thinks our biggest problem is fighting over past injustices, as opposed to the present-day reality of racism. The title of the song is "Accidental Racist" but nothing here implies any sort of accident. Intentionally embracing the explicitly racist cultural artifacts of one's history doesn't qualify you as an "accidental" racist. It may not even necessarily make you a "purposeful" racist. It does make you a bit of a jackass.For a moment, let's put aside the fact that Paisley thinks our biggest problem is fighting over past injustices, as opposed to the present-day reality of racism. The title of the song is "Accidental Racist" but nothing here implies any sort of accident. Intentionally embracing the explicitly racist cultural artifacts of one's history doesn't qualify you as an "accidental" racist. It may not even necessarily make you a "purposeful" racist. It does make you a bit of a jackass.
Which is fine: jackasses have their place in world like anyone else. Paisley's white man woes aren't the worst aspect of this song. That's reserved for LL Cool J's turn as his official black friend, swooping in to forgive and forget without so much as a first thought. It's true that politics and racial justice have never been staples in LL's music; Chuck D he's not. But the level of false equivalence he traffics in is typically reserved for black Republicans making a run for president. The NCIS: Los Angeles star rhymes:Which is fine: jackasses have their place in world like anyone else. Paisley's white man woes aren't the worst aspect of this song. That's reserved for LL Cool J's turn as his official black friend, swooping in to forgive and forget without so much as a first thought. It's true that politics and racial justice have never been staples in LL's music; Chuck D he's not. But the level of false equivalence he traffics in is typically reserved for black Republicans making a run for president. The NCIS: Los Angeles star rhymes:
"If you don't judge my do rag
I won't judge your red flag
If you don't judge my gold chains
I'll forget the iron chains."		"If you don't judge my do rag
I won't judge your red flag
If you don't judge my gold chains
I'll forget the iron chains."
All this without any trace of irony or awareness that he just traded amnesia of grave injustices and dehumanization for a hair maintenance product. (Also keep in mind that at this point in the song, he's alternating lyrics with Paisley who is singing "Dixie".) By the time he gives a shoutout to Confederate general Robert E Lee, and thanks Abraham Lincoln for freeing him, you may be filled with a deep desire to sit LL down with a copy of The Autobiography of Malcolm X.All this without any trace of irony or awareness that he just traded amnesia of grave injustices and dehumanization for a hair maintenance product. (Also keep in mind that at this point in the song, he's alternating lyrics with Paisley who is singing "Dixie".) By the time he gives a shoutout to Confederate general Robert E Lee, and thanks Abraham Lincoln for freeing him, you may be filled with a deep desire to sit LL down with a copy of The Autobiography of Malcolm X.
Perhaps I am being too harsh on them: in spite of the song's many shortcomings – or rather, because of them – these two have done us a favor. Their sonic mishap provides us a glimpse into the popular understanding of racism and reveals how far we still have to go in order to reach an adequate starting point.Perhaps I am being too harsh on them: in spite of the song's many shortcomings – or rather, because of them – these two have done us a favor. Their sonic mishap provides us a glimpse into the popular understanding of racism and reveals how far we still have to go in order to reach an adequate starting point.
Racism isn't, as Paisley and Cool J would have us believe, about not getting along or judging books by their covers. It's a part of America's ruling ideology and has actual policy implications that affect the daily lives of black and brown people in this country. Ignoring that in favor of focusing on interpersonal relations is part of the reason racism persists.Racism isn't, as Paisley and Cool J would have us believe, about not getting along or judging books by their covers. It's a part of America's ruling ideology and has actual policy implications that affect the daily lives of black and brown people in this country. Ignoring that in favor of focusing on interpersonal relations is part of the reason racism persists.
I don't expect that a country-hip-hop-pop-fusion ballad would be able to fully deal with the complexities of that reality, but I would also hope it wouldn't further obscure the issue. Unfortunately, if offered uncritically, that is exactly what "Accidental Racist" does.I don't expect that a country-hip-hop-pop-fusion ballad would be able to fully deal with the complexities of that reality, but I would also hope it wouldn't further obscure the issue. Unfortunately, if offered uncritically, that is exactly what "Accidental Racist" does.
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