ture”37. In a post from the blog CypherLeague, one blogger describes their transition from fan to critic, explaining, “Initially, I thought Brooke Candy’s identity to be edgy -- existing outside of mainstream consciousness -- so she appealed to my radical side. But then, as I began questioning what about her made her seem so crazy, some unsettling social and historical context dawned on me: the colored box braids, long nails, and her use of ebonics are symbols of ‘ratchetness’ ascribed to black women”38 If it is true that any press is good press, Candy’s ability to garner recognition from fans and journalists for her feminism and gay rights activism combined with criticism for her appropriation of black culture gets her on lists with some of the most popular artists of this moment while allowing her to maintain her identity as a rapper. There would likely be more of this kind of criticism of Candy if hip hop spoke more about her at all. Candy is largely unacknowledged by the hip hop industry, and whether this silence is a result of the apparent simplicity of her music, her whiteness, or her representation of the sell-out culture thief that Perry demonizes, her critics and supporters are mostly pop. Brooke Candy is a walking contradiction, but she is a popular one. She refuses to speak to the apparent racial aspect of her performance, opting instead for a progressive message of gender equality and sexual freedom. In an April interview, journalist Ingrid Kesa asked Candy, “Being female and white puts you in the minority in rap. Do people in the industry have preconceived notions about you or not take you seriously because of this?” Candy responded by glorifying her position, explaining, “I have to work ten times harder than someone who immediately springs to mind when you hear the word ‘rapper’, but the reward is much greater... Fuck yo’ prejudice!”39 While this interview predates Candy’s debut “pop” album, it demonstrates the ways in which Candy embodies Jason Rodriguez’s claim that “the mass marketing of racially coded cultural symbols such as hip-hop allows whites to experience a felt similarity with communities of color.”40 Candy claims takes ownership of an identity as a minority in the industry, despite her access to some of its hardest hitters. Without her whiteness, Candy would not have had access to Sia, who has partnered with her to cultivate Candy’s mainstream recognition. Brooke Candy is racially privileged, making her position within a genre characterized by its resistance to racial oppression suspect. Woods asserts, “Many rap listeners are white, middle-class suburbanites, and many are also female,”41 and Brooke Candy demon37 “White Girls That Ain’t Shit.”18 August 2013. http:// irresistible-revolution.tumblr.com/post/58626602947/whitegirls-that-aint-shit 38 Fredburger, Fred. “Das Not You, Brooke Candy.” Cypher League. http://cypherleague.com/das-not-you-brooke-candy 39 Kesa, Ingrid. “Oyster Interview: Brooke Candy.” Oyster. N.p., 6 Apr. 2013. Web. 7 June 2014. . 40 Rodriquez, Jason. “Color-Blind Ideology and the Cultural Appropriation of Hip-Hop.” Journal of Contemporary Ethnography 35.6 (2006): 645-68. Web. Page 649. 41 Woods, Alyssa S. Rap Vocality and the Construction of Identity. Diss. The U of Michigan, 2009. N.p.: n.p., n.d. Print. 8 CONTEXTS 2015 strates what can happen when this generation of color-blind racists find hip hop and call it their own. Works Cited 29 April 2014. .bloodyguts.tumblr.com Candy, Brooke. “Das Me.” Directed by Matthew Bowman and Brooke Candy. 2012. Gallagher, Charles A. Color-Blind Privilege: The Social and Political Functions of Erasing the Color Line in Post-Race America. Fredburger, Fred. “Das Not You, Brooke Candy.” Cypher League. http://cypherleague.com/das-not-you-brooke-candy Glazek, Christopher. “The Rise of the Rapping, Stripping, Snake-Charming Brooke Candy.” Vulture. New York Magazine, 17 Mar. 2013. Web. 24 May 2014. . Grimes. “Genesis.” Directed by Claire Boucher. 2012. Hyland, Véronique. “Brooke Candy in V: ‘Infiltrating’ Pop ‘From the Inside’” New York Magazine: The Cut. N.p., 23 May 2014. Web. 24 May 2014. . Josh. 13 March 2013. kanankids.tumblr.com Kanye West and Jay-Z. “Niggas in Paris.” Def Jam. 2011. Kesa, Ingrid. “Oyster Interview: Brooke Candy.” Oyster. N.p., 6 Apr. 2013. Web. 7 June 2014. . littlekittenbitch.tumblr.com/post/83490642030/thisis-so-powerful Meyers, Owen. “Video Premiere: Brooke Candy “Das Me”” Dazed. N.p., 2013. Web. 1 May 2014. Rickford, John R., Guy Bailey, and John Baugh. African-American English: Structure, History, and Use. Ed. Salikoko S. Mufwene. London: Routledge, 1998. Print. “The People Vs Brooke Candy: Reclaiming The Word ‘Slut’ and Giving Zero Fucks”. Noisey. 8 March 2013. Perry, Imani. “The Venus Hip Hop and the Pink Ghetto: Negotiating Spaces for Women,” Prophets of the Hood: Politics and Poetics in Hip Hop, Duke University Press, 2004: 155-190. Rodriquez, Jason. “Color-Blind Ideology and the Cultural Ap[Continued on page 36]