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October 17, 2006
Is Justin recruiting?
Posted by: Chris
It's great to see how hip hop has matured to the point that it's not so much about macho posing to embrace its gay fans. In an interview with Blender magazine where the readers ask the questions, hip hop's top producer Timbaland, was queried about his new single with Justin Timberlake, "SexyBack," in which Timbaland raps to Justin in the chorus: "Go 'head child and get your sexy on."
"I love the song," wrote in a reader from St. Paul, Minn., "but didn't you feel a bit weird telling Justin to 'get his sexy on'?" Timbaland answered:
Not at all. Some people listen to a song like 'SexyBack' and think, am I queer? Am I funny? If you are that way, you're just that way. But if you're a masculine man, embrace it. Have a glass of wine, put the record on, invite your girl over — get sexy. 'Cause you might get some drawers off. Trust me — I know what I'm talking about.
Yeah yeah, I know. Timbaland acts like being gay means you're a flamer and being straight means you're masculine. But aside from that (not so) small point, I'm impressed that he wasn't defensive about the issue and what people might think about his duet with Justin.
Read in the jump how Justin recruits:
I've been a fan of hip hop for years now — not the hyper-testosterone gangsta rap and its obsession with bling and respect — but the hip hop beats that even a (very) white boy like me can groove to. Five years or so ago, I would slip off to Colours, a mixed (race) gay club in Atlanta for its hip hop Fridays to get my freak on to Timbaland's classic stuff with Missy Elliott, and the like. I even went to a TLC concert with my ex. Yes, we stuck out like sore thumbs.
Back in the day, hip hop was overtly homophobic, with crackers like the Beastie Boys and Eminem leading the way. Maybe it was to increase their "street cred," who knows. But over the years it's become less the thing to be anti-gay. The Beastie Boys have gone liberal and come out for homo-tolerance, and Eminem did his (in)famous Grammy duet with Elton. Then last year, rapper Kanye West spoke out against homophobia on an MTV special.
It probably won't make news that Timbaland didn't take the Blender
reader's gay bait, but it's still noteworthy. Interestingly, one media
outlet in the small Eastern European country of Moldova got a bit mixed
up in the translation and reported that Timbaland was claiming the song
could turn a straight man gay, in a report with the priceless headline "Justin Timberlake change mind to
men gay":
Justin Timberlake’s latest single ‘SexyBack’ has the power to make straight men feel gay according to producer Timbaland. Timbaland worked with the Trouser Snake on his new album Future Sex/Love Sounds’ and believes ‘SexyBack’ is so powerful that some men could end up questioning their sexuality.
Speaking to Blender magazine Timbaland said: "Some people listen to a song like “SexyBack” and think, am I queer? Am I funny? If you are that way, you're just that way.
“But if you're a masculine man, embrace it. Have a glass of wine, put the record on and invite your girl over to get sexy."
So, waiting for “SexyBack”, which have the power to turn men gay.
As happy as I am to see hip hop's top producer passing on the opportunity to gay-bait, I'd be as happy with Moldova.org's interpretation as well.
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James on Nov 9, 2010 4:51:35 AM:
I thought we were talking about hip hop no RNB...and "Justin Timberlake’s latest single ‘SexyBack’ has the power to make straight men feel gay" come on you got to be kidding me