OPINION: The Chris Brown and Quavo thing is crazy because it means we have to talk about him and Rihanna again.
It seems like everyone in America is arguing with someone right now. America is the nation of beef. Of course, there’s Trump versus Biden and Trump versus Alvin Bragg, Fani Willis, and Letitia James. It’s sometimes difficult to differentiate between their political or legal battles and the promotion of an upcoming MMA battle. There’s also Drake vs. Kendrick (plus a whole host of characters). It’s Taylor Swift versus Kim Kardashian, which is weird because Kim isn’t a recording artist. We may or may not be done with Megan Thee Stallion vs. Nicki Minaj, who knows? And now we have Chris Brown vs. Quavo. America is a mess.
I think the prevalence of so many different issues indicates that we are a tense and angry nation. We are nervous, divided and stressed. The blood pressure of America’s collective consciousness is sky high and we are lashing out at each other.
Social media makes us want to fight. It’s a cesspool. Trump makes us want to fight. It triggers. America’s troubled future makes us want to fight. Is this the end of the empire? There are many sources of tension and many reasons to want to attack someone.
I understand Drake vs. Kendrick. It’s the product of some alpha males arguing over who is the best rapper in the game. I remember the genesis of Swift vs. Kardashian, but I don’t understand why Swift is unfurling her guns against Kim now, but pass it on pop corn. But I’m stunned by the audacity of Chris Brown to engage in conflict with a song like “Weakest Link.” It’s wild.
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Everyone remembers the worst thing Brown ever did: In 2009, he beat up his then-girlfriend Rihanna. Truly bad. It was a truly horrible moment. It was horrible to see him lash out at her with massive violence. This led to discussions about how he had attacked many women. It shocks me that he was able to pursue a career in entertainment after that, but I saw tweets from young black women saying Chris could beat me. So here we are.
Brown knows the impact that moment had on his life. He said he was tired of people talking about it, which is rich. He knows it’s better for him if people don’t talk about it. He probably hopes that people will forget about him a little. He also knows that in a battle, the first thing your opponent does is bring up everything bad he can say about you. So as soon as he starts going after Quavo, he knows a lot of people will be discussing what he did to Rihanna again.
Of course, in “Over Hoes & Bitches,” Quavo immediately mentioned Rihanna — he referenced assault in the third line of the song. Brown’s propensity for violence against women fuels some of the song’s sharpest lines. “You tried to beat Teyana,” Quavo rhymes when talking about an incident with Teyana Taylor. “But Usher wouldn’t let you / Cocaine got him, your honor / Bipolar disorder, no wonder.” He goes on to call Brown a drug addict.
A big part of a hip-hop battle is saying true things that embarrass your opponent. You bring up things he doesn’t want to talk about. I think if you have something that big and ugly in your past, you don’t need to fight. Is criticizing Quavo worth everyone talking about the Rihanna moment again? It certainly doesn’t seem so.
But this whole battle is a disaster. Quavo reminded us of Brown’s Rihanna moment, which was infuriating. But we also have Brown talking about Quavo being caught on camera being rough with his then-girlfriend Saweetie, which is also infuriating.
Drake vs. Kendrick is ultimately fun to watch. No one is really hurt. Meanwhile, Brown says that when Takeoff died, people wished it had been Quavo. I don’t remember anyone ever saying something like that, but that’s where they are. Their beef is crude, heavy and really petty.
Their beef is no fun. It goes off like hell.
Touré is host and creative director at Grio. He is the host of Masters of the Game on theGrioTV. He is also the host and creator of the docuseries podcast “Being Black: The ’80s” and the animated show “Star Stories with Toure” which you can find at TheGrio.com/starstories. He is also the host of the podcast “Touré Show” and the podcast docuseries “Who Was Prince?” He is the author of eight books, including the Prince biography Nothing Compares 2 U and the e-book The Ivy League Counterfeiter.
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